Publication Ethics

The Journal of Social Work in Developing Societies (JSWDS) upholds the highest ethical practices and scholarly integrity standards in all publishing operations. This statement outlines the expectations for all parties involved in the publication process, including the authors, the editorial board, the peer reviewers, and the publisher. Adherence to these ethical guidelines is crucial to ensure the quality and reliability of published research.

1. Responsibilities of the Editors

• Fair Play: Editors must evaluate manuscripts for their intellectual content without regard to the authors' race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, or political philosophy.
• Confidentiality: Editors must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, and the publisher.
• Decision-Making: Editors are responsible for deciding which of the submitted manuscripts should be published based on the validity, significance, originality, and clarity of the work, as well as its relevance to the journal's scope.
• Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Editors must avoid any situation involving a conflict of interest concerning articles they reject or accept.

2. Responsibilities of Reviewers

• Contribution to Editorial Decisions: Peer reviews assist the editors in making editorial decisions and may help the author improve the paper.
• Promptness: Reviewers should notify the editor and excuse themselves from the review process if they feel unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or know they cannot provide a prompt review.
• Confidentiality: Manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents and not be shown to or discussed with others except as authorised by the editor.
• Objectivity: Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate, and referees should express their views clearly with supporting arguments.
• Acknowledgement of Sources: Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation.

3. Responsibilities of Authors

• Reporting Standards: Authors should present an accurate account of the work performed and objectively discuss its significance. The paper should also accurately represent underlying data.
• Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must ensure they have written original works. If the authors have used the work and words of others, this must be appropriately cited or quoted.
• Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication: Authors should not submit the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently. Such behaviour is considered unethical publishing behaviour and is unacceptable.
• Acknowledgement of Sources: Authors should acknowledge all data sources used in the research and cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work.
• Authorship of the Paper: Authorship should be limited to those who have contributed significantly to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors.

4. Handling of Unethical Publishing Behaviour

• In cases of alleged or proven scientific misconduct, fraudulent publication, or plagiarism, the publisher, in close collaboration with the editors, will take all appropriate measures to clarify the situation and to amend the article in question. This includes the prompt publication of an erratum or, in the most severe cases, the retraction of the affected work.

5. Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections

• The journal encourages scholarly debate and constructive criticism of published work. If significant errors are discovered that affect the scientific record's content, understanding, or credibility, corrections are made free of charge to authors.