Ethical Principles and Publication Policy
The publication policy of Düzce University Journal of Science and Technology (DUBİTED) is based on the development and dissemination of knowledge in an impartial and respectful manner. The processes implemented under this policy directly affect the quality of the work submitted by authors and their affiliated institutions.
DUBİTED adheres to both national and international standards of research and publication ethics. It complies with the Press Law, the Law on Intellectual and Artistic Works, and the Directive on Scientific Research and Publication Ethics of Higher Education Institutions. Furthermore, DUBİTED has adopted the International Ethical Guidelines for Publishing published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), and the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA).
The ethical duties and responsibilities outlined below are based on the openly accessible guidelines and policies published by COPE.
Publishing an article in a peer-reviewed journal is essential for developing a consistent and reputable knowledge network. Peer-reviewed publications support and advance scientific methods. Therefore, it is important that all parties involved in the publication process—including authors, journal editors, reviewers, and publishing agencies—agree upon and adhere to the expected ethical behaviors and standards.

1. Ethical Principles
1.1. Authorship and Contribution
The authors of a submitted work should include only those individuals who have made substantial contributions to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the research. All individuals who have significantly contributed must be listed as co-authors. The corresponding author is responsible for including all contributors according to their level of contribution and for reviewing, approving, and accepting the final version of the manuscript for publication.
Contribution is any supportive process that enables the authors to achieve scientific results. There are various ways to contribute to a manuscript. For example, one may contribute as a co-author or assist with surveys or data collection.

1.2. Conflicts of Interest
Authors: All authors must disclose any financial or other significant conflicts of interest that could affect any part or the entirety of their manuscript. These disclosures should be included in the manuscript information form.
Reviewers: As the journal applies a double-blind peer review policy, reviewers do not see the authors’ identities. However, if reviewers suspect any conflict of interest with the manuscript they are evaluating, they must inform the editor and withdraw from the review process. To prevent conflicts of interest, individuals affiliated with the authors’ institutions may not act as reviewers for the manuscript.
Editors: Editors must avoid conflicts of interest with authors or reviewers. Any financial or material support provided by the editor for a manuscript must be disclosed. If an editor submits a manuscript to the journal, the editorial process for that manuscript will be handled independently, and the editor will have no access until the process is complete.

1.3. Journal Policies on Data Access, Sharing, and Reproducibility
Düzce University Journal of Science and Technology (DUBİTED) strongly encourages authors to provide supplementary information and datasets that support the findings presented in their manuscripts. Any restrictions that may apply to the data should be communicated to the editor at the time of manuscript submission.
If the data do not violate human rights or other privacy considerations, DUBİTED invites authors to share these data and make them publicly accessible. Authors must cite all datasets used in their study, regardless of whether the datasets were developed by the authors themselves. All cited datasets should also be included in the manuscript’s reference list.

1.4. Fabrication and Falsification of Data
Data Fabrication: This involves generating research findings that were never actually obtained.
Data Falsification: This involves manipulating research data to give a misleading impression. Examples include:
• Manipulating images (e.g., micrographs, gels, radiological images)
• Removing outliers or “inappropriate” results
• Altering, adding, or omitting data points
Technical Note: Image enhancement for clarity is acceptable. However, any such enhancement must be disclosed to the editor upon submission and described in the manuscript.
• Acceptable Technical Manipulation: Adjusting contrast, brightness, or color balance applied to the entire digital image (not only a part of it).
• Unacceptable Technical Manipulation: Darkening, enhancing, deleting, or adding elements to an image in a way that misrepresents the original data.

1.5. Duplicate / Multiple Submissions
Manuscripts submitted for publication must be original and not previously published. If authors have used previously submitted or published work as a basis for the submitted manuscript, they must cite their prior work. Additionally, authors should clearly indicate how the submitted manuscript presents new contributions beyond their previous publications.

1.6. Intellectual Property
• Authors declare that the submitted manuscript (and any supporting documents) is their own intellectual property and that copyright has not been transferred to others.
• Authors affirm that the manuscript complies with JSS authorship criteria and does not contain plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, or manipulated citations.
• Authors retain ownership of all manuscripts, revisions, drafts, and figures.
• All interactions, comments, or reports received from reviewers or editors must be kept confidential by authors, reviewers, and editors.
• Except for the final published figures, reviewers and editors agree to maintain confidentiality of all manuscripts, revisions, and drafts.

