Kayseri University Journal of Social Sciences is committed to implementing publication ethics at the highest standards and to complying with the following principles of the Declaration of Publication Ethics and Misconduct. This declaration has been prepared based on the recommendations and guidelines developed for journal editors by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), Council of Science Editors (CSE), World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) and International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

• Manuscripts submitted to the journal for publication should not have been previously published in another journal (including abstracts presented at scientific meetings and published in full text) or should not have been simultaneously submitted to any journal for publication.

• Articles sent to the journal are subject to a double-blind peer review process by being reviewed by an Editor and at least two referees. The right is reserved for the submitted articles to be reviewed for plagiarism at any stage using software for the purpose. For this purpose, articles that are not compliant with the standards and that include unauthorized citations or fabricated data, forgery (fabrication or manipulation of tables, figures or research data) and inappropriate use of human or animal material in the research will not be published in the journal. This rule is also valid in cases where non-compliance with the standards is detected at the post-publication stage and requires the withdrawal of the article from publication. Our journal reminds us of its responsibility to report cases of plagiarism or double publication suspicions, as required by publication ethics.

The publication processes implemented in KAYU Journal of Social Sciences form the basis for the development and distribution of knowledge in an impartial and respectful manner. The processes implemented in this direction directly reflect on the quality of the work of the authors and the institutions that support the authors. Peer-reviewed studies are studies that embody and support the scientific method. At this point, it is important for all stakeholders of the process (authors, readers and researchers, publisher, referees and editors) to comply with the standards regarding ethical principles. Our journal expects all stakeholders to carry the following ethical responsibilities within the scope of publication ethics.

Some of the actions considered to be contrary to scientific research and publication ethics:

Plagiarism and Unethical Conduct

All articles submitted to the Kayseri University Journal of Social Sciences are screened using appropriate software prior to publication. The acceptable similarity rate is 30%, and manuscripts below this threshold are considered for publication. Articles exceeding this rate are thoroughly reviewed and may be returned to the authors for revision or correction if necessary. In cases where plagiarism or unethical practices are detected, the manuscript will be rejected for publication.

Below are examples of unethical practices:

·         Listing individuals as authors who did not make an intellectual contribution to the study.

·         Failing to include individuals as authors who made an intellectual contribution to the study.

·         Failing to state that the article is derived from a master’s/doctoral thesis or a research project.

·         Engaging in salami slicing, i.e., publishing multiple articles derived from a single study.

·         Failing to disclose potential conflicts of interest related to the submitted manuscript.

·         Breaching the confidentiality of the double-blind peer review process.

Plagiarism: Presenting others’ original ideas, methods, data, or works—partially or entirely—as one’s own without proper citation in accordance with academic standards.

Fabrication: Using non-existent or falsified data in scientific research.

Falsification: Manipulating research records or data; reporting the use of devices or materials not actually used in the study; distorting or shaping research results in line with the interests of supporting individuals or institutions.

 Duplicate Publication: Presenting previously published works as separate publications in academic appointments or promotions.

Salami Publication: Fragmenting the results of a single study inappropriately into multiple publications, thereby presenting them as separate works in academic appointments or promotions.

Unjust Authorship: Including individuals who made no active contribution as authors, excluding those who did, changing the author order unjustifiably, removing names of contributors in later editions, or including names of influential persons without contribution.

Failure to Acknowledge Support: Not acknowledging the individuals, institutions, or organizations that provided support or funding for the research.

Unauthorized Use of Unpublished Work: Using theses or studies that have not been presented or accepted, without the permission of their authors.

Violation of Ethical Standards in Human and Animal Research: Failing to comply with ethical rules in studies involving humans or animals, disregarding patient rights, harming animal welfare or ecological balance, or conducting research without required permissions.

Misuse of Resources: Using research funds, facilities, or equipment allocated for scientific studies for purposes other than intended.

False or Misleading Declarations: Making incorrect or deceptive statements regarding scientific research and publications in academic appointments or promotions.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF EDITORS, ASSOCIATE EDITORS, AND FIELD EDITORS

Editors are responsible for all publications within the journal. Within this scope, editors have the following roles and obligations:

·         Strive to meet the informational needs of readers and authors.

