Authors' responsibilities

Authors submitting to SCIENCE – International Journal are required to comply with COPE and ICMJE standards by ensuring originality, appropriate authorship and contributions, ethical research conduct, data integrity, transparent conflict of interest disclosure, and cooperation during peer review and post-publication processes.

Authors submitting manuscripts to SCIENCE – International Journal are required to adhere to the highest standards of academic integrity, ethical conduct, and professional responsibility throughout the submission, peer review, and publication process. The journal follows the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

 

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools Policy

Prohibition of AI Use in Manuscript Writing

SCIENCE – International Journal does not permit the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools (including, but not limited to ChatGPT, GPT-based systems, or similar large language models) for the writing, generation, or substantial modification of scholarly manuscripts.

Authors are fully responsible for the originality, accuracy, integrity, and authorship of their submitted work. AI tools may not be listed as authors, co-authors, or contributors, and responsibility for the content of a manuscript cannot be attributed to any automated system.

The use of AI tools to generate text, interpret results, draw conclusions, or create original scholarly content is considered incompatible with the principles of academic authorship and may constitute grounds for rejection or post-publication action.

Prohibition of AI Use in Peer Review

Reviewers are strictly prohibited from using AI tools to generate, draft, or substantially modify peer review reports.

Peer review is a confidential, expert-driven process that requires independent scholarly judgment. Uploading manuscripts or any part of the review process into AI systems violates confidentiality obligations and ethical standards.

Any reviewer found to have used AI tools in the preparation of a review report may be removed from the reviewer database, and the review will be disregarded.

Editorial Oversight and Compliance

The editorial office reserves the right to:

  • request clarifications regarding suspected AI-generated content;

  • apply plagiarism and content integrity checks;

  • take corrective actions in accordance with the journal’s Handling Allegations of Misconduct and Corrections and Retractions Policy.

Violations of this policy may result in manuscript rejection, retraction, or other editorial actions deemed appropriate.

 

1. Originality and Redundant Publication

  • Authors must ensure that their manuscripts are original, unpublished, and not under consideration by another journal.

  • Redundant, duplicate, or salami publication is considered unethical and is not permitted.

  • Any prior dissemination of the work (e.g., preprints, conference proceedings) must be clearly disclosed at the time of submission.

2. Authorship Criteria

Authorship must be based on all four ICMJE criteria:

  1. Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, or acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data;

  2. Drafting the manuscript or revising it critically for important intellectual content;

  3. Final approval of the version to be published;

  4. Accountability for all aspects of the work, ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the research.

Individuals who do not meet these criteria must not be listed as authors but may be acknowledged appropriately.

3. Author Contribution Statement

All submissions must include a clear Author Contribution Statement specifying the individual contributions of each author (e.g., conceptualization, methodology, data analysis, writing, supervision). This requirement promotes transparency and prevents authorship disputes.

4. Research Ethics and Ethical Approval

Authors must ensure that research involving human participants, animals, or sensitive data complies with internationally recognized ethical standards.
Where applicable, approval from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board must be obtained and explicitly stated in the manuscript. Informed consent must be secured when required.

5. Data Integrity and Availability

  • Authors are responsible for the accuracy, completeness, and integrity of the data presented.

  • Data supporting the findings should be retained and made available upon reasonable request or deposited in recognized repositories, where possible.

  • Any restrictions on data availability must be transparently disclosed.

6. Citation Practices and Plagiarism

  • All sources must be accurately cited, and references must be complete and verifiable.

  • Plagiarism in any form, including self-plagiarism, is unacceptable.

  • Manuscripts may be screened using plagiarism detection tools, and unethical similarity may result in rejection or retraction.

7. Conflicts of Interest

Authors must disclose all financial and non-financial conflicts of interest that could be perceived as influencing the research or its interpretation.
A dedicated Conflict of Interest statement is required. If no conflicts exist, authors must explicitly declare this.

8. Copyright, Licensing, and Reuse

Authors retain copyright to their work.
All articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license, which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and adaptation, provided proper attribution is given.

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission for any third-party material included in their manuscripts.

9. Cooperation with the Peer Review Process

Authors are expected to:

  • participate constructively and professionally in the peer review process;

  • respond to reviewers’ comments in a timely manner;

  • submit revised manuscripts within the deadlines specified by the editorial office.

10. Post-Publication Responsibilities

Authors have a continuing obligation to notify the journal of any significant errors or inaccuracies discovered after publication.
When necessary, authors must cooperate with the editorial office in issuing corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record.

Final Statement

By submitting a manuscript to SCIENCE – International Journal, authors confirm that they have read, understood, and agreed to comply with these responsibilities and with all journal policies.