### Ethical Publishing Policy of Ufuk University Journal of Social Sciences Institute

The **Ufuk University Journal of Social Sciences Institute** adheres to the ethical publishing principles set forth by the **Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)**, the **Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)**, and the **Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA)**.

### Submission Policy
Manuscripts submitted for publication in the journal must not have been published elsewhere or simultaneously submitted to another journal. Submissions are first reviewed by the editorial board. Articles that do not align with the journal’s scope may be directly rejected or returned to the author for adjustments before proceeding to peer review. Submissions considered suitable for the journal's scope undergo a **double-blind peer review** process.

The editorial board reserves the right to recommend revisions and changes in line with reviewer comments or reject manuscripts at any stage of the evaluation. Articles that pass the review process are published online after receiving author approval and are subsequently assigned to the appropriate issue. Authors with approved articles are required to obtain an **ORCID**.

Since January 1, 2020, all submitted manuscripts must be accompanied by a plagiarism report generated using tools like **iThenticate**, **Turnitin**, or **İntihal.net**. Manuscripts with a similarity rate exceeding **15%** (excluding references) will be rejected without review.

### Responsibilities of Authors

1. **Ethics Compliance**: Authors are responsible for adhering to ethical principles, and any ethical violations are solely their responsibility.
2. **Originality**: Submissions must be original works not previously published in any language or submitted for consideration elsewhere.
3. **Copyright Compliance**: Authors must comply with applicable copyright laws. Materials such as tables, figures, or other copyrighted elements must be included only with proper permission.
4. **Authorship Criteria**: Authorship must be limited to individuals who made significant contributions to the study.
5. **Corrections**: Authors must promptly notify the editorial board in case of any errors or inaccuracies in their published work to facilitate corrections or retractions.

### Responsibilities of Reviewers

1. **Impartiality**: Reviewers must evaluate submissions based solely on their scientific content, without regard to the authors’ ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religious beliefs, or political views.
2. **Conflicts of Interest**: Reviewers must have no conflicts of interest with the authors, research sponsors, or other parties involved.
3. **Objective Reporting**: Reviewers should provide objective and constructive feedback and, in case of rejection, submit a detailed rationale.
4. **Confidentiality**: All information regarding manuscripts under review must remain confidential.
5. **Ethical Oversight**: Reviewers must alert the editorial board of any ethical violations or instances of plagiarism.
6. **Competence**: Reviewers must decline to evaluate submissions outside their expertise or if they cannot meet the review deadline.

### Responsibilities of Editors

1. **Fair Evaluation**: The editorial board evaluates all submissions based on their academic merit, without considering the authors’ backgrounds or affiliations.
2. **Confidentiality**: Manuscripts and related data are kept confidential until publication.
3. **Ethical Oversight**: The editorial board ensures adherence to ethical standards throughout the publication process.
4. **Reviewer Selection**: Editors appoint reviewers with strong academic credentials and ethical integrity to ensure a robust review process.
5. **Transparency**: Editors do not use unpublished information from submitted manuscripts for their personal research without the authors’ explicit consent.
6. **Responsibility**: Editors are responsible for decisions on manuscript acceptance or rejection, ensuring ethical compliance and quality.

### Ethical Approval and Special Permissions

In line with **Ulakbim TR DIZIN** requirements, manuscripts submitted to the journal must include an **Ethics Committee Approval** document if applicable. Ethical approval is required for research involving:

- Surveys, interviews, focus groups, observations, experiments, and any study collecting data from human participants.
- Studies involving human or animal subjects for experimental or other scientific purposes.
- Clinical trials conducted on humans.
- Research on animals.
- Retrospective studies requiring compliance with **personal data protection laws**.

Additionally:

- **Case Reports** must include a statement confirming the acquisition of informed consent.
- Authors must obtain permission for using third-party scales, questionnaires, photographs, or similar material.
- Adherence to copyright laws for intellectual and artistic works used in the manuscript must be explicitly stated.