Complaints Handling

The Editorial Board ensures that all complaints related to academic integrity, publication ethics, or editorial processes are handled in a fair, objective, and confidential manner.

The complaints procedure is based on the principles and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and aims to ensure a transparent and consistent approach.

Complaints may relate to:

  • submitted or published manuscripts;
  • the peer review process;
  • editorial decisions;
  • actions of authors, reviewers, or editors;
  • violations of academic integrity (e.g., plagiarism, data fabrication).

Complaints may be submitted by authors, reviewers, readers, institutions or other interested parties.

Complaints may include, but are not limited to:

  • plagiarism or self-plagiarism;
  • data fabrication or falsification;
  • authorship disputes;
  • conflicts of interest;
  • biased or inappropriate peer review;
  • breaches of publication ethics.

Complaints should be submitted in writing to the official editorial email address and must include the title of the manuscript or article (if applicable); a clear description of the issue; justification and, where possible, supporting evidence; contact details of the complainant. Anonymous complaints may be considered if sufficient evidence is provided.

Procedure

  • The Editorial Board conducts an initial assessment of the complaint.
  • If necessary, members of the editorial board or independent experts may be involved.
  • Individuals concerned will be given the opportunity to respond.
  • All cases are handled confidentially.

Timeframe: standard cases — up to 30 days; complex cases — up to 60 days (with notification to the complainant).

Depending on the outcome, the Editorial Board may take one or more of the following actions:

  • reject the complaint;
  • request corrections;
  • require revision or reject the manuscript;
  • publish a correction or retract the article;
  • notify relevant institutions.

All information related to a complaint is treated as confidential and used solely for the purpose of investigation, except where disclosure is required by law or necessary to resolve the issue.