Ethical Principles

The publication processes implemented by the Amasya Theology Journal form the foundation for the impartial and reputable development and dissemination of knowledge. The processes applied in this regard directly reflect the quality of the work produced by authors and the institutions supporting them. Peer-reviewed studies are those that embody and support the scientific method. At this point, it is crucial that all stakeholders in the process (authors, readers and researchers, publishers, reviewers, and editors) adhere to standards regarding ethical principles. Within the scope of publication ethics, the Amasya Theology Journal expects all stakeholders to uphold the following ethical responsibilities.

The ethical duties and responsibilities listed below have been prepared in accordance with the guidelines and policies published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the Principles of Ethical Conduct for Higher Education Institutions.

The publication of an article in a peer-reviewed journal is a necessary cornerstone for the development of a coherent and respected knowledge network. This is a direct reflection of the quality of the work of the authors and the institutions supporting them. Peer-reviewed articles support and shape scientific methods. Therefore, reaching a consensus on the standards of expected ethical conduct is crucial for all parties involved in the publication process—authors, journal editors, reviewers, and publishing organizations. 

Actions Contrary to Scientific Research and Publication Ethics
a) Plagiarism: Presenting the ideas, methods, data, applications, writings, figures, or works of others as one's own, in whole or in part, without proper scientific attribution to the original authors.
b) Fabrication: Producing data that is not based on research, editing or altering a submitted or published work based on false data, reporting or publishing such data, presenting research that has not been conducted as if it had been conducted,
c) Distortion: Tampering with research records and obtained data, presenting methods, devices, and materials not used in the research as if they had been used, excluding data that does not fit the research hypothesis from evaluation, manipulating data and/or results to fit relevant theories or assumptions, distorting or shaping research results in line with the interests of the individuals and organizations providing support,
ç) Duplicate publication: Presenting multiple works containing the same results of a research as separate works in associate professorship examination evaluations and academic promotions,
d) Salami slicing: Presenting the results of a study as separate works in associate professorship examination evaluations and academic promotions by dividing them into parts in an inappropriate manner that disrupts the integrity of the study and publishing them in numerous publications without cross-referencing each other,
e) Unfair authorship: Including individuals who have not made an active contribution among the authors, not including individuals who have made an active contribution among the authors, changing the order of authors without justification and in an inappropriate manner, removing the names of those who have made an active contribution from the work during publication or in subsequent editions, including one's name among the authors by using one's influence despite not having made an active contribution,

Other types of ethical violations include:
a) Failing to acknowledge the individuals, institutions, or organisations that provided support for research conducted with such support, or failing to acknowledge their contributions in publications resulting from such research,
b) Using theses or studies that have not yet been submitted or defended and accepted as a source without the permission of the owner,
c) Sharing information contained in a work assigned for review with others prior to publication without the express permission of the author,
ç) Using resources, premises, facilities, and equipment provided or allocated for scientific research for purposes other than those intended,
d) Making unfounded, inappropriate, and deliberate allegations of ethical violations,
e) Publishing data obtained without the explicit consent of participants in surveys and attitude studies conducted as part of scientific work, or without the additional permission of the institution if the research is to be conducted at an institution,
f) Failure to comply with the obligation to inform and warn those concerned about possible harmful practices related to scientific research conducted by researchers and officials,
g) In scientific studies, failing to use data and information obtained from other persons and institutions to the extent and in the manner authorised, failing to respect the confidentiality of this information and failing to ensure its protection,
h) Making false or misleading statements regarding scientific research and publications in academic appointments and promotions,

Principles of Research Ethics
• In the stages of designing research processes, establishing the methodological framework, conducting ethical evaluations, and carrying out research activities, scientific integrity, a holistic approach, quality, and transparency must serve as the foundation. All stages of the research must be systematically documented and made available for review when necessary.
• The research team and individuals participating in the study must be informed in a clear, understandable, and comprehensive manner about the research’s purpose, scope, methodology, data collection techniques, analysis processes, and the intended uses of the findings. Participants must be clearly informed about the responsibilities, potential risks, and expected contributions associated with participating in the research.
• The confidentiality of all data obtained from participants must be protected; necessary technical and administrative measures must be taken to prevent the disclosure of identifying information. The principles of anonymity and privacy must be upheld, and data processing procedures must comply with applicable data protection legislation. The research design must be structured to safeguard individuals’ autonomy, human dignity, and fundamental rights.
• Participation in research must be entirely voluntary; participants must not be subjected to any form of pressure, coercion, or expectation of benefit. It must be clearly stated that participants have the right to withdraw from the study at any stage without facing any penalties or adverse consequences.
• All necessary measures must be taken to ensure that participants do not suffer physical, psychological, social, or economic harm during the research process. In this context, a risk assessment must be conducted in advance, and the research must be planned to minimize potential harm. In particular, when children, individuals with disabilities, or those with limited decision-making capacity are involved, consent must be obtained from legal guardians, and approval from the relevant ethics committees must be secured.
• Researchers are obligated to maintain their scientific independence. Any potential conflicts of interest that could influence the study design, data analysis, or results must be disclosed in a clear and transparent manner. Additionally, financial support, sponsorships, and institutional relationships related to the research must be clearly stated.
• If the research is conducted within a public institution, private organization, or university, the necessary official permissions must be obtained from the relevant institutions; where deemed necessary, the process must be conducted within this framework after obtaining ethics committee approval.

