Ethical Principles and Publication Policy

By submitting a manuscript, all authors warrant and declare that:

The manuscript has not been published previously and is not currently under consideration for publication elsewhere.
The manuscript does not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of any person or third party, and its publication and use in accordance with the applicable licence will not infringe upon any such rights.
The manuscript does not contain any material or subject matter that violates or contravenes any applicable laws or regulations.
The research and the manuscript comply with the ethical standards and principles applicable to the relevant research discipline.
All authors have made a substantial contribution to the research and the manuscript, have approved the final version of the manuscript, and agree to be accountable for the content of the work.
Any conflicts of interest, sources of financial support, and other relevant disclosures have been appropriately declared.

By submitting the manuscript, the authors acknowledge that they are responsible for ensuring the originality, accuracy, integrity, and ethical compliance of the submitted work.

Plagiarism Policy:

All manuscripts submitted to IJCESEN are initially screened for plagiarism using iThenticate: Plagiarism Detection Software.

The similarity report is evaluated by the editorial office, excluding references and single-word matches where applicable. If the overall similarity score exceeds 20%, the manuscript may be rejected without being sent for peer review.

The editorial office reserves the right to assess the nature and sources of the detected similarities and to take appropriate action in accordance with the journal’s publication ethics and plagiarism policies.

Publication Ethics

The publication processes of IJCESEN are based on the objective production, dissemination, and development of scientific knowledge through established scientific methods and ethical principles. All parties involved in the publication process—including the publisher, editors, authors, reviewers, and readers—are expected to adhere to the highest standards of publication ethics and research integrity.

In this context, the ethical responsibilities, roles, and duties of authors, journal editors, reviewers, and the publisher are defined below. The ethical principles and guidelines adopted by IJCESEN are based on the recommendations and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

IJCESEN is committed to maintaining academic integrity and ensuring transparency, fairness, and accountability throughout the publication process. The journal also provides clear policies concerning plagiarism, duplicate or redundant publication, fabrication and falsification of data, conflicts of interest, authorship, ethical approval, and other forms of research and publication misconduct.All authors, editors, reviewers, and other parties involved in the publication process are responsible for complying with these principles and for reporting suspected cases of unethical conduct to the journal. Where allegations of misconduct arise, IJCESEN will investigate them in accordance with applicable ethical standards and relevant COPE guidelines.

Ethical Responsibilities of the Authors

The ethical responsibilities of authors submitting manuscripts to IJCESEN are as follows:

Authors must not submit the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously. A manuscript may be submitted to IJCESEN only after the review or publication process at another journal has been formally completed. A manuscript that has already been published elsewhere cannot be submitted to IJCESEN.
Once the peer-review process has commenced, changes to the authorship of the manuscript, including the addition or removal of authors or changes to the order of authors' names, are not permitted unless there is a justified reason and the change is approved by the journal in accordance with its authorship policy.
Authors must submit original work to the journal. If they use or refer to the work, ideas, findings, data, or statements of others, they must provide accurate and complete in-text citations and references.
During the editorial and peer-review process, authors may be requested to provide raw data, research materials, or other relevant information supporting the findings of their manuscript. Authors should be prepared to provide such materials to the editorial team or scientific board when reasonably requested, subject to applicable confidentiality and ethical requirements.
Individuals who have not made a substantial intellectual or scholarly contribution to the research must not be listed as authors. All listed authors should have made meaningful contributions to the study and should approve the final version of the manuscript.
Authors must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest, including financial, personal, institutional, or professional relationships that could influence the research or its interpretation.
Authors must obtain and, where appropriate, document informed consent from research participants and secure all necessary ethical approvals and permissions for the collection, use, sharing, and analysis of research data. Authors are responsible for ensuring that participant privacy and confidentiality are adequately protected.
If authors discover a significant error, inaccuracy, or omission in their manuscript after submission, acceptance, early publication, or publication, they must promptly notify the editor or publisher and cooperate fully in correcting, revising, or, where necessary, retracting the published work.
Authors are responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and ethical compliance of their submitted work and must comply with the journal's publication ethics policies and applicable research ethics standards.

