Publication Ethics and Malpractice

1. Journal principles and ethical framework

Research and Science Today (RST) is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record and applies internationally recognized standards of publication ethics. The journal’s policies are aligned with best practices promoted by COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) and the broader community of scholarly publishers. Ethical compliance is required from all parties involved in the publication process: authors, reviewers, editors, and the editorial board.
RST is an open access journal. No submission fees, processing fees, or publication fees (APCs) are charged at any stage of the editorial process.

2. Publication and authorship

All manuscripts submitted to RST must have clear scientific value and must be written and structured according to the journal’s template and formal requirements, including footnotes (where required by the template) and a complete reference list at the end of the manuscript. If the research is conducted within a funded project, grant, or institutional program, the funding information must be clearly disclosed (including in the manuscript, in the dedicated “Funding” statement and/or the first footnote when the template requires it).
Authorship must reflect substantial scholarly contribution. All listed authors must have contributed meaningfully to the conception/design of the work, data acquisition, analysis/interpretation, drafting and/or critical revision, and must approve the final version. Gift authorship, honorary authorship, and ghost authorship are unacceptable.
RST requires submission to be accompanied by an Author Declaration / Affidavit confirming, at minimum, that:

• the manuscript is original and has not been published previously (except legitimate prior versions that are transparently declared);
• the manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere and will not be submitted to another journal while under evaluation at RST;
• all data and results reported are real, authentic, and accurately presented;
• all authors meet authorship criteria, approve submission, and agree with the journal’s policies;
• ethical approvals and informed consent were obtained where required.

3. Redundant publication, multiple submission, and prior versions

Submitting the same manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously (multiple submission), or publishing substantially the same work in more than one venue without transparent disclosure and editorial justification (redundant publication) is prohibited and may lead to rejection and/or further editorial action.
Where a manuscript has a legitimate prior version (e.g., preprint, conference paper, thesis chapter, earlier dataset release), authors must provide a transparent statement describing:

• the relationship between versions,
• what is new in the submitted manuscript (a “delta statement”),
• how overlap is justified,
• links/DOIs where applicable.

Undeclared redundant publication or “salami slicing” practices may result in rejection or escalation under the journal’s misconduct procedures.

4. Plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and similarity screening

Plagiarism and self-plagiarism are prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to:

• copying text, ideas, figures, tables, or data without proper attribution;
• substantial unattributed paraphrasing;
• reuse of large parts of one’s own previously published text without citation and justification;
• translation plagiarism;
• manipulated citation practices intended to disguise reuse.

RST performs similarity (Plagius) and integrity screening (Ethical Shield) during the editorial process (including automated checks). Similarity screening is not a plagiarism verdict, but an integrity signal that may require author clarification, revision, or editorial action.
If plagiarism is detected before acceptance, the manuscript will be rejected.
If plagiarism is detected after publication, the journal may publish a correction, expression of concern, or retraction, depending on severity and evidence.

5. Ethical Shield integrity screening in the editorial workflow

RST uses Ethical Shield, an editorial decision-support system designed for ethical and integrity screening. Ethical Shield supports consistent, documented editorial decisions and may be applied at multiple stages:

• Technical Check (pre-review): screening for reference style compliance, completeness of mandatory ethical statements (e.g., IRB/ethics approval where applicable), and data availability requirements.
• Submission Integrity (pre-review): screening for indications of prior versions, high textual overlap patterns, undeclared reuse risks, and transparency concerns (including DOI-first checks and OpenAlex-backed matching).
• Editorial Assistant (post-review): screening the coherence and ethical adequacy of peer-review reports (e.g., tone, conflicts of interest red flags, unsupported accusations, or procedural inconsistencies), helping editors document fair decisions.
• Ethical Shield does not replace editorial judgment, peer review, or institutional investigations; it supports transparency and good-faith integrity evaluation.

6. Authors’ responsibilities

Authors are expected to:

• submit truthful, accurate, and non-misleading research reports;
• cite sources properly and ensure reference accuracy (authors, titles, venue, year, volume/issue, pages, DOI/URL);
• disclose all funding sources and relevant conflicts of interest;
• provide ethical approval and informed consent statements when required;
• respond to reviewer and editor requests in a structured manner and within reasonable timelines.