Authors’ Responsibilities
1. Reporting Standards: The authors of the original research must ensure that the work and its results are accurately presented and that the significance of the work is discussed objectively. The manuscript proposal must include sufficient detail and references.

2. Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must submit entirely original works, and if they have used the work or words of others, these must be properly cited. Plagiarism, in all its forms, constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.

3. Multiple, Duplicate, Redundant, or Simultaneous Submission/Publication: Authors must not submit an article for consideration that has already been published in another journal. Submitting an article to multiple journals simultaneously constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.

4. Authorship of the Article: Only individuals who meet the authorship criteria should be listed as authors in the manuscript. These authorship criteria are as follows:
- contributed to the design, implementation, data collection, or analysis stages,
- prepared the manuscript, provided significant intellectual contributions, or critically revised it,
- has reviewed the final version of the manuscript, approved it, and agreed to its submission for publication.
The corresponding author must ensure that all authors (as defined above) are included in the author list and must declare that the authors have reviewed the final version of the manuscript and agreed to its submission for publication.

5. Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Authors must disclose any conflicts of interest at the earliest possible stage (typically by submitting a disclosure form at the time of manuscript submission and including a statement in the manuscript). All sources of financial support for the study must be disclosed (including grant/funding numbers or other reference numbers, if applicable).

6. Peer Review Process: Authors are obligated to participate in the peer review process and are required to fully cooperate by promptly responding to editors’ requests for raw data, clarifications, evidence of ethical approval, and copyright permissions. If a decision of “revision required” is initially made, authors must systematically review their manuscripts in accordance with the reviewers’ comments and resubmit them by the specified deadline.

7. Fundamental Errors in Published Works: If authors discover significant errors or inaccuracies in their published works, they are obligated to immediately notify the journal editors or publishers and to cooperate with them to correct the article via an erratum or to retract the article. If an editor or publisher learns from a third party that a published work contains a significant error or inaccuracy, the author must be required to immediately correct or retract the article or provide evidence of the article’s accuracy to the journal’s editors.

Responsibilities of Reviewers
1. Contribution to Editorial Decisions: Reviewers assist editors in making editorial decisions and help authors improve their manuscripts through editorial communication. They should point out any deficiencies in the manuscript, such as missing references, sources, citations, or adherence to guidelines.

2. Timeliness: A reviewer who does not feel qualified to review a manuscript or who knows that the review cannot be completed on time must immediately notify the editors and decline the invitation to review, thereby ensuring that a new reviewer is assigned.

3. Confidentiality: All article proposals submitted for review are confidential documents and must be treated as such. They should not be shown to or discussed with others without authorization from the editor. This also applies to reviewers who decline the review invitation.

4. Standards of Impartiality: Comments regarding the manuscript proposal must be made impartially, and suggestions should be provided in a manner that authors can use to improve the manuscript. Personal criticism directed at the authors is inappropriate.

5. Citation of Sources: Reviewers must identify relevant published works that have not been cited by the authors. The reviewer must also notify the editor of any significant similarities between the manuscript under review and any other article (published or unpublished).

6. Conflicts of Interest: Conflicts of interest must be disclosed to the editor. There should be no conflict of interest between the reviewers and the stakeholders of the article under review.

Responsibilities of Editors
1. Impartiality and Editorial Independence: Editors evaluate submitted manuscript proposals based on their relevance to the journal’s scope and the importance and originality of the work. Editors do not consider the race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic origin, nationality, or political views of the authors submitting the manuscript proposal. No other institutions may influence the decision to revise or publish outside the journal’s editorial board. Editors ensure that published issues contribute to readers, researchers, practitioners, and the scientific community and maintain originality.

2. Independence: The relationship between the editors (Editor and Associate Editors) and the publisher is based on the principle of editorial independence. According to the written agreement between the editors and the publisher, all decisions made by the editors are independent of the publisher and the journal owner. Editors must reject incomplete or flawed research that does not comply with journal policy, publication guidelines, and standards without any external influence.

3. Confidentiality: Editors do not share information regarding a submitted manuscript with anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, and the editorial board. They ensure that manuscripts are evaluated by at least two reviewers under a double-blind peer review system and keep the identities of the reviewers confidential.

4. Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Editors and members of the editorial board shall not use unpublished information from a submitted manuscript for their own research purposes without the authors’ explicit written consent. Editors must not have any conflicts of interest regarding manuscripts they accept or reject.

5. Publication Decision: Editors ensure that all articles accepted for publication undergo peer review by at least two experts in the field. Editors are responsible for deciding which of the articles submitted to the journal will be published, based on the validity of the work, its importance to researchers and readers, the reviewers’ comments, and other relevant legal requirements.