Ethical Responsibilities of Editors

The Editor-in-Chief and Section Editors of IJCESEN are expected to adhere to the ethical principles and responsibilities outlined in the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors and other relevant COPE guidelines. The journal also takes into consideration the recommendations and standards of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), where applicable.

Editors are responsible for overseeing the editorial and publication processes of manuscripts submitted to and published by IJCESEN. They should ensure that all editorial decisions are made fairly, transparently, independently, and in accordance with established ethical standards.

In this regard, the Editor-in-Chief and Section Editors have the following roles and responsibilities:

Serving the needs of readers and authors: Editors should make reasonable efforts to meet the information and knowledge needs of readers and authors while maintaining the academic quality and integrity of the journal.
Improving the quality of published research: Editors should manage the editorial and peer-review processes effectively and take appropriate measures to improve the scientific quality, originality, and relevance of the studies published in the journal.
Supporting freedom of academic expression: Editors should respect and protect academic freedom and allow the responsible expression of diverse scientific perspectives, provided that submissions comply with ethical and scholarly standards.
Ensuring academic integrity: Editors should take appropriate measures to safeguard academic and research integrity and should investigate suspected cases of plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, authorship disputes, and other forms of research or publication misconduct.
Protecting intellectual property and ethical standards: Editors should conduct the editorial process in accordance with applicable intellectual property rights, research ethics requirements, confidentiality principles, and publication ethics standards. Editorial decisions should not be influenced by commercial, personal, institutional, or other inappropriate interests.
Ensuring fairness and transparency: Editors should evaluate manuscripts objectively and without discrimination based on authors' personal characteristics, institutional affiliation, nationality, gender, religion, political views, or other irrelevant considerations.
Managing conflicts of interest: Editors should disclose and appropriately manage any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest. Editors should not participate in editorial decisions concerning manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest.
Maintaining confidentiality: Editors must protect the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and should not disclose information about a manuscript to anyone other than those directly involved in the editorial and peer-review process.
Providing clear explanations and corrections: Editors should ensure that corrections, retractions, expressions of concern, and other necessary editorial notices are handled promptly, transparently, and appropriately when errors or ethical concerns are identified.
Maintaining editorial independence: Editors should make editorial decisions independently and should not allow commercial, political, financial, or other external interests to influence the evaluation or publication of manuscripts.

Relationships with Readers

Editors should make editorial decisions with due consideration for the knowledge, skills, expectations, and information needs of readers, researchers, and practitioners. They should ensure that published studies make a meaningful contribution to the relevant body of scientific literature and meet appropriate standards of originality.
Editors should evaluate manuscripts based on their scientific significance, originality, methodological validity, clarity of presentation, and relevance to the aims and scope of the journal. Editorial decisions should be based on academic and ethical considerations rather than personal, institutional, or commercial interests.
Editors should normally send manuscripts that fall within the journal's scope for the preliminary editorial assessment and peer-review process, unless there are serious methodological, ethical, legal, or academic concerns that justify rejection at the initial stage.
Editors should carefully consider reviewers' recommendations and substantive positive assessments when making editorial decisions. However, editors retain the responsibility for the final decision and may depart from a reviewer's recommendation when there are well-founded academic or ethical reasons to do so.
The journal's peer-review policy and review process should be publicly available and clearly communicated to authors and reviewers. Editors should ensure that the established procedures are applied consistently and should take appropriate measures to prevent deviations from the declared review process.
Editors should provide authors with clear, constructive, and informative feedback regarding editorial decisions. Where appropriate, decision letters should communicate the main reasons for acceptance, revision, or rejection while maintaining the confidentiality of reviewers.

