Academic Integrity and Publication Ethics Policy

  1. General Provisions

The scholarly journal “Bulletin of the Penitentiary Association of Ukraine” ensures adherence to the principles of academic integrity, transparency, and accountability at all stages of the editorial and publishing process.

The editorial policy is based on the recommendations of:

  • Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE);
  • World Association of Medical Editors (WAME);
  • San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA);
  • International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE),

as well as the principles of Open Access (BOAI) and international standards of publication ethics.

The journal does not allow the mere formal declaration of these principles and ensures their practical implementation.

In its activities, the founders and the Editorial Board of the journal are guided by and take all necessary measures to ensure strict compliance with:

 

  1. Principles of Academic Integrity

The journal adheres to the following fundamental principles:

  • originality of scientific results;
  • reliability of data and conclusions;
  • proper citation of sources;
  • transparency of authorship contributions;
  • prevention of any forms of academic misconduct or dishonesty.

 

  1. Unacceptable Practices

Violations of publication ethics include:

  • academic plagiarism and self-plagiarism;
  • fabrication or falsification of results;
  • duplicate publication;
  • misappropriation or improper attribution of authorship;
  • citation manipulation;
  • unethical use of results generated by artificial intelligence;
  • outsourcing of academic work or academic sabotage;
  • inducement to violate academic integrity;
  • institutional violations of academic integrity.

Citation manipulation includes:

  • excessive self-citation;
  • artificial inflation of journal citations;
  • honorary or irrelevant citations;
  • reciprocal citation practices between two or more journals;
  • coercive citation by reviewers or editors.

Such practices are unacceptable and constitute grounds for rejection of the manuscript.

 

  1. Plagiarism Policy

All manuscripts undergo plagiarism screening using appropriate software (including, but not limited to, StrikePlagiarism, Unicheck, and Turnitin).

Requirements:

  • originality level — not less than 88%;
  • proper referencing of all borrowed sources.

In case of detection:

  • plagiarism — the manuscript is rejected;
  • self-plagiarism — the manuscript is rejected or returned for revision;
  • minor violations — the author may be requested to make corrections.

 

  1. Authorship

Authorship is determined based on a substantial contribution to:

  • the conception or design of the research;
  • analysis and interpretation of data;
  • drafting or revising the manuscript.

The following are unacceptable:

  • guest authorship;
  • ghost authorship;
  • inclusion of individuals who did not participate in the research.

The corresponding author confirms the consent of all co-authors.

 

  1. Conflict of Interest

All participants in the publication process are required to disclose any conflicts of interest.

Conflicts of interest may relate to:

  • financial interests;
  • professional or personal relationships;
  • affiliation or funding.

Individuals with conflicts of interest do not participate in peer review or editorial decision-making.

 

  1. Ethical Responsibilities of Participants in the Publication Process

7.1. Editorial Responsibilities

The Editorial Board:

  • ensures independence and impartiality of decisions;
  • monitors compliance with ethical standards;
  • prevents commercial influence on publication content;
  • responds to complaints and violations in accordance with COPE standards;
  • ensures confidentiality of information.

The Editorial Office has the right to:

  • reject a manuscript without peer review;
  • request additional explanations or supporting documents;
  • initiate corrections or retractions.

7.2. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers are required to:

  • provide objective and well-reasoned evaluations;
  • maintain confidentiality;
  • disclose conflicts of interest;
  • refrain from using manuscript materials for personal purposes;
  • comply with established deadlines.

7.3. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are required to:

  • submit original work;
  • ensure the reliability of results;
  • provide accurate references;
  • not submit the manuscript simultaneously to other journals;
  • report errors in submitted or published works.

 

  1. Confidentiality

All information related to manuscripts (content, reviews, decisions) is confidential and used exclusively within the editorial process.

 

  1. Handling of Complaints and Misconduct

The journal applies COPE procedures for:

  • handling complaints;
  • verifying cases of misconduct;
  • making decisions regarding corrections or retractions.

 

  1. Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence

The use of artificial intelligence tools is permitted provided that:

  • their use is transparently disclosed;
  • they do not affect scientific conclusions;
  • authors retain full responsibility for the content.

Artificial intelligence:

  • cannot be listed as an author or co-author of a scholarly work;
  • cannot replace scientific analysis.

Failure to disclose the use of AI may constitute grounds for retraction. Authors are required to declare the forms and methods of AI use.

 

  1. Data Availability

Authors should be prepared to:

  • provide raw data for verification;
  • ensure transparency of research.

The journal encourages data openness in accordance with modern Open Science practices.

 

  1. Responsibilities of the Parties
  • Authors — responsible for the accuracy and originality of the research;
  • Reviewers — responsible for the quality and reliability of expert evaluation;
  • Editorial Office — responsible for compliance with ethical standards and transparency of the publication process.