Publication Ethics

The Journal of Al-Ma'moon College, published by Al-Ma'moon University College, Republic of Iraq, is committed to the principles of academic integrity, transparency, objectivity, and responsibility in scholarly research and publication.

The journal evaluates submitted research papers according to established academic and scientific standards, taking into consideration the originality of the research, the quality of its methodology, the accuracy and clarity of its presentation, and its alignment with the journal's aims, scope, and publication requirements.

Publication ethics is a shared responsibility among authors, reviewers, the Editor-in-Chief, the Editorial Board, and the publisher. All parties are expected to adhere to recognized professional and ethical standards in academic publishing.

1. General Principles

The Journal of Al-Ma'moon College adheres to the following principles:

Editorial decisions are based on the scholarly value, originality, methodological quality, clarity, and relevance of the research paper to the journal's scope.
The journal maintains the independence of its editorial decisions and does not permit personal, institutional, or financial considerations to influence the evaluation, peer-review, or publication process.
The journal maintains the confidentiality of unpublished research papers, editorial correspondence, peer-review reports, and the personal information of authors and reviewers.
The journal addresses complaints, appeals, and allegations concerning research and publication ethics in a serious, fair, and appropriate manner.
The journal is committed to maintaining the integrity of the published scholarly record and taking appropriate action when errors or ethical violations are identified.

2. Responsibilities of the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board

The Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board are responsible for:

Conducting an initial editorial assessment of submitted research papers to ensure that they fall within the journal's scope and meet the basic scientific, methodological, and ethical requirements.
Making editorial decisions regarding acceptance, revision, or rejection based on the editorial assessment, peer-review results, and established academic standards.
Selecting qualified reviewers whose expertise is appropriate to the subject matter of the research paper.
Avoiding actual or potential conflicts of interest when selecting reviewers or making editorial decisions.
Maintaining the confidentiality of submitted research papers and not disclosing their contents or information except to individuals authorized to participate in the editorial process.
Not using unpublished information, data, or ideas contained in submitted research papers for personal or research purposes.
Disclosing any actual or potential conflict of interest that may affect editorial impartiality and, when necessary, withdrawing from handling the research paper.
Ensuring fair and equal treatment of all authors and reviewers.
Considering reviewers' reports objectively and disregarding recommendations that contain bias, personal criticism, offensive language, or scientifically unjustified demands.
Handling allegations of plagiarism, data manipulation, authorship disputes, duplicate publication, and other forms of research or publication misconduct confidentially and professionally.
Taking appropriate action to correct the published scholarly record when errors or ethical violations are identified after publication.

3. Responsibilities of the Publisher

Al-Ma'moon University College, as the publisher of the journal, supports the independence of the Editorial Board in scientific and editorial decision-making.

The publisher's responsibilities include:

Providing the necessary administrative and technical support for manuscript submission, peer review, editorial management, and publication.
Supporting the implementation of research and publication ethics policies.
Supporting appropriate procedures for investigating allegations of publication misconduct when necessary.
Providing clear information regarding the journal's policies, authors' rights, and procedures for complaints and appeals.
Supporting measures that preserve the accuracy of published content and the integrity of the journal's scholarly record.

4. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are required to:

Submit original research that has not been previously published and is not under consideration by another journal or publisher at the same time.
Present research data, procedures, and findings accurately and objectively.
Refrain from fabricating, falsifying, omitting, distorting, or manipulating data.
Properly acknowledge and cite all sources, quotations, data, materials, and tools used in the research.
Avoid plagiarism, duplicate publication, unauthorized self-plagiarism, and all forms of research misconduct.
Verify the accuracy of references and sources and refrain from including fabricated, false, or non-existent references.
Include as authors only individuals who have made genuine and substantial scholarly contributions to the research.
Ensure that all authors have approved the submitted version, the order of authorship, and the designation of the corresponding author.
Disclose sources of funding, financial support, or institutional support, where applicable.
Disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest.
Obtain the necessary ethical and institutional approvals for research involving human participants or personal data, where required.
Protect participants' privacy and confidentiality and obtain informed consent where applicable.
Respond to reviewers' and editors' comments in a scientific and professional manner.
Retain the original research data and make it available for verification when reasonably required, subject to privacy and confidentiality requirements.
Promptly notify the journal if a significant error is discovered in the research after submission or publication and cooperate in taking appropriate corrective action.
Disclose the use of generative artificial intelligence tools in accordance with the journal's AI policy.

5. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers are expected to:

Accept review assignments only when the research paper falls within their area of expertise and scholarly competence.
Decline the review when they lack the appropriate expertise or cannot complete the review within the specified period.
Evaluate research papers objectively, independently, and without personal or institutional bias.
Provide clear, specific, constructive, and scientifically sound comments that assist the Editorial Board in making an appropriate decision.
Avoid offensive, personal, discriminatory, or unprofessional language in review reports.
Maintain the confidentiality of the research paper and all information associated with it.
Not use unpublished ideas, data, findings, or other information contained in a research paper for personal or research benefit.
Disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest involving the authors or the subject matter of the research.
Notify the Editorial Board if they suspect plagiarism, duplicate publication, data manipulation, or substantial unexplained similarity.
Not require authors to cite the reviewer's own work or the work of others unless such citations are directly relevant and scientifically necessary to the research.
Not upload unpublished research papers or their content or data to artificial intelligence tools or external platforms in a manner that could compromise the confidentiality of the research or the rights of its authors.

6. Research Ethics Involving Human Participants

Research involving human participants or personal data must comply with applicable ethical principles designed to protect participants' rights, safety, privacy, and confidentiality.

Where applicable, authors must:

Obtain approval from a research ethics committee or the relevant institutional authority.
Obtain informed consent from participants or their legal guardians, where required.
Explain the nature of participation and the participants' right to withdraw from the research where applicable.
Protect participants' identities and maintain the confidentiality of their data.
Provide additional safeguards for children and vulnerable groups according to the nature of the research.
State the relevant ethical approval and informed consent in the research paper, or explain why such approval or consent was not required when applicable.

7. Plagiarism and Textual Similarity

Plagiarism and all forms of academic misconduct involving the unauthorized use of another person's work constitute violations of research and publication ethics.

Authors must properly acknowledge all sources and quotations and must not reproduce ideas, data, or text without appropriate attribution.

Submitted research papers may be screened for textual similarity using the system adopted by the journal or the relevant institution.

The journal does not rely solely on a numerical similarity percentage when evaluating a research paper. Instead, it considers the nature, sources, extent, and context of the identified similarities, the manner in which sources are cited, and their potential effect on the originality of the research.

If unjustified similarity is identified before publication, the journal may request revisions or reject the research paper depending on the nature and seriousness of the violation. Violations identified after publication will be addressed through appropriate procedures intended to preserve the integrity of the scholarly record.

8. Duplicate or Concurrent Publication

Authors must not submit the same research paper to more than one journal or publisher simultaneously.
A research paper that has been previously published, in whole or in part, must not be republished without appropriate disclosure of the previous publication and a legitimate scholarly justification.
Authors must disclose any previously published research paper, conference paper, thesis, dissertation, or repository version that is directly related to the submitted research.
If the submitted research is an extension or development of previously published work, the authors must clearly explain the new scholarly contribution and the differences from the previous work.
Authors must not artificially divide a single study into multiple research papers for the purpose of increasing the number of publications.
Concurrent submission, duplicate publication, or concealment of previous publication constitutes a violation of publication ethics.

9. Authorship and Scholarly Contributions

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial scholarly contributions to the research.
All authors must approve the final version submitted for publication.
All authors share responsibility for the integrity of the published work.
Authorship must not be granted for administrative, professional, personal, or honorary reasons, or in exchange for support that does not constitute a substantial scholarly contribution.
Contributions that do not meet the criteria for authorship may be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section, where appropriate.
Requests to add, remove, or change the order of authors before publication must be supported by a clear justification, the agreement of the affected authors, and review by the Editorial Board.