Relationships with Reviewers

Editors must:

Select qualified reviewers: Select reviewers with appropriate academic expertise, methodological knowledge, and relevant experience in the subject area of the manuscript.
Provide guidance to reviewers: Provide reviewers with clear instructions, relevant information, and guidance regarding the journal's peer-review process, evaluation criteria, publication ethics, and confidentiality requirements.
Identify conflicts of interest: Take reasonable steps to determine whether actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest exist between reviewers and authors before assigning a manuscript for review.
Protect reviewer confidentiality: Maintain the confidentiality of reviewers' identities in accordance with the journal's declared peer-review model and ensure that reviewer information is not disclosed without appropriate authorization.
Promote objective and constructive reviews: Encourage reviewers to evaluate manuscripts impartially, objectively, scientifically, and constructively, focusing on the academic quality of the work rather than personal characteristics or opinions about the authors.
Support reviewer performance: Develop and maintain appropriate policies and practices to support the quality, consistency, timeliness, and effectiveness of peer review.
Maintain and update the reviewer pool: Regularly review and update the journal's reviewer database and take appropriate steps to ensure that reviewers' areas of expertise, institutional affiliations, and contact information remain current.
Prevent inappropriate reviews: Take appropriate measures to prevent reviews that are offensive, discriminatory, disrespectful, unscientific, or otherwise inconsistent with the journal's peer-review standards.
Ensure diversity within the reviewer pool: Make reasonable efforts to maintain a broad and diverse reviewer pool with appropriate representation of different areas of expertise, institutions, geographical regions, and academic backgrounds.
Monitor reviewer performance: Where appropriate, monitor the quality and timeliness of reviews and take corrective measures when reviewers repeatedly fail to meet the journal's ethical or professional standards.

Relationships with the Editorial Board

Editors must ensure that all members of the Editorial Board perform their duties in accordance with the journal's publication policies, ethical principles, and editorial guidelines. Editors should keep Editorial Board members informed about relevant publication policies, ethical standards, procedural changes, and developments affecting the journal.

In this regard, editors must:

Ensure impartiality and independence: Ensure that Editorial Board members evaluate manuscripts fairly, objectively, and independently, without inappropriate influence from personal, institutional, commercial, or other interests.
Select qualified Editorial Board members: Appoint new Editorial Board members based on their academic qualifications, subject-matter expertise, research experience, publication record, ethical standards, and their potential to contribute meaningfully to the development of the journal.
Assign manuscripts appropriately: Assign manuscripts to Editorial Board members according to their areas of expertise and ensure that assignments are made fairly and without conflicts of interest.
Maintain regular communication: Maintain regular and effective communication with Editorial Board members regarding editorial matters, publication policies, ethical issues, and the overall development of the journal.
Organize Editorial Board meetings: Arrange regular meetings with the Editorial Board to discuss and develop the journal's editorial policies, publication standards, peer-review procedures, ethical practices, and strategies for improving the quality and visibility of the journal.
Support professional development: Provide Editorial Board members with relevant information and guidance concerning developments in scholarly publishing, publication ethics, peer review, and applicable international standards.
Promote accountability: Ensure that Editorial Board members understand their roles and responsibilities and that their activities are consistent with the journal's stated policies and ethical standards.

Editorial and Blind Review Processes

Editors are required to comply with the journal's Blind Review and Peer Review Process as defined in its publication policies and editorial guidelines. Editors must ensure that every manuscript is evaluated in an impartial, fair, transparent, and timely manner, in accordance with the journal's established peer-review procedures and ethical standards.

Quality Assurance

Editors must ensure that all articles published in the journal comply with the journal's publication policies, editorial guidelines, ethical principles, and applicable international standards of scholarly publishing.

Protection of Personal Information

Editors must protect the privacy and confidentiality of individuals who participate in research or are identifiable in photographs, images, or other materials included in submitted manuscripts. Where informed consent is required, editors should request appropriate documentation of consent and may reject a manuscript if the necessary consent has not been obtained or cannot be adequately documented.

