Editorial Policies

The ethical policy of GTJ is in line with the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity, which is also guided by the policies described by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). In this regard, the sincerity of authors in sharing the results of their research is highly important. Author must adhere to the GTJ guidelines on publication ethics and editorial policy when submitting their manuscripts. All manuscripts will be scrutinized to ensure authors have read and approved the version submitted.

Publication Ethics

Ethics guidelines are important in order to ensure top-quality scientific publications, earn the trust of the general public in the scientific discoveries, and attribute credit to the authors for their work. Hence, the listed and explained below make clear what GTJ publication ethics involve:

Fabrication and Falsification of Data

Fabrication of data implies presentation of fake data for research that was not carried out, and falsification of data involves presentation of manipulated data for research that was conducted. Authors of manuscripts or published papers discovered to have been involved in falsification and fabrication of data could be punished, and the publication of their work could be removed.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism involves making use of the work and ideas of other scientists without proper credit to them. This may be a word from a manuscript or a previously published article. Manuscripts with a high level of similarity index are rejected, while already published ones may need to be corrected or retracted.

Multiple Submissions of a Manuscript

It is unacceptable to GTJ to submit the same manuscript submitted to us to more than one journal at the same time. It is a waste of time for peer reviewers and editors, and could damage the credibility of authors as well as journals. If discovered, sanctions may be imposed on authors whose articles have been submitted simultaneously elsewhere. Submissions of the same manuscript to more than one journal at a time are unethical. It is a waste of time to the editor and the peer review process, and can negatively affect the credibility of the authors and also the journals. Hence, authors whose articles are submitted to more than one journal at a time may be sanctioned.

Redundant Publications

Publication of many related articles that are based on a similar research idea may be sanctioned in GTJ. Hence, authors are advised to harmonize similar research ideas into a complete research manuscript.

Incorrect Attributions of Authors

Submissions to GTJ are to be made only by the corresponding author of the manuscript. Also, only authors with significant contributions to the research are allowed to be listed as authors. Any manuscript that is found guilty of incorrect attributions of authors may be rejected.

Modification of Citations

Authors whose work contains references that are designed to improve the quantity and quality of citations for authors' works or articles that are published in a particular journal may be sanctioned. Also, it is highly unethical for editors and reviewers to request that authors' references be added to increase the number of citations for their work, or their associates, or the journal they are affiliated with.

Editors and Reviewers

Editors and reviewers should decline any form of involvement in submissions in which they share a relationship of any kind with any of the authors or declare a conflict of interest where it is not reasonable to decline such work.

Sanctions

Some of the sanctions that may be imposed by GTJ include (i) manuscript rejection, (ii) prohibition to serve as an editor or reviewer for GTJ, (iii) author(s) may not be allowed to submit manuscript to GTJ for a period that will be determined by the editorial board based on the severity of the offence, and (iv) other additional sanctions that will be determined by the Editorial Board if more serious ethical violations occur.