·         Continuously work to ensure the development of the journal.

·         Implement processes aimed at improving the quality of the published works.

·         Support freedom of thought and expression.

·         Maintain academic integrity.

·         Conduct all operations without compromising intellectual property rights or ethical standards.

·         Demonstrate transparency and openness regarding corrections or clarifications required for publications.

·         When deciding on the publication of manuscripts, editors ensure that articles are original, contribute to the scientific literature, and provide value to readers, researchers, and practitioners.

·         In making decisions—whether positive or negative—editors consider the originality of the work, its contribution to the field, the validity and reliability of the research methods, clarity of expression, and alignment with the journal’s aims and scope.

·         Editors include submitted manuscripts in the preliminary evaluation process unless a significant issue exists, consider positive referee recommendations, and avoid overturning previous editorial decisions unless there are substantial reasons.

·         Editors implement the journal’s blind peer-review and evaluation policies, maintain the confidentiality of reviewers’ identities, and ensure impartial and timely evaluations of all manuscripts.

·         Editors assign manuscripts to field editors and reviewers based on their expertise, promoting unbiased and independent assessments.

·         Editors take potential conflicts of interest or common interests among editors, reviewers, and authors into account to guarantee impartial evaluation.

·         Editors seek to expand and regularly update the reviewer pool to include a wide range of experts.

·         Editors prevent unprofessional or non-scientific evaluations.

·         Editors ensure that the journal’s publication processes are conducted in accordance with the publication policies and guidelines, keep all participants informed about policy updates, and, when necessary, organize training programs.

·         Editors maintain effective communication with all parties involved in the publication process and organize meetings at regular intervals.

·         Editors ensure the protection of personal data in evaluated manuscripts and safeguard the privacy of authors, reviewers, and readers.

·         Editors ensure that human and animal rights are respected in all manuscripts, require documented informed consent from participants, and reject studies lacking ethics committee approval or experimental permissions.

·         Editors take measures against misconduct and, when allegations of misconduct arise, conduct objective investigations and share findings appropriately.

·         Editors ensure that errors, inconsistencies, or misleading information in manuscripts are corrected.

·         Editors consider consistent and constructive criticisms directed at published articles and grant authors the right to reply to such critiques.

·         Editors also take into account studies reporting negative results.

·         Editors review complaints submitted to the journal and provide necessary explanations.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF REVIEWERS

The evaluation of all submissions through the double-blind peer review process directly affects the quality of publications. This process ensures reliability through objective and independent assessment. The Kayseri University Journal of Social Sciences (KAYÜSOSDER) operates under a double-blind peer review principle, meaning that reviewers and authors remain anonymous to each other. Reviewers must not contact the authors directly; all evaluations and comments are transmitted through the journal’s editorial management system. In this process, reviewer comments on the evaluation forms and full texts are conveyed to the authors via the editor.

Within this framework, reviewers evaluating manuscripts for our journal are expected to adhere to the following ethical responsibilities:

·         Accept to review only those manuscripts that fall within their field of expertise.

·         Conduct evaluations with impartiality and confidentiality.

·         If a conflict of interest arises during the review process, the reviewer must decline to evaluate the manuscript and promptly inform the journal editor.

·         In accordance with the principle of confidentiality, reviewers must destroy the manuscripts after completing the review process. They may use only the final published version of the work.

·         Conduct evaluations objectively, focusing solely on the content of the study. Nationality, gender, religious beliefs, political views, or commercial interests must not influence the evaluation.

·         Provide feedback in a constructive and respectful manner, avoiding hostile, defamatory, or insulting personal comments.

·         Complete the review within the agreed timeframe, adhering to the above-mentioned ethical responsibilities.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF AUTHORS

·         Authors who submit their manuscripts to the Kayseri University Journal of Social Sciences (KAYÜSOSDER) are expected to comply with the following ethical responsibilities:

·         Authors must ensure that their submissions are original works. If other studies are used or referenced, appropriate and complete citations and quotations must be provided.

·         Individuals who have not made an intellectual contribution to the content of the work must not be listed as authors.