Editors must also protect the confidentiality and personal information of authors, reviewers, and readers. Personal data must be handled securely and used only for legitimate editorial and publication-related purposes, in accordance with applicable privacy and data-protection requirements.

Encouraging Ethical Rules and Protection of Human and Animal Rights

Editors must ensure that manuscripts involving human or animal subjects comply with applicable ethical principles, legal requirements, and relevant research standards. For studies requiring ethical approval, editors should require appropriate documentation of approval from the relevant ethics committee or institutional review board (IRB) before publication.

Manuscripts involving human or animal research that lack the required ethical approval, where such approval is applicable, may be rejected. Editors should also ensure that research involving human participants respects their rights, dignity, privacy, safety, and informed consent, and that studies involving animals comply with applicable standards for animal welfare and humane treatment.

Precautions against possible Abuse and Malpractice

Editors must take appropriate measures to prevent and address suspected cases of research and publication misconduct. They should investigate allegations and complaints concerning unethical conduct, plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, authorship disputes, conflicts of interest, and other forms of misconduct in a thorough, impartial, and objective manner.

Editors should follow established procedures and relevant publication ethics guidelines when investigating such cases and should provide all parties concerned with an appropriate opportunity to respond. Where necessary, editors may consult relevant institutions, ethics committees, or other appropriate authorities.

Upon completion of an investigation, editors should communicate the outcome to the relevant parties, while respecting confidentiality and applicable privacy and legal requirements. Where misconduct is confirmed, the journal should take appropriate corrective action, which may include correction, expression of concern, retraction, or other measures consistent with applicable publication ethics standards.

Ensuring Academic Integrity

Editors must ensure that any errors, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, or misleading information identified in published or accepted manuscripts are corrected promptly and appropriately. Where necessary, the journal should publish a correction, retraction, or other appropriate editorial notice in accordance with established publication ethics standards.

Protection of Intellectual Property Rights

Editors are responsible for safeguarding the intellectual property rights associated with manuscripts submitted to and articles published by the journal, while also protecting the legitimate rights and interests of authors and the journal in cases of alleged or confirmed infringement.

Editors must take reasonable and appropriate measures to ensure that the content of published articles does not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of third parties or other publications. Where an alleged infringement is identified, editors should investigate the matter in accordance with applicable laws, the journal's policies, and relevant publication ethics guidelines, and take appropriate corrective action where necessary.
Constructiveness and Openness to Discussion

Editors must:

Consider constructive criticism: Give appropriate consideration to well-founded and scientifically supported criticism concerning studies published in the journal and respond to such criticism in a fair, objective, and constructive manner.
Provide a right of reply: Give the authors of the criticized study a reasonable opportunity to respond to substantive criticism and ensure that such responses are evaluated fairly.
Consider negative or inconclusive findings: Ensure that manuscripts are not rejected or excluded solely because they report negative, null, or inconclusive results, provided that the research is methodologically sound, ethically conducted, and relevant to the journal's scope.
Maintain scientific dialogue: Support transparent and respectful scholarly discussion concerning published research while ensuring that all contributions meet the journal's standards of academic integrity and publication ethics.

Complaints

Editors must carefully and impartially consider complaints submitted by authors, reviewers, readers, or other parties involved in the publication process. Complaints should be addressed promptly and in accordance with the journal's established policies and relevant publication ethics guidelines.

Editors should provide clear, informative, and constructive responses to complaints and, where appropriate, explain the reasons for the decisions or actions taken. All complaints should be handled confidentially, fairly, and without prejudice to the parties involved.

Political and Economic Apprehensions

Neither the journal owner, publisher, nor any political, commercial, financial, or other external interest may interfere with or influence the independent editorial decision-making process. Editors must make decisions based solely on academic, scientific, ethical, and editorial considerations, without undue influence or pressure from external parties.

Conflicting Interests

Editors must recognize and appropriately manage any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest involving reviewers, editors, authors, or other parties participating in the publication process. They must ensure that manuscripts are evaluated and processed independently, impartially, and objectively, without any undue influence arising from personal, professional, institutional, commercial, or other relationships.