Failure to cooperate with the editorial process (e.g., refusal to address essential reviewer/editor requests, non-responsiveness, or repeated submission of non-compliant revisions) may result in rejection.
If authors identify significant errors after publication, they must notify the editorial office promptly. The journal may publish corrections or retractions as needed to protect the scholarly record.

7. Corresponding author

The corresponding author is responsible for all communication with the journal at all stages (submission, review, revision, and post-publication). The corresponding author must ensure that:

• all co-authors approve the submission and final manuscript;
• required declarations are correct and complete;
• revisions and responses reflect co-author agreement.

8. Peer review and reviewer responsibilities (double-blind)

RST applies double-blind peer review whenever applicable. Reviewers must:

• provide objective, evidence-based assessments;
• disclose and avoid conflicts of interest;
• respect confidentiality and not use unpublished content for personal advantage;
• indicate relevant uncited literature where appropriate;
• avoid defamatory language or unsupported allegations of misconduct.

9. Editorial responsibilities and editorial independence

Editors and the editorial board have full authority to accept or reject manuscripts based on editorial criteria, ethical considerations, and the integrity of the scholarly record. Editorial decisions must not be influenced by commercial interests or external pressure.
Editors will:

• ensure fair and unbiased handling of manuscripts;
• preserve reviewer anonymity in double-blind review;
• request clarifications, corrections, or documentation when integrity concerns arise;
• take appropriate post-publication actions when necessary (correction, expression of concern, retraction).

10. Human and animal rights, ethics approval, and informed consent

Research involving humans or animals must comply with relevant institutional, national, and international ethical standards.
For human-subject research, authors must state whether procedures followed ethical standards of the responsible committee (institutional and national). If no formal ethics committee exists, authors must confirm alignment with the Declaration of Helsinki (2013 revision) or equivalent.
Authors must retain written informed consent documents where required (e.g., case reports including images, case histories, or potentially identifying information). Editors may request supporting documentation to resolve ethical concerns.
For animal research, authors must confirm compliance with institutional animal welfare standards and applicable regulations.

11. Conflicts of interest and funding disclosure

All authors must disclose any relationships or interests that could be perceived as influencing the research (financial or non-financial). Funding sources must be fully disclosed, including grant numbers where applicable.
If authors have no conflicts or funding to declare, the manuscript should include standardized statements such as:

• Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
• Funding: This research received no external funding.

12. Post-publication notices: errata, corrections, expressions of concern, retractions

RST maintains transparent post-publication procedures.
Erratum / Corrigendum: published to correct errors that do not invalidate the main conclusions.
Expression of Concern: may be issued if there is credible but inconclusive evidence of misconduct or unreliability, or if an investigation is ongoing and resolution will take time.
Retraction: may be issued when findings are unreliable due to misconduct (fabrication, falsification) or honest error, when redundant publication is confirmed, when plagiarism is proven, or when unethical research is identified.
Withdrawal (pre-publication): may be permitted only in exceptional circumstances for manuscripts not formally published yet (e.g., accidental duplicate submission, proven ethical violation). Withdrawal is discouraged once the article is accepted or published, as the integrity of the scholarly record must be preserved.
In rare legal cases (defamation, rights infringement, court order, serious health risk), an article may be removed while retaining metadata, with a clear public notice explaining the reason for removal.

13. Sanctions and editorial actions in misconduct cases

Depending on severity and evidence, editorial actions may include:

• rejection prior to acceptance;
• request for clarification or documentation;
• notification of authors’ institutions or funders (when appropriate);
• publication of correction/expression of concern/retraction;
• temporary or permanent submission bans for serious or repeated misconduct.

14. License and copyright (Open Access)

RST publishes under Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0).
This license permits sharing and adaptation for non-commercial purposes, provided appropriate attribution is given, a link to the license is included, and any changes are indicated. Authors and readers must not apply legal terms or technological measures that restrict others from exercising the license permissions.

15. Privacy statement

Names and email addresses provided to RST are used exclusively for editorial communication and journal operations and will not be shared for unrelated purposes. The journal handles personal data in accordance with applicable data protection standards.