It is important to the Hogrefe Publishing Group that our scientific journals and all the people involved adhere to the highest ethical standards.
This document aims to set out in a transparent manner the standards of ethical behavior that we expect of all parties involved in the publishing of our scientific journals, including authors, journal editors and peer reviewers, and ourselves as publisher. The statements are for the most part based on the core practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Authorship
The persons named as authors of a paper should be limited to, and also include, all those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, analysis, or interpretation of the study that it reports. If others have contributed to certain aspects of the research, they should be named in the acknowledgments section. Each paper must name at least one corresponding author, who must ensure that
Originality and plagiarism
Authors must ensure that they have written entirely original works. If the work or words of others are used, this must be appropriately cited or quoted.
Reporting standards
Authors reporting results of original research should present an accurate account of the work performed and an objective discussion of its significance. Underlying data should be reported accurately in the manuscript. The paper should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work. Making fraudulent or knowingly false statements is unethical and unacceptable.
Multiple or concurrent submissions
Authors should not submit a paper to a journal that describes what is essentially research that has previously been published in another journal. Only papers that have not previously appeared in or are currently under consideration for another publication may be submitted for publication.
Acknowledgment of sources
The work of others must always be properly acknowledged. Authors must cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work.
Hazards and human or animal subjects
If the research being described involves procedures, chemicals, or equipment that might be associated with any unusual hazards, the authors must clearly identify these in the manuscript.
If the work involves the use of animal or human subjects, it must have been approved by appropriate institutional and ethical committee(s); authors must include in the manuscript a statement that all procedures were performed in compliance with relevant laws and institutional guidelines and that institutional and ethical approval had been obtained. A statement must also be included in the manuscript that informed consent was obtained for experimentation involving human subjects. The privacy rights of human subjects must always be observed in accordance with data protection and other applicable legislation.
Disclosure and conflicts of interest
All authors should disclose in their paper any financial or other substantive conflicts of interest that might be construed to influence the results or their interpretation in
the paper. In particular, any sources of financial support must be disclosed and reported in the appropriate section of the published version.
Significant errors in published works
Should any author discover a significant error or inaccuracy in their own published work, it is the author’s obligation to promptly notify the journal’s editor or publisher and
cooperate with them to either retract the paper or to publish an appropriate correction note.
Fair play
Submitted manuscripts must be evaluated for their scientific and intellectual content without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy of the authors.
Confidentiality
Information about a submitted manuscript may not be disclosed by the journal editor or any editorial staff to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.
Conflicts of interest and disclosures
Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted manuscript may not be used in an editor's own research without the explicit written consent of the author(s).
Editorial decisions
The editors of a journal are responsible for deciding which of the submitted articles should be accepted for publication in that journal. The editors will be guided by the policies of the journal and its editorial advisors, will act in accordance with legal requirements regarding libel, copyright infringement, and plagiarism, and may consult with other editors or reviewers in making relevant decisions.
Advising on editorial decisions
Peer reviewers assist a journal’s editors in making editorial decisions and, through their communication with authors, may also help authors in improving their manuscripts.
Qualification and timeliness
Any reviewers who are invited by editors to peer review a manuscript for a journal should immediately notify the editors if they feel unqualified or unable to review the research being reported in a manuscript in a timely manner, so that the editors can organize alternative reviewers.
Confidentiality
Reviewers must treat any manuscripts they receive for review confidentially. The manuscript may not be shown in whole or in part to or discussed with others unless otherwise authorized by the journal’s editor or editors.
Objectivity
Reviews should be conducted in an objective manner and reviewers’ reports should express their views clearly and with appropriate supporting arguments. Personal criticism of authors is inappropriate, unacceptable, and unethical.
Acknowledgment of sources
Reviewers should identify and mention in their report relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. They should ensure that any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported is accompanied by the relevant citation. Reviewers should also call to the editors‘ attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published data or work of which they have personal knowledge.
Conflicts of interest and disclosures
Any privileged information or ideas that reviewers obtain during the peer review process must be kept confidential and may not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should decline to evaluate any manuscripts where they may come into a conflict of interest related to relationships or connections (whether competitive, collaborative, or other) with any of the authors or institutions associated with the submitted manuscript.
Hogrefe Publishing Group’s journals do not discriminate on the basis of age, race, religion, creed, disability, marital status, veteran status, national origin, race, gender, genetic predisposition or carrier status, or sexual orientation in their publishing activities.
If scientific misconduct, publication fraud, or plagiarism is alleged or proven, the publisher will, in close collaboration with the relevant journal’s editor and other appropriate advisors, which may include authors’ institutional ethics boards, take all appropriate measures to clarify the situation and, if appropriate, to amend the article in question. This may, as is appropriate, include the prompt publication of a correction note or, in the most severe cases, retraction of the affected article.
April 2022
