Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences (JOPAS)

JOPAS is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and follows the guidelines and best practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). All parties involved in the publication process — authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher — are expected to adhere to the ethical principles outlined below.

1. Duties of Authors

1.1 Originality and Plagiarism

Authors must ensure that their work is entirely original and that any work or words of others are properly cited and referenced. Plagiarism in all its forms constitutes unethical publishing behaviour and is unacceptable.

1.2 Data Access and Retention

Authors are required to provide raw data related to their manuscript for editorial review if requested. They should be prepared to retain such data for a reasonable period after publication.

1.3 Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication

Authors must not publish manuscripts describing essentially the same research in more than one journal. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behaviour.

1.4 Acknowledgement of Sources

Proper acknowledgment of the work of others must always be given. Authors should cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work.

1.5 Authorship of the Paper

Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. All co-authors must have seen and approved the final version of the manuscript and agreed to its submission for publication.

1.6 Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest

Authors must disclose any financial or other substantive conflict of interest that might be construed to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial support for the project should be disclosed.

1.7 Fundamental Errors in Published Works

If an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in their own published work, they must promptly notify the journal editor and cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the paper.

2. Duties of Editors

2.1 Fair Play and Impartiality

Editors should evaluate manuscripts for their intellectual content without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy of the authors.

2.2 Confidentiality

Editors must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, and the publisher, as appropriate.

2.3 Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest

Editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships with any of the authors.

2.4 Publication Decisions

Editors are responsible for deciding which manuscripts submitted to the journal should be published. Such decisions must be based on the manuscript's importance, originality, clarity, and relevance to the journal's scope.

2.5 Involvement and Cooperation in Investigations

Editors should take responsive measures when ethical concerns are raised regarding a submitted or published manuscript. They will pursue alleged misconduct through COPE guidelines and notify relevant institutions.

3. Duties of Reviewers

3.1 Contribution to Editorial Decisions

Peer review assists editors in making editorial decisions and may also assist authors in improving their manuscripts. Reviewers provide objective, constructive feedback to help the journal maintain high quality.

3.2 Promptness

Reviewers who feel unqualified to review the research or cannot provide a timely review should notify the editor promptly and decline to participate in the review process.

3.3 Confidentiality

Manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to or discussed with others except as authorized by the editor.

3.4 Standards of Objectivity

Reviews should be conducted objectively and observations should be formulated clearly with supporting arguments. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate.

3.5 Acknowledgement of Sources

Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement of an observation, derivation, or argument that has been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation.

3.6 Disclosure and Conflict of Interest

Reviewers must not review manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest. They should immediately inform the editor of any potential conflicts and recuse themselves from the review process.

4. Handling of Unethical Behaviour

JOPAS takes all allegations of unethical behaviour seriously. In accordance with COPE guidelines, the journal will:

• Investigate all reported ethical concerns promptly and thoroughly
• Maintain confidentiality during investigations
• Give all parties an opportunity to respond to allegations
• Take appropriate corrective action, including retraction, correction, or expression of concern
• Report serious cases of misconduct to the relevant institutional authorities

5. Plagiarism Screening

All manuscripts submitted to JOPAS are screened for plagiarism using appropriate detection software. Manuscripts found to contain significant plagiarism will be rejected. For minor overlaps, authors will be asked to revise or properly cite the source material.

6. Retraction and Corrections

• Retractions: Articles will be retracted in cases of scientific misconduct, major errors, duplicate publication, or unethical research
• Corrigenda: Minor errors that do not affect the scientific integrity of the article will be corrected via a published corrigendum
• Expressions of Concern: The editor may issue an expression of concern when there is evidence of potential misconduct that warrants investigation

7. Data and Reproducibility

JOPAS encourages authors to make their research data available in a public repository to promote reproducibility. Authors should include a data availability statement in their manuscript.

8. Complaints and Appeals

JOPAS follows COPE guidelines for handling complaints and appeals. All complaints will be acknowledged promptly and handled by the editorial team in a fair and transparent manner. Appeals against editorial decisions should be directed in writing to the Editor-in-Chief.

9. Ethical Oversight

Research involving human subjects, animal subjects, or sensitive data must have received approval from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board. Authors must include a statement of ethical approval in their manuscript.

---

Last Updated: July 2026
JOPAS Editorial Team