Research and Publication Ethics

Publication Policy

Positive Science International (PSI) is an open access and double-blind peer-reviewed journal published by Sinop University twice per year (June and December). The journal accepts high-quality studies written in English in the fields of engineering and fundamental sciences. All published items, including research articles, are freely accessible for use by any user or institution. Users can read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full text of the articles without prior permission from the publisher or the author.
Positive Science International (PSI) expects all stakeholders to adhere to the following ethical responsibilities as part of its publication ethics. The ethical duties and responsibilities of the journal have been prepared in line with the guidelines and policies published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), which are available as open access (See COPE Guidelines in Turkish).

Copyright
Positive Science International is a free open-access journal.

Fees
Positive Science International does not charge authors at any stage of the publication process (submission, evaluation, and publication). PDF copies of accepted articles can be downloaded free of charge.

Ethical Principles
Research requiring ethics committee approval, to be submitted to Positive Science International, includes the following:
• All research conducted using qualitative or quantitative methods that requires data collection from participants through techniques such as surveys, interviews, focus group research, observation, experiments, or discussions.
• The use of human and animal subjects (including materials/data) for experimental or other scientific purposes.
• Clinical research conducted on humans.
• Research conducted on animals.
• Retrospective studies conducted in accordance with data protection laws.
Additionally:
• It must be stated that “informed consent forms” have been obtained for case reports.
• Permission must be obtained from the owners of scales, surveys, or photographs belonging to others, and this should be indicated.
• Compliance with copyright regulations for the use of intellectual and artistic works must be noted.

For articles to be published in PSI Journal, it should be indicated whether ethics committee approval and/or legal/special permission is required. If such permissions are necessary, it should be clearly stated from which institution, on what date, and with which decision or issue number the approval was obtained.

PSI Journal considers ethical rules important for protecting the rights of both the journal and the authors and adheres to the ethical rules and responsibilities published by COPE.
It is expected that the editors, reviewers, and authors of PSI journal will comply with the following ethical principles.

Research Ethics
• Scientific methods must be followed in obtaining, analyzing, interpreting, and reaching conclusions from data. Non-scientific results cannot be presented as research outcomes.
• Research must comply with national and international agreements, and necessary permissions must be obtained from the relevant authorities.
• Data obtained in the studies should be used as permitted by the authorities and in the appropriate format. Confidential data should remain undisclosed.
• If the study involves the use of human or animal subjects, it must be declared that the study was conducted in accordance with relevant international declarations or guidelines.
• Experimental research on humans must comply with the Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects according to the "World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki".
• Experimental research on vertebrates or regulated invertebrates should be conducted in accordance with relevant institutional, national, or international guidelines. The journal supports the principles of the "Basel Declaration" and the guidelines published by the International Council for Laboratory Animal Science (ICLAS).
• Research involving species at risk of extinction is advised to comply with the "IUCN Policy Statement" and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
• Authors are recommended to clearly state their compliance with the relevant guidelines.

Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Violations
(The Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive by the Council of Higher Education (CoHE), Article 4)
• Plagiarism: Using someone else's expressions, inventions, or ideas without proper citation and presenting them as one's own work.
• Fabrication: Manipulating a research proposal, evaluation, or report for personal gain.
• Falsification: Distorting research records and data, presenting methods, devices, or materials not used in the study as if they were used, excluding data that does not support the research hypothesis, or manipulating results to fit certain interests.
• Duplicate publication: Presenting the same study in multiple publications for academic promotions as separate works.
• Slicing: Publishing parts of a previously published work as separate publications.
• Unfair authorship: Including individuals who did not contribute actively as authors or excluding those who did contribute. Unjustly changing the order of authorship, removing contributors' names from subsequent publications, or including names through influence.

Author Ethics
• Submissions must be original, unpublished, and in accordance with scientific research and publication ethics.
• Authors must confirm that they have read and understood the author guidelines.
• Authors should accurately cite sources used in the preparation of the manuscript in line with ethical standards.
• Authors who wish to withdraw their submission due to delays, corrections, or other reasons should inform the editor.
• All authors are expected to contribute to the study.
• All data in the article must be accurate and original.
• Authors cannot submit the same work to more than one journal simultaneously. Each submission must begin after the completion of the previous one.
• It is the responsibility of the authors to indicate whether their work requires ethics committee approval. Ethics approval must be stated in the materials and methods section.
• Authors must disclose any financial support for their research.

Reviewer Ethics
• Reviewers must be experts in the field addressed by the manuscript.
• Reviewers are obligated to provide objective and clear critiques. They should decline to review if they have conflicts of interest or biases.
• Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of the manuscripts and not share them with third parties.
• Reviewers should not use information from the manuscript for personal research or benefit.
• Reviewers must provide clear and detailed reasons for rejecting manuscripts.
• Reviewers must adhere to the journal’s research and publication ethics policies.

Editor Ethics
• Editors are responsible for assigning at least two reviewers for each manuscript in accordance with the subject matter.
• Editors must facilitate communication between reviewers and authors while respecting the double-blind review process.
• Editors must manage relationships with authors and reviewers transparently and impartially, without discrimination.
• Editors should not use their position for personal or academic gain.
• Editors must provide clear and detailed reasons for rejecting manuscripts.
• Editors must adhere to research, publication, and reviewer ethics.