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Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice statement

RJ4All Publications and the Internet Journal of Restorative Justice are fully committed to ethical publication practice, and we follow the COPE Publishing standards. We have applied for membership to the Committee on Publication Ethics (www.publicationethics.org) and support the development of, and practical application of consistent ethical standards throughout the scholarly publishing community. We follow a double, blind review process and we select reviewers who are experts in the field. We encourage all our reviewers to follow the COPE Guidelines for Peer Reviewers.

 

Authors submitting their work to us do so on the understanding if it is discovered that these basic principles have not been adhered to, action will be taken following the COPE guidelines and may result in one of the following correction notices: Erratum, Corrigendum, Retraction notice, Note of clarification, Expression of concern.  RJ4All Publications reserves the right to not proceed with a case if the complainant presents a false name or affiliation or acts in an inappropriate or threatening manner.

Here, you may find a summary of our Publication Malpractice statement as well as what to expect in relation to publication ethics. Further details can be obtained by contacting the Editorial Team.

Plagiarism and dual publication

RJ4All Publications require that all research submitted to the IJRJ or its books is original and the author agrees to these terms upon assignment and acceptance.

 

We follow the COPE flowchart when suspecting of alleged plagiarism.  

 

It is also unacceptable academic practice to submit to more than one journal at the same time.

 

Data management

Authors must follow appropriate international and national procedures with respect to data protection, rights to privacy, child protection and medical testing on humans and animals. Authors must make available all consent forms and requisite forms from the appropriate regulatory bodies to the Editor. If research is found to contravene international or national procedures and this is confirmed with the appropriate regulatory body, we will publish a retraction notice. Please refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics' flowcharts for the processes that RJ4All follows in cases of fabricated data in submitted or published articles.

Authors are expected to submit original content to us. It is only acceptable for research to be repeated if it leads to different or new conclusions or for comparisons with new data. In all cases, it is important to reference the previously published work. If any element of the work has been published previously, you must ensure that this work is fully referenced and state it at the point of submission so that the Editor may make a fully-informed decision.

Self citation

The IJRJ takes self-citation seriously, and our authors and reviewers are encouraged to read the COPE guidance. We have found this note from COPE useful in making decisions on self-citation.

Conflicts of interest

Author, editors or reviewers who engage with RJ4All Publications and the IJRJ must declare any potential or actual conflicts of interests. A note to highlight the background to financial support for the research from third parties or any other possible conflict of interest must be added to the paper prior to review. If a conflict of interest is suspected, then this should be reported to the editor. A concern regarding an editor should be raised with the journal publisher or book commissioning editor. We will follow the flowcharts presented by COPE in cases of a suspected conflict of interest. In all cases, we will:

  1. Act professionally and efficiently

  2. Be fair and objective

  3. Always approach the accused party to establish their position before making a decision or committing to a course of action.

  4. Ensure that we provide sufficient time for all parties to respond

  5. Keep all parties informed of decisions, including the copyright owners, editors and authors

  6. Follow the processes highlighted in the flowcharts presented by COPE

  7. It is our responsibility to protect authors' moral rights (to be acknowledged as the author and not to be misrepresented) and to ensure the correct record of the literature.

Authorship issues

In multi-authored papers, it is important that all authors that have made a significant contribution to the paper are listed. Those who have provided support but have not contributed to the research should be acknowledged in an Acknowledgements section. Authorship issues fall into three main types:

  1. The exclusion of a contributor from the list of authors

  2. The inclusion of a named person who has not contributed to the paper or does not wish to be associated with the research

  3. The order of the authors on the paper and the level of contribution that they have made to the paper.

We will endeavour to facilitate a resolution to an authorship dispute. However, as the research process is undertaken prior to the paper being submitted to RJ4All, it is not possible for RJ4All or the editors to comment on the level of contribution by each author. Please refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics' flowcharts for the processes that RJ4All follows in cases of authorship disputes in submitted or published articles. If the matter cannot be resolved, we will refer the matter to the authors' institutions. If all authors agree to a change to authorship on a paper, this will be presented as a corrigendum. A retraction notice will only be published when requested by all authors.

Publishing costs and marketing

There is no cost for publishing in the Internet Journal of Restorative Justice and as a non-profit publisher, RJ4All does not engage in any profit making marketing or advertising activities. RJ4All Publications may publish selected books and ebooks and we have hosted a Restorative Justice series. To discuss publishing your work as a monograph or an edited collection please contact Dr. Theo Gavrielides.

What to do if you have a complaint about us

RJ4All always aims for the highest standards in publishing, sales and customer services. We take complaints from our authors, reviewers and users seriously and we have simple and fast complaints process: 

  1. The grievance must be submitted in writing to the Editor of the journal within seven days following a submission being rejected for publication.

  2. The grievance will be considered by the Editor and Editorial Advisory Board. The grievance will be resolved by taking a majority decision.

  3. The grievance will be acknowledged with 7 days of receipt and aimed to be resolved within a month's time.

  4. The decision will be in writing and will be final.

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