Research Ethics and Publication Ethics

Akademik MATBUAT upholds the principles of research integrity, reliability, impartiality, transparency, and accountability throughout the research and publication process, from study planning to the dissemination of findings. Manuscripts submitted to the journal must comply with research and publication ethics. Authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher are expected to observe these principles within their respective roles.

The journal’s ethical framework draws on the current guidance and flowcharts of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE); the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, jointly developed by COPE, DOAJ, OASPA, and WAME; and The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity, published by ALLEA. The journal also takes into account the Turkish Council of Higher Education’s Directive on Scientific Research and Publication Ethics and the relevant criteria of TÜBİTAK ULAKBİM TR Dizin.

Research Ethics

Research must be conducted with ethical safeguards appropriate to its methods and the characteristics of the population under study. Participants’ rights, safety, privacy, and voluntary participation must be protected. Participants must be informed about the purpose and scope of the research, potential risks, and the intended use of their data, and the necessary informed consent must be obtained. Additional safeguards must be implemented in research involving children and other vulnerable groups.

For research requiring ethics committee approval, approval must be obtained before the research begins. Studies involving data collection from participants through questionnaires, interviews, focus groups, observations, experiments, or similar methods must undergo the relevant ethical review. The required approval document must be submitted with the manuscript. The name of the ethics committee, the approval date, and the decision number must be stated in the Methods section and on either the first or last page of the article. Studies lacking the required ethical approval will not be published.

Where ethics committee approval is not required, authors must explain why, with reference to the nature of the research. An exemption from ethical review does not remove researchers’ responsibilities regarding confidentiality, research integrity, appropriate attribution, or obtaining necessary permissions.

Research data must be recorded accurately and in a traceable manner, stored securely, and reported fully. Fabricating, manipulating, or concealing data, or presenting findings in a misleading manner, is unacceptable. Personal information and identifiable records must be protected. Data sharing must respect participant consent, confidentiality, and applicable regulations. Necessary permissions must be obtained for the use of archival documents, scales, images, and other research materials.

Publication Ethics

Manuscripts submitted to the journal must be original and must not be under consideration by another journal at the same time. If a manuscript is based on a thesis, conference paper, or previously shared work, this relationship must be disclosed. Authors must explain the scope of the earlier work and the contribution of the submitted manuscript.

The ideas, data, and works of others must be appropriately acknowledged. Plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification of data or findings, inappropriate authorship, misleading redundant publication, inappropriate fragmentation of research, citation manipulation, and attempts to manipulate peer review are unacceptable.

Authorship must reflect genuine scholarly contributions to the work. All authors must approve the final version of the manuscript and its submission to the journal and accept responsibility for their contributions. Contributions that do not qualify for authorship must be acknowledged with the contributors’ permission. Any proposed change to the author list or author order must be explained to the editorial office and supported by the written consent of all authors.

Authors must disclose financial and non-financial conflicts of interest, sources of research support, and the roles of supporting organisations in the study. Authors who discover a significant error in their published work must notify the editorial office and cooperate with any necessary correction procedures.

Ethics Policy

Akademik MATBUAT treats the implementation of ethical principles as an integral part of its editorial process. Ethical compliance is considered at submission, preliminary assessment, peer review, and after publication. Ethical concerns are handled confidentially and impartially, with due regard for the right of all parties to respond.

Editorial Independence and Management of Conflicts of Interest

Publication decisions are based on the scholarly quality, originality, methodological soundness, and relevance of the work to the journal’s scope. The publisher or any other individual or organisation must not influence editorial decisions on grounds unrelated to scholarly assessment.

Editors and reviewers must disclose relationships that could affect their impartiality and withdraw from the process where necessary. Manuscripts authored by editors or editorial board members are handled through an independent editorial process in which the individuals concerned take no part in decision-making.

Similarity Screening and Ethical Assessment

Submitted manuscripts are screened in accordance with the journal’s published similarity-report requirements. A similarity score alone does not establish the presence or absence of plagiarism. The editorial office considers the nature of the matches, attribution, quotation practices, and the originality of the work. A low similarity score does not guarantee ethical compliance.

Where ethical concerns require clarification, authors may be asked to provide data, permission documents, ethics committee approval, or other supporting evidence. The review or publication process may be suspended until the assessment is completed.

Reporting and Investigating Suspected Misconduct

Authors, reviewers, and readers may report suspected ethical misconduct to the editorial office through the communication channels listed on the journal’s DergiPark contact page. Reports should identify the manuscript or article concerned and include supporting evidence where available.

The editorial office conducts an initial assessment, requests explanations from the relevant parties, and examines the available documentation. Where necessary, independent expert advice is sought and the appropriate authorities at the institution where the research was conducted are contacted. In cases requiring an institutional investigation, the journal’s editorial assessment remains distinct from the institution’s investigative responsibilities.

If a report concerns an editor or editorial board member, that individual takes no part in the investigation or decision-making. The matter is handled by an editor or independent expert with no conflict of interest. The outcome is communicated to the relevant parties, subject to confidentiality obligations.

Corrections and Retractions

A correction may be published when an error in a published article does not undermine the overall reliability of its findings. Where serious concerns undermine the reliability of the work or ethical misconduct is established, the article may be retracted in accordance with COPE guidance. An expression of concern may be issued when an investigation is ongoing and readers need to be alerted.

Correction notices, expressions of concern, and retraction notices are linked to the relevant article and clearly state the reasons for the action. Except in exceptional circumstances warranting removal, retracted articles remain part of the scholarly record and are clearly identified as retracted. These measures aim to protect the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record.

Complaints and Appeals

Authors may submit reasoned appeals against editorial decisions. Other stakeholders may submit complaints concerning the review process or the journal’s ethical practices through the journal’s communication channels. Wherever possible, submissions are considered by individuals who were not involved in the original decision and who have no conflict of interest. Additional expert advice may be sought where necessary. The outcome and its rationale are communicated to the complainant or appellant.