6. Ethical Concerns: Editors will take action when ethical concerns arise regarding a submitted manuscript or a published article. They continue their work processes without compromising intellectual property rights or ethical standards. Any reported unethical publishing behavior will be investigated, even if it emerges years after publication. Editors follow the COPE Flowcharts when ethical concerns arise. Depending on the severity of the ethical issues, corrections or retractions may be applied, or concerns regarding the matter may be published in the journal.

7. Collaboration with Editorial Boards: Editors ensure that all members of the advisory board conduct their work in accordance with publication policies and guidelines. They provide advisory board members with information regarding publication policies. They ensure that advisory board members evaluate their work independently. They may contribute to the selection of new advisory board members and make appropriate decisions. They maintain regular communication with the advisory board. They organize regular meetings with the editorial board regarding publication policies and journal development.

Publication Policy

The Amasya Theology Journal is published by Amasya University.

The Amasya Theology Journal is a national peer-reviewed journal published electronically in June and December; it is free, open access, and adheres to double-blind peer review principles.

Articles to be published in the journal must primarily be original and academic works prepared using research methods appropriate to their respective fields.

Additionally, translations, book reviews, and evaluations that contribute to the scientific field are also accepted. For the publication of translated works, a written permission from the institution that published the original work must be submitted.

Articles in all publication categories—including research, review, critical analysis, and translation—are sent to two referees.

For articles with two or more authors, the authors’ contribution ratios must be specified.

If the published work is derived from a thesis, this must be stated on the first page of the article in both Turkish and English.

For articles to be published in the Amasya Theology Journal, they must not have been previously published elsewhere or accepted for publication.

A maximum of one work by the same author may be published in a single issue.

Those serving as subject editors on the journal’s editorial board may submit manuscripts to the journal; however, they may not serve on the editorial board during the period in which their manuscript is under review.

Language of Publication
The language of publication for the Amasya Theology Journal is Turkish. Articles must include an English title, an abstract (300–500 words), keywords (5–8 terms), and a reference list prepared in the ISNAD citation style.
However, articles written in English and Arabic may also be included, provided they do not exceed one-third of the journal’s content in each issue.
The Editorial Board decides on the acceptance of works in other languages.
Articles written in Arabic must include a Turkish-English title, Abstract, Keywords, and Summary, as well as a bibliography in Arabic and another bibliography written using the Latin alphabet. All Arabic text must be in the ‘Traditional Arabic’ font, 12-point; footnotes must be in 10-point.
Articles written in English must include a Turkish title, Abstract, and Keywords.

Publication Frequency
Amasya Theology Journal is a peer-reviewed journal published twice a year (June 30 – December 30). (Manuscript Submission Deadlines: January 15–April 15 for the June 30 issue; July 15–October 15 for the December 30 issue). A decision regarding whether submitted manuscripts will be published is made within 2–4 months of the submission deadline, and the author is notified. 

Fee Policy
The Amasya Theology Journal is an open-access journal and does not charge authors at any stage of the publication process. Authors whose works are published are not paid royalties. In accordance with our publication policies, the journal also does not accept sponsorships or advertisements. All expenses of the journal are covered by the Publisher.

Citation and Reference System Policy
The Amasya Theology Journal requires the use of the Isnad Citation System (https://www.isnadsistemi.org/en/) for citations and bibliographies.

Publication Review Process
Submitted manuscripts undergo the following stages: Preliminary Review, Internal Peer Review (by the subject editor and an expert faculty member from the editorial board), two External Peer Reviews, and a Turkish-English-Arabic Language Review followed by a Final Proofreading.
If a manuscript fails to pass the Preliminary Review stage after being reviewed three times, it is returned to the author and will not be reconsidered during the same publication period. Manuscripts that pass the Preliminary Review stage are sent to at least two referees in the relevant field under the principle of double-blind peer review.
If one referee report is positive and the other is negative, the manuscript may be sent to a third referee, or the Editorial Board may review the referee reports and make the final decision. Click here for more information. 

Copyright Policy
Authors whose works are published in the Amasya Theology Journal retain full copyright to their publications without restriction. During the submission process, the copyright form must be completed by the author and uploaded to the system. The authors are solely responsible for the scientific, legal, and linguistic accuracy of the published articles. Click here for more information.

Open Access Policy
The Amasya Theology Journal adopts an open access policy based on the principle that making scientific research freely available to humanity will enhance the global sharing of knowledge. In this context, all articles published in the journal are freely accessible at https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/amailad. Additionally, every article published in the Amasya Theology Journal is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Click here for more information.

Plagiarism Detection Policy
All submissions to the Amasya Theology Journal are screened using plagiarism detection software (such as iThenticate). Submissions with a similarity rate exceeding 20% (excluding the reference list) will not be considered for review and will be returned to the author.

Archiving Policy
The journal is sent to libraries in Turkey and abroad, as well as to international indexing agencies, within one month of its publication date, as determined by the Editorial Board.
The editors ensure that the publication process is completed in an independent and impartial manner, taking into account any conflicts of interest among authors, reviewers, and other editors. Click here for more information.