Ethical Responsibilities of Reviewers

The double-blind peer-review process is an essential component of the journal's commitment to maintaining the quality, integrity, and impartiality of published research. This process supports confidentiality and ensures that manuscripts are evaluated independently and objectively.

The peer-review process at IJCESEN is conducted according to the principle of double-blind peer review, in which the identities of both authors and reviewers are kept confidential. Reviewers do not communicate directly with authors. All review reports, comments, and recommendations are submitted through the journal's editorial management system.

The editor communicates reviewers' evaluations and comments to the authors through the journal's system. Reviewers are therefore expected to comply with the following ethical responsibilities:

Reviewers must:

Accept manuscripts within their area of expertise: Review only manuscripts for which they have sufficient academic, methodological, or professional expertise to provide a qualified and constructive evaluation.
Maintain impartiality and confidentiality: Evaluate manuscripts objectively, fairly, and confidentially and must not disclose any information concerning the manuscript or the review process to third parties.
Declare conflicts of interest: Immediately inform the editor of any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest involving the manuscript, its authors, institutions, or research topic. Reviewers should decline the invitation when such a conflict could affect, or reasonably be perceived to affect, the impartiality of their evaluation.
Respect the confidentiality of manuscripts: Treat all manuscripts and information obtained during the review process as confidential. Reviewers must not copy, share, distribute, use, or otherwise exploit unpublished material from manuscripts under review. They may use information from the manuscript only after the work has been officially published and in accordance with applicable scholarly practices.
Evaluate manuscripts objectively: Assess manuscripts solely on their academic, scientific, methodological, and ethical merits. Reviewers must not allow considerations such as the authors' nationality, gender, ethnicity, religion, political views, institutional affiliation, or financial circumstances to influence their evaluation.
Provide constructive and respectful feedback: Express comments in a professional, objective, constructive, and respectful manner. Personal criticism, hostile language, defamatory statements, insulting remarks, or other inappropriate comments directed at the authors are not acceptable.
Provide evidence-based evaluations: Clearly identify the strengths and weaknesses of the manuscript and, where appropriate, provide specific recommendations that may help authors improve the quality and clarity of their work.
Identify relevant sources: Inform the editor of any significant published work that has not been appropriately cited by the authors and identify substantial similarities between the manuscript under review and other published or unpublished works of which they are aware.
Complete reviews on time: Accept a review invitation only when they have sufficient time and expertise to complete the evaluation within the period specified by the journal. If circumstances prevent timely completion, reviewers should promptly inform the editor.
Avoid inappropriate use of the review process: Reviewers must not use unpublished information obtained through peer review for personal, professional, or commercial advantage or to advance their own research or interests.

Ethical Responsibilities of Publisher

The Editors and Editorial Board of IJCESEN acknowledge their responsibility to uphold the highest standards of publication ethics, academic integrity, and editorial independence. They are committed to carrying out their duties in accordance with the journal's publication policies, ethical principles, and relevant international standards.

In this context:

Editorial responsibility and independence: Editors are responsible for overseeing all editorial processes through which manuscripts submitted to IJCESEN are evaluated and processed. Editorial decisions must be based solely on academic, scientific, and ethical considerations, without influence from political, commercial, financial, or other external interests.
Independent editorial decision-making: The publisher is committed to safeguarding the independence of the editorial process and must not interfere with or influence the editors' academic or editorial decisions.
Protection of intellectual property: The publisher is responsible for protecting the intellectual property rights associated with articles published by IJCESEN and for maintaining appropriate records of submitted manuscripts, including manuscripts that are not ultimately published, in accordance with applicable legal, ethical, and data-protection requirements.
Prevention of misconduct: The publisher, in cooperation with the editors, is responsible for supporting appropriate measures to prevent and address research and publication misconduct, including plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, fraud, and other forms of unethical academic conduct.
Cooperation in investigations: Where allegations of research or publication misconduct arise, the publisher should cooperate with the editors and relevant institutions or authorities, where appropriate, to ensure that such allegations are investigated fairly, objectively, and in accordance with applicable publication ethics guidelines.
Commitment to publication integrity: The publisher supports the journal's commitment to maintaining transparency, accountability, academic integrity, and ethical standards throughout the publication process.