·         Any potential conflicts of interest or relationships that may pose a conflict must be clearly disclosed in all submissions.

·         Authors may be asked to provide raw data related to their manuscripts during the review process. In such cases, they must be prepared to submit the requested data and information to the editorial or scientific board.

·         Authors must possess the rights to use the data presented in their work, obtain necessary permissions for research or analysis, and provide proof of informed consent for human subjects involved in experiments.

·         If an author discovers an error or inaccuracy in their published, early-view, or under-review manuscript, they are obliged to promptly inform the journal editor or publisher and cooperate in correction or retraction processes.

·         Authors may not submit the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously. A new submission can only be initiated once the previous process is completed. Manuscripts already published elsewhere cannot be submitted to this journal.

·         Once the review process has begun, changes to authorship (such as adding, removing, or reordering authors) are not permitted.

·         The names of individuals who have not contributed intellectually should not appear as authors; authorship changes should not be proposed after submission.

·         Authors must contact the editor if they identify any error in a manuscript under review, in early view, or already published, to correct or retract it if necessary.

·         For studies involving experiments, surveys, scales, interviews, observations, or focus groups—which require ethical approval—authors must obtain ethics committee approval and state the name of the ethics committee, approval date, and number on the first and last pages of the article as well as in the method section. A copy of the ethics approval must be uploaded to the system during submission. In case reports, information on obtaining informed consent must also be included.

·         Authors must provide evidence within the manuscript demonstrating compliance with ethical principles during data collection, such as obtaining permissions to use others’ materials (e.g., scales, surveys, photographs). Manuscripts must explicitly state compliance with research and publication ethics and copyright regulations for intellectual and artistic works. If the research involves human or animal subjects, it must be declared that the study was conducted in accordance with international declarations and guidelines.

·         Review articles do not require ethics committee approval. However, it must still be clearly stated on the first and last pages and in the method section that ethics approval was not required.

·         Manuscripts submitted to the journal must include a statement confirming that the work has not been submitted elsewhere, and authors must complete the Copyright Transfer Form (available at https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/kayusosder/writing-rules ).

·         Individuals who have not made a genuine intellectual contribution must not be listed as authors.

·         Any conflicts of interest related to the submitted manuscript must be declared and justified.

·         Authors are required to retain the data related to a published article for five years after publication.

RELATIONS WITH READERS

Editors must make decisions by taking into account the needs, expectations, and interests of all readers, researchers, and practitioners regarding knowledge, skills, and experience. They must ensure that the published works are original and contribute to readers, researchers, practitioners, and the broader scientific literature. Additionally, editors are responsible for considering feedback received from readers, researchers, and practitioners, and for providing clear and informative responses in return.

RELATIONS WITH AUTHORS

Editors have the following duties and responsibilities toward authors:

·         Editors must make publication decisions based on the importance, original value, validity, clarity of expression, and relevance of the manuscript to the journal’s aims and scope.

·         Manuscripts that fall within the journal’s scope should be included in the preliminary evaluation stage, provided there are no major issues.

·         Editors should not disregard positive referee recommendations unless a serious issue exists with the study.

·         New editors should not alter the decisions made by previous editors unless there are substantial concerns.

·         The “Double-Blind Peer Review and Evaluation Process” must be clearly published, and editors should ensure adherence to the defined procedures, preventing any deviations.

·         Editors must provide authors with a comprehensive “Author’s Guide”, outlining all relevant expectations. This guide should be updated periodically.

·         Editors must ensure that all communications with authors are clear, informative, and constructive.

RELATIONS WITH REVIEWERS

Editors have the following duties and responsibilities toward reviewers:

·         Select reviewers appropriate to the subject matter of the manuscript.

·         Provide reviewers with the information and guidance necessary for the evaluation process.

·         Monitor potential conflicts of interest between authors and reviewers.

·         Maintain confidentiality of reviewer identities within the double-blind peer review system.

·         Encourage reviewers to conduct their evaluations in an impartial, scientific, and objective manner.

·         Evaluate reviewers based on timeliness and quality of their feedback.

·         Develop policies and practices that enhance reviewer performance.