1.7. Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern
• Editors may make corrections for minor errors in published articles that do not affect the results, interpretations, or conclusions.
• If significant errors or violations invalidate the results or conclusions, editors may retract the article.
• If there is evidence that research or publication may have been conducted with misconduct, that findings are unreliable, and the authors’ institutions have not investigated or an investigation appears unfair or inconclusive, editors may issue an expression of concern.
• Corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern are managed in accordance with the COPE guidelines.

1.8. Publication of Studies Based on Surveys and Interviews
To ensure ethical assurance in scientific publications, DUBİTED adopts the principles outlined in the “Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors” published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Accordingly, submissions must comply with the following requirements:
• For research conducted in disciplines requiring ethical committee approval, such approval must be obtained, documented, and stated in the manuscript.
• For studies requiring ethical approval, details such as the name of the committee, approval date, and reference number must be included in the Manuscript Information Form at the end of the article.
Studies that require ethical committee approval include:
• All research conducted using qualitative or quantitative approaches that involve data collection from participants.
• Research involving human subjects.
• Retrospective studies conducted in compliance with personal data protection laws.
Additionally:
• A statement confirming that informed consent was obtained in case reports.
• Permission obtained from the owners for the use of others’ scales, surveys, or photographs.
• A declaration confirming compliance with copyright regulations for all intellectual and artistic works used.

1.9. Policies on Publishing Supplementary or Special Issues
A special issue may be published once a year in our journal at the request of the Editorial Board. Manuscripts submitted for inclusion in a special issue undergo the same publication process as regular submissions.
• Supplementary or Special Issue: An issue published in addition to the regular issues of a periodic journal. It may consist of conference proceedings or a series of articles focusing on a specific topic.
• Page numbering in supplementary or special issues differs from that of regular issues.
• The print run of a supplementary or special issue cannot exceed one-third of the normal issue. Special issues containing only conference abstracts are excluded from this limit.
• The proportions of case reports, reviews, and research articles published in supplementary or special issues (excluding conference abstracts) are counted toward the overall proportion of articles published in regular issues.
• Issues published as commemorative editions are not considered supplementary or special issues. Their page numbering and layout follow the same format as regular issues.

Actions Contrary to Scientific Research and Publication Ethics:
• Plagiarism: Presenting others’ original ideas, methods, data, or work, in whole or in part, as one’s own without appropriate citation according to scientific standards.
• Forgery (Fabrication): Using data that do not exist or have been falsified in scientific research.
• Falsification: Manipulating research records or data, presenting unused equipment or materials as used, or shaping results to serve the interests of contributors or supporting institutions.
• Redundant Publication: Presenting repeated publications as separate works for academic appointments or promotions.
• Disintegration: Dividing research results inappropriately or in a way that compromises the integrity of the study, publishing each part separately to inflate the total number of publications for academic appointments or promotions.
• Unjust Authorship: Including individuals who did not contribute as authors, excluding contributors from authorship, unjustly changing the order of authors, removing contributors in later editions, or using influence to include names of non-contributors as authors.

Other Ethical Violations

Other actions considered violations of scientific research and publication ethics include:
a) Failing to acknowledge the contributions of individuals, institutions, or organizations that supported the research in resulting publications.
b) Using unpublished or not-yet-accepted theses or works as sources without the author’s permission.
c) Sharing information from a manuscript submitted for review with others before publication, without the author’s explicit consent.
d) Misusing resources, facilities, or equipment provided or allocated for scientific research.
e) Making deliberate false or unfounded claims regarding ethical violations.
f) Publishing data obtained from surveys conducted as part of a scientific study without the explicit consent of participants, or without the permission of the relevant institution if the study is conducted under its auspices.
g) Conducting research activities that violate applicable laws or the research provisions of international treaties to which Turkey is a party.
h) Failing to inform and alert relevant authorities about potentially harmful practices related to scientific research.
i) Making false or misleading statements regarding scientific research or publications in the context of academic appointments or promotions.