Notification of Ethics Non-Principles Status Editor

Any concerns or allegations regarding unethical conduct, research or publication misconduct, or violations of the ethical principles and policies of IJCESEN—including concerns involving articles, editors, reviewers, or authors—should be reported to the journal at ijcesen@gmail.com.

All complaints and allegations will be treated seriously and handled confidentially, fairly, and objectively in accordance with the journal's publication ethics policies and relevant international guidelines. Where appropriate, the journal will investigate reported concerns and take the necessary corrective or preventive measures.

Children's Privacy

The journal's website is intended for use by individuals who are 18 years of age or older. The journal does not knowingly collect, request, or process personal information from individuals under the age of 18.

If we become aware that personal information has been collected from an individual under the age of 18 without appropriate consent, we will take reasonable steps to delete such information from our records in accordance with applicable data protection and privacy laws.

Authorship principles

Authorship definition

These guidelines set out the authorship principles and good authorship practices that prospective authors submitting manuscripts to IJCESEN are expected to follow.

Authorship Requirements

IJCESEN assumes that all individuals listed as authors have agreed to the content of the manuscript, have explicitly approved its submission to the journal, and have obtained any necessary authorization from the relevant institution or organization where the research was conducted before submitting the manuscript.

The publisher does not prescribe a specific set of contributions that automatically qualifies an individual for authorship. Authors are encouraged to follow the authorship criteria and standards applicable to their particular research discipline. Where no discipline-specific authorship guidelines apply, IJCESEN recommends that authors follow the criteria below.

All individuals listed as authors must have:

made substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data; or to the development of software specifically used in the research;
contributed to drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content;
approved the final version of the manuscript to be published; and
agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work and to ensure that any questions concerning the accuracy or integrity of any part of the research are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Contributions and Local Collaboration

IJCESEN encourages meaningful collaboration with researchers and colleagues in the locations or institutions where research is conducted. Researchers who make substantial contributions to the study and meet all of the authorship criteria outlined above should be appropriately included as co-authors.

Individuals who contribute to the research but do not meet all of the criteria for authorship should not be listed as authors. Instead, their contributions should be appropriately recognized in the Acknowledgements section, with their permission where applicable.

All authors are responsible for ensuring that the authorship list accurately reflects the contributions made to the research and manuscript. Authorship should not be granted solely on the basis of position, seniority, institutional affiliation, or other non-contributory factors.

Data transparency

All authors are expected to ensure that the data, research materials, software, and custom code underlying the findings and claims presented in their manuscripts are accurate, reliable, and consistent with the standards and practices of their respective research disciplines.

Where appropriate, authors should make the underlying data, materials, software, and code available in accordance with applicable ethical, legal, privacy, and intellectual property requirements. Authors should also provide sufficient information to enable the research to be appropriately evaluated and, where feasible, reproduced or replicated.

IJCESEN recognizes that requirements and practices concerning research data and material sharing may vary across disciplines. Authors are therefore expected to comply with the journal's applicable data-sharing requirements and the relevant standards and expectations of their research field.

Authors should consult the Instructions for Authors and other relevant journal policies for specific requirements concerning the availability, sharing, storage, and citation of research data, materials, software, and code.

Disclosures and declarations

All authors are required to provide appropriate declarations and disclosures relevant to their submitted manuscript. Where applicable, these should include:

Funding: A statement identifying all sources of financial support received for the research, including grant numbers or other relevant funding information where appropriate.
Conflicts of interest: A declaration of any financial or non-financial interests, relationships, or affiliations that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the research, its interpretation, or the publication process.
Ethics approval: Information regarding approval obtained from the relevant ethics committee, institutional review board, or other authorized body for research involving human participants, human data, or animals, where such approval is required.
Informed consent: A statement confirming that informed consent was obtained from human participants when required by applicable ethical standards, institutional requirements, or relevant legislation.
Animal welfare: For studies involving animals, a statement confirming compliance with applicable standards, regulations, and institutional requirements concerning animal welfare and humane treatment.