·         Ensure the reviewer pool is updated regularly and remains diverse.

·         Prevent unprofessional or unscientific evaluations.

·         Take measures to ensure that the reviewer pool represents a broad range of expertise.

RELATIONS WITH THE EDITORIAL BOARD

Editors must ensure that all editorial board members carry out processes in compliance with the journal’s publication policies and guidelines. They must keep the board members informed of policies and developments, provide training to new members, and supply the necessary information for their roles.

Additionally, editors must:

·         Ensure that editorial board members evaluate manuscripts impartially and independently.

·         Select new board members who are qualified and capable of contributing to the journal.

·         Assign manuscripts to editorial board members according to their areas of expertise.

·         Maintain regular communication and collaboration with the editorial board.

·         Organize periodic meetings with the editorial board to discuss publication policies and the development of the journal.

Editorial and Double-Blind Peer Review Processes

Editors are responsible for implementing the principles outlined in the journal’s “Double-Blind Peer Review and Evaluation Process” policy. In this context, editors ensure that every manuscript undergoes a fair, impartial, and timely evaluation process.

Quality Assurance

Editors are accountable for ensuring that all articles published in the journal comply with the journal’s publication policies and international academic standards.

Protection of Personal Data

Editors are responsible for ensuring the protection of personal data contained in the manuscripts, including data related to participants or images.
If explicit consent from the individuals involved is not documented, editors must reject the manuscript. Additionally, editors are responsible for safeguarding the confidentiality of personal information belonging to authors, reviewers, and readers.

Ethics Committee Approval, Human and Animal Rights

Editors are responsible for protecting human and animal rights in all reviewed studies. Manuscripts that involve human participants or animals must include ethics committee approval and relevant legal permissions; otherwise, such works must not be accepted for publication.

Prevention of Possible Misconduct and Malpractice

Editors are obliged to take preventive measures against possible misconduct or malpractice. They must handle complaints related to such issues with diligence, objectivity, and transparency, conduct an appropriate investigation, and share findings with the relevant parties.

Ensuring Academic Integrity

Editors must ensure that any errors, inconsistencies, or misleading statements identified in published works are corrected promptly to maintain academic integrity.

Protection of Intellectual Property Rights

Editors are responsible for protecting the intellectual property rights of all published articles and for defending the rights of both the journal and the author(s) in cases of potential infringement. They must also take the necessary measures to ensure that the content of published works does not violate the intellectual property rights of other publications.

Constructiveness and Openness to Discussion

Editors must:

·         Take scientific and constructive criticisms of published works into consideration and respond with an open and constructive attitude.

·         Grant authors the right to reply to criticisms of their work.

·         Not ignore or exclude studies presenting negative results.

Handling of Complaints

Editors are responsible for carefully examining all complaints received from authors, reviewers, or readers and providing clear and informative responses.

Political and Commercial Concerns

Editorial decisions are made independently and cannot be influenced by the journal owner, publisher, or any political or commercial factors. Editors must adhere to the principles of independence and impartiality in all decision-making processes.

Conflict of Interest

Editors must consider potential conflicts of interest among authors, reviewers, and other editors to ensure that all evaluation and publication processes are carried out in an independent, impartial, and ethical manner.

Ethical Responsibilities of the Publisher

The publisher of the Kayseri University Journal of Social Sciences (KAYÜSOSDER), Kayseri University, is a public educational institution that operates for the benefit of society and not for profit.

The Editorial Board acts with full awareness of the following ethical responsibilities:

·         Editors are responsible for all processes concerning submitted manuscripts. Editorial decisions are made without consideration of economic or political gain.

·         The publisher guarantees the independence of editorial decisions.

·         KAYÜSOSDER protects the ownership and copyright of every published article and is responsible for maintaining archival records of all published copies.

·         The publisher assumes responsibility for taking necessary measures regarding scientific misconduct, citation manipulation, or plagiarism involving editors or published works.

If You Encounter an Unethical Situation

If you encounter any unethical behavior or content not in line with the ethical responsibilities mentioned above, please contact us via e-mail at sosder@kayseri.edu.tr.