Authorship of a scholarly article entails significant legal and ethical responsibilities with respect to the originality and integrity of the academic record. To define authorship, the journal follows internationally recognized guidelines, such as those of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)

(https://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/defining-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html), which emphasize the roles and responsibilities of contributors.

Authorship Criteria

All individuals listed as authors must meet all four of the following criteria, demonstrating substantive intellectual contribution to the research:

1. Substantial contribution:

The individual must have made a significant contribution to the conception or design of the study, or to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data. This may include the development of new software used in the research.

2. Drafting and revision:

The individual must have participated in drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content.

3. Final approval:

All authors must have read and approved the final version of the manuscript submitted for publication.

4. Accountability:

All authors must agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work and to ensure that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Exceptions to Authorship

Individuals who have provided support to the research but do not meet all four of the above criteria should not be listed as authors. Their contributions should be acknowledged only in the Acknowledgements section. Examples of non‑authorship contributions include language editing, provision of funding or equipment, or general assistance.

Omission of individuals who have made substantial contributions (ghost authorship) is strictly prohibited.

Authorship and Artificial Intelligence

In accordance with COPE guidance, large language models and generative artificial intelligence tools cannot be listed as authors, as they are not capable of independently conceptualizing research and cannot assume responsibility for the originality, validity, or integrity of the work.

Role of the Corresponding Author

At least one author must be designated as the corresponding author, who serves as the primary representative of the author group. The corresponding author is responsible for managing all communications with the journal during the peer‑review and publication process, as well as responding to post‑publication inquiries.

Key responsibilities of the corresponding author include:

• Authorship confirmation and order:

Ensuring that all authors have approved the final version of the manuscript and that the order of authors is accurate prior to submission.

• Submission documentation:

Providing all required forms, including the signed authorship form (completed by all authors) and the conflict of interest disclosure form.

• Transparency:

Ensuring that all required declarations, data availability statements, and disclosures regarding reused or adapted materials are included in the manuscript.

• Accountability:

Acting on behalf of all authors in responding to questions regarding the accuracy or integrity of the work. The corresponding author’s contact information—especially email—must remain current at all times.

Role of Contributors

To enhance transparency, authors are encouraged to specify the contribution of each participant using the CRediT taxonomy (Contributor Roles Taxonomy; (https://credit.niso.org). This standard provides a unified framework for describing the diverse contributions that lead to a scholarly work.

CRediT roles include:

• Conceptualization: Formulation of research ideas and overall objectives
• Methodology: Development of the research design or models
• Data Curation: Management and annotation of research data
• Formal Analysis: Application of statistical or computational techniques
• Investigation: Conducting experiments or collecting data
• Writing – Original Draft: Preparation of the initial manuscript draft
• Writing – Review & Editing: Critical review or revision of drafts
• Supervision: Oversight and leadership of research activities
• Funding Acquisition: Securing financial support for the project

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring the accuracy of the contribution descriptions and for obtaining the agreement of all contributors. The journal recommends including an Author Contributions Statement in published articles.

Changes to the List of Authors

Authors must finalize the list and order of authors at the time of initial submission. As a general rule, the journal does not consider changes to authorship after submission.

Any request to add, remove, or reorder authors must be approved by the Editor and should ideally be made prior to acceptance. If, for any reason, authors find it necessary to add or remove an author before acceptance, the corresponding author must submit a formal request to the Editor, accompanied by a clear justification:

https://zenodo.org/records/17750189/files/Authorship_Change_Request_Form.docx?download=1

The request must include written consent from all authors, including those being added or removed, confirming their agreement with the proposed changes. Changes after acceptance will be considered only in exceptional circumstances.

Consequences:

The journal may suspend the publication process while an authorship change request is under review. Unauthorized changes may result in rejection of the manuscript or, if already published, retraction. If an authorship change is approved post‑publication, a formal correction notice will be issued.

Authorship disputes:

In the event of disputes among authors during peer review or after publication, the journal will not act as an arbitrator. Authors are expected to resolve disputes internally. If resolution is not possible, the journal may remove the manuscript from consideration or refer the matter to the authors’ affiliated institutions.