The journal adheres to the ethical principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)

(https://publicationethics.org) and expects all authors to comply with the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and responsible reporting.

The national AVA Research Ethics Training and Examination System (http://ava.irandoc.ac.ir) may serve as a useful starting point for familiarization with research ethics concepts and practices.

 

Originality, Plagiarism, and Redundant Publication

Authors must ensure that their submission is a wholly original work.

• Plagiarism:

Presenting the work, data, text, or ideas of others as one’s own is unethical and unacceptable. This includes unauthorized copying, paraphrasing without proper citation, or claiming ownership of others’ research findings.

All submissions are screened using plagiarism-detection systems such as Samim Noor (https://www.samimnoor.ir) and IranDoc Similarity Check (https://tik.irandoc.ac.ir).

• Proper citation:

Whenever words, ideas, or works of others are used, they must be appropriately cited or quoted, and necessary permissions must be obtained. Information acquired privately (e.g., through correspondence or personal communication) requires explicit written permission from the original source.

• Multiple or redundant publication:

Authors must not publish manuscripts describing essentially the same research in more than one primary journal. Simultaneous submission of the same manuscript, or one with substantially similar content, to multiple journals is unethical and unacceptable.

• Salami publication:

A single study must not be inappropriately fragmented into multiple smaller papers solely to increase the number of publications.

• Permissible reuse:

Exceptions include preprints, published abstracts, conference papers, or academic theses, provided that they are fully disclosed at the time of submission. When reusing previous work, proper citation and cross‑referencing are required to avoid self‑plagiarism or text recycling.

 

Use and Disclosure of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI)

While generative AI tools may assist authors, human accountability and transparency are paramount. According to the journal’s policy, AI tools cannot be listed as authors, and any use of such tools in writing or analysis must be fully disclosed. The journal’s policy is summarized below:

Activity	Journal Policy
Authorship	Prohibited. AI tools cannot be credited as authors.
Content generation	Prohibited. AI must not be used to generate or draft core sections (e.g., abstract, literature review, conclusions).
Data generation	Prohibited. Generating, manipulating, or reporting data or statistics using AI is not allowed.
Language editing	Permitted. AI may be used to improve clarity, grammar, and readability of the authors’ original text.
Image creation	Prohibited. AI‑generated images are not allowed unless they are an explicit part of the research methodology (which must be clearly described).
Disclosure	Mandatory. The name of the tool, version, and purpose of use must be declared in a separate section before the references.

Authors’ Final Responsibility

Authors are personally responsible for verifying all outputs produced with the assistance of AI, including:

1. Reference accuracy: Ensuring the correctness of citations, as AI tools may generate fabricated or inaccurate references.
2. Data protection: Ensuring that the use of AI does not violate data privacy or intellectual property rights.
3. Accountability: Confirming that the final manuscript has been thoroughly reviewed and that the authors accept full responsibility for its content.

 

Ethical Procedures in Research (Human and Animal Subjects)

If the research involves human participants, animals, or sensitive data, full ethical and legal documentation must be provided:

• Human participants:

Research must comply with national and institutional guidelines. Authors must confirm that informed consent was obtained from participants (or their legal representatives):

https://www.apaservices.org/practice/business/management/informed-consent

https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/ethics/process-seeking-if-printing.pdf

Compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki (https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki) is mandatory at all stages of the research.

• Ethical approval:

Where required, the manuscript must include a statement confirming approval by an institutional or national ethics committee, specifying the committee name, location, approval number, and date. Failure to provide this information may result in rejection.

• Animal studies:

Animal research must follow the 3Rs principles (Replacement, Reduction, Refinement) https://nc3rs.org.uk/who-we-are/3rs

Compliance with guidelines such as ARRIVE (https://arriveguidelines.org) and submission of institutional ethical approval are mandatory.

• Hazardous materials:

If the research involves chemicals, procedures, or equipment with unusual inherent risks, these hazards must be clearly identified and disclosed in the manuscript.

Conflict of Interest

Authors are required to disclose any financial or personal relationships that could inappropriately influence, or be perceived to influence, the results or interpretation of their work. This disclosure must cover:

• Interests within the past three (3) years from the start of the research, and
• Any earlier interests that could reasonably be considered relevant to the submitted work.

Financial interests include, but are not limited to: research grants, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, patents, or other forms of financial support.

Non‑financial interests include professional affiliations, personal relationships, or ideological beliefs that may introduce bias.

Authors are encouraged to ask themselves:

“Is there any agreement or relationship that, if disclosed after publication and without prior declaration, could cause embarrassment to me or my co‑authors?”

All authors must complete and upload the official Conflict of Interest Declaration Form at the time of submission:

https://zenodo.org/records/17764062/files/Declaration_Competing_Interests_Form.docx?download=1

In addition, a summary statement of competing interests must be included in the manuscript in a dedicated “Conflict of Interest Disclosure” section placed before the references.

 

Research Integrity and Authenticity

Presenting research results clearly, accurately, and honestly is a fundamental obligation of authors. Any form of fabrication, falsification, or unauthorized manipulation of data or images constitutes scientific misconduct.

• Image integrity:

Any manipulation of images (including selective enhancement, blurring, repositioning, deletion, or concealment of specific features) that may misrepresent the original data is strictly prohibited and will be considered a breach of publication ethics.

• Post‑publication responsibility:

If a significant error is discovered in a published article, authors are obliged to promptly inform the Editor‑in‑Chief and to cooperate fully in issuing a correction or retraction, as appropriate.

The journal reserves the right to take necessary editorial actions in accordance with COPE guidelines to safeguard the integrity of the scholarly record.