10. Conflicts of Interest

Authors, reviewers, the Editor-in-Chief, and Editorial Board members must disclose any financial, professional, academic, institutional, or personal relationship that may influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the objectivity of the research, the peer-review process, or an editorial decision.

When a reviewer or editor has a conflict of interest, they should decline to handle the research paper and, where possible, the paper should be assigned to an independent alternative.

The existence of a disclosed conflict of interest does not necessarily constitute grounds for rejection of a research paper; rather, it should be transparently disclosed and appropriately managed.

11. Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools

The Journal of Al-Ma'moon College supports the responsible and transparent use of artificial intelligence tools in scholarly research.

Authors are required to:

Disclose the use of generative artificial intelligence tools in preparing, editing, translating, analyzing data, or generating any part of the research content when such use has a material impact on the work.
Identify the AI tool and describe its purpose of use when appropriate.
Not list artificial intelligence tools as authors or co-authors.
Assume full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, integrity, data, references, analyses, and conclusions presented in the research.
Not use artificial intelligence to fabricate data, results, or references, or to manipulate scholarly content in a misleading manner.
Reviewers and editors must not use artificial intelligence tools in a manner that could compromise the confidentiality of unpublished research papers or the rights of their authors.

12. Handling Allegations of Misconduct

The journal takes allegations of research or editorial misconduct seriously and handles them confidentially and fairly, whether they arise before or after publication.

Depending on the nature of the case, the procedures may include:

Conducting an initial assessment of the allegation and the available evidence.
Giving the relevant parties an opportunity to provide explanations and responses.
Consulting an independent expert or contacting the researcher's affiliated institution when necessary.
Maintaining confidentiality and refraining from publicizing unsubstantiated allegations.
Reaching decisions based on the available evidence and the nature and seriousness of the alleged violation.
Rejecting the research paper, requesting corrections, or suspending the publication process when misconduct is established before publication.
Publishing a correction, an Expression of Concern, or a retraction notice when misconduct is established after publication.
Notifying the appropriate authority or relevant institution when the circumstances warrant such action.

13. Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions

The journal is committed to maintaining the integrity of the published scholarly record and may take the following actions when necessary:

Correction

The journal may publish a correction when an error is identified in a published research paper that does not invalidate its principal findings or conclusions but requires clarification or amendment of the published record.

Expression of Concern

The journal may publish an Expression of Concern when serious concerns exist regarding the reliability or integrity of a research paper and the available evidence or investigation is not yet sufficient to reach a final decision.

Retraction

The journal may retract a research paper when its findings are determined to be unreliable because of a substantial error, fabrication, falsification, data manipulation, plagiarism, duplicate publication, or a serious ethical violation.

Correction, Expression of Concern, and retraction notices should be clearly identified and electronically linked to the original research paper to maintain transparency and preserve the integrity of the journal's scholarly record.

14. Complaints and Appeals

The Journal of Al-Ma'moon College accepts complaints concerning editorial, peer-review, or ethical procedures and allows authors to submit a reasoned appeal against an editorial decision in accordance with the journal's established procedures.

Complaints and appeals are reviewed fairly and confidentially. Where possible, an appeal or complaint should be considered by an individual who was not directly involved in the original decision.

Submitting an appeal does not guarantee that the editorial decision will be changed. However, a good-faith complaint or appeal must not result in unfair treatment of the author in future interactions with the journal.

Journal Commitment

The Journal of Al-Ma'moon College reaffirms its commitment to academic integrity, transparency, and responsibility throughout all stages of the publication process. The journal seeks to maintain the quality, credibility, and integrity of the published scholarly record and to promote an academic environment based on respect, objectivity, fairness, and professional conduct.

The Journal of Al-Ma'moon College is published annually as a peer-reviewed, open-access scholarly journal by Al-Ma'moon University College, Republic of Iraq.