Ethical Guidelines for Authors
• Manuscripts must be original and based on research.
• All individuals listed as authors or co-authors must have contributed to the manuscript. Including individuals who have not made an academic contribution, or ordering authors based on non-scientific criteria such as title, age, or gender, violates scientific ethical standards.
• For multi-author manuscripts, the specific contributions of each author at different stages of the manuscript must be clearly stated.
• Manuscripts must not be submitted simultaneously to multiple journals and should not have been submitted previously elsewhere. If a manuscript is found to have been submitted to another journal, the publication process will be canceled.
• Authors submitting a manuscript are assumed to have read and accepted the journal’s publication and writing policies, and are expected to adhere to these principles.
• Citations and references must be complete and accurate.
• Citation manipulation, such as artificially increasing the number of citations to a particular author’s work or articles published in a specific journal, is prohibited.
• Plagiarism and falsification of data must be avoided.
• Similarity checks must not exceed 30% excluding references for the manuscript to proceed to peer review.
• A manuscript may undergo a maximum of two pre-review (initial assessment) processes. If the author does not revise the manuscript according to the feedback, it will be rejected.
• Authors must inform the journal editor of any potential conflicts of interest.
• Authors are responsible for all content generated by AI tools. Please review the journal’s AI Policy.

Ethical Guidelines for Editors
DUBİTED and its editors adhere to the COPE Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). The journal maintains a publication policy based on the principles outlined in the COPE Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors and the COPE Flowcharts on Publication Ethics.
• Editors must accept manuscripts that contribute to the relevant fields specified in the journal’s policy.
• Editors must not have any conflicts of interest regarding accepted or rejected manuscripts.
• Editors hold full responsibility and authority for the acceptance or rejection of manuscripts.
• Maintaining the confidentiality of both reviewers’ and authors’ identities is the responsibility of the editors.
• Only manuscripts that contribute to the relevant field should be accepted.
• If an error is identified, editors should support the correction or retraction of the manuscript.
• Editors must ensure that pre-review, peer review, editing, and publication processes of submitted manuscripts are completed in a timely and appropriate manner.
• Editors must not appoint individuals who do not contribute to the journal as editorial board members or assistant editors.
• Editors are expected to review and comply with the journal’s AI Policy.

2. Publication Policy
All manuscripts considered for publication in DUBİTED must meet the following criteria:
• Originality
• Absence of ethical violations
• Communication of messages accessible to the scientific community
• Clear indication of the manuscript’s relevance and contribution to researchers in the relevant field
• Coverage of current topics and areas of interest to researchers in the scientific field
• Structural and logical coherence
• Research results based on scientific evidence
• Consistency with the scientific method

Language
DUBİTED publishes manuscripts written in English.

Authorship Changes
DUBİTED recognizes the authors listed according to the statement on the manuscript’s Title Page. Authors are therefore responsible for providing the final and complete list of authors. Any requests for authorship changes after submission (e.g., addition/removal of authors, change in order) require editor approval. The Editorial Board will review such cases and act according to COPE flowcharts.
Requests for authorship changes must be submitted to the Editor as a formal letter explaining the reasons for the change. The letter must be signed by all authors, confirming their approval of the authorship modification. If approved by the Editorial Board, the editor will update the authorship in the system.

Disclaimer
The views expressed in articles published in the journal are solely those of the author(s). They do not represent the opinions or positions of DUBİTED, the Editor-in-Chief, Editors, Editorial Board, or the Publisher. The Editor-in-Chief, Editors, Editorial Board, and Publisher assume no responsibility or liability in such matters. The authors bear full responsibility for the published content.

Complaints and Appeals
DUBİTED handles complaints and appeals according to the following procedure. Complaints—including, but not limited to, long delays in manuscript processing and publication ethics—are initially addressed by the Editor-in-Chief. The Editor-in-Chief reviews the complaints and appeals together with the relevant Section Editors and the Editorial Board, if applicable. For any complaints or appeals, please contact: anildemircan@duzce.edu.tr

Complaints Regarding Manuscript Content
The Editor-in-Chief reviews the complaints from authors and the reports from reviewers and decides on the following:
• Approval of manuscript rejection
• Consideration of the author’s appeal
• Obtaining a new opinion from an independent reviewer
The Editor-in-Chief communicates the final decision to the author(s). If necessary, explanations regarding the outcome of the appeal are provided. This constitutes the final decision of DUBİTED.
Complaints Regarding Processes
Complaints related to the editorial or review process are handled by the Editor-in-Chief. Long delays in manuscript handling are reviewed by DUBİTED editors and relevant issues are shared with the Editor-in-Chief. The Editor-in-Chief evaluates the complaints and provides information to authors as needed.

Complaints Regarding Ethics
The Editor-in-Chief reviews complaints concerning publication ethics related to the conduct of authors or reviewers. The Editor-in-Chief follows the publication ethics guidelines published on the DUBİTED website. The DUBİTED Editorial Board examines the concerns raised by complainants or reviewers. The details and progress of the investigation are communicated transparently to the complainant(s). The Editor-in-Chief provides feedback regarding measures taken and the final decision.