The need for these declarations depends not only on the general scope of the journal but also on the specific nature and implications of the submitted manuscript. Research submitted for publication may have potential implications for public health, safety, the environment, animal welfare, or broader societal interests. In such cases, all authors are responsible for providing complete, accurate, and transparent disclosures and declarations relevant to their work.

Authors must ensure that all declarations are truthful, complete, and sufficiently detailed to allow readers and editors to assess the ethical, financial, and other relevant aspects of the research.

Role of the corresponding author

One author must be designated as the Corresponding Author and will act on behalf of all co-authors in communications with the journal. The Corresponding Author is responsible for ensuring that questions concerning the accuracy, integrity, and ethical aspects of any part of the work are appropriately addressed and resolved in cooperation with the other authors.

The Corresponding Author is responsible for:
- Ensuring transparency regarding reused material: Disclosing any reused, adapted, or previously published material included in the manuscript and identifying any unpublished material, such as manuscripts currently under review or in press, in the cover letter submitted to the Editor.
- Obtaining authors' approval: Ensuring that all listed authors have reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript before submission, including the complete and accurate list of authors and the order in which their names appear.
- Managing communication: Coordinating all communication between the journal and the co-authors throughout the editorial, peer-review, production, and post-publication processes, where applicable.
- Ensuring complete declarations and disclosures: Confirming that all required disclosures, declarations, conflict-of-interest statements, funding information, ethics statements, consent statements, and data-availability statements from all authors are included in the manuscript where applicable.
- Communicating editorial decisions: Ensuring that all co-authors are informed of significant editorial decisions, revisions, publication requirements, and other relevant communications from the journal.
- Maintaining author accountability: Ensuring that all co-authors remain informed about the manuscript and agree to take appropriate responsibility for the accuracy and integrity of their contributions throughout the publication process.

Author contributions

Authors should consult the Author Guidelines of IJCESEN for specific requirements regarding author contribution statements and manuscript preparation.

IJCESEN promotes transparency and accountability by requiring authors to provide a clear Author Contribution Statement for all types of articles. The statement should describe the specific contributions made by each author to the research and preparation of the manuscript.

The level of detail required may vary depending on the nature of the research and the practices of the relevant discipline. In some fields, individual contributions can be clearly identified and described, whereas in others, research is conducted collaboratively and contributions may extend across multiple stages of the study.

Affiliation

The primary institutional affiliation listed for each author should correspond to the institution where the majority of the research work was conducted.

If an author has changed institutions after completing the research, their current institutional affiliation or address may be provided as an additional affiliation, where appropriate.

Institutional affiliations and addresses published with an article will not normally be changed or updated after publication. Any post-publication changes will be considered only in exceptional circumstances and in accordance with the journal's correction and publication policies.

Changes to authorship

Authors are strongly advised to carefully verify the complete author list, the designation of the Corresponding Author, the order of authors, and all author information before submitting a manuscript to IJCESEN.

Any change to the author list after submission—including the addition or removal of an author, a change in the order of authors, or a change in the Corresponding Author—must be justified and approved by all authors. Requests for changes in authorship must be submitted to the Editor-in-Chief and should include a clear explanation of the reason for the requested change.

Authors should ensure that:

The names of all authors are included and spelled correctly.
The order of authors accurately reflects their contributions and has been approved by all authors.
The Corresponding Author has been correctly identified and has agreed to undertake the responsibilities associated with this role.
All institutional affiliations and addresses are accurate and current.
Author names are presented in the desired form, as they will be published exactly as they appear in the accepted manuscript.

As a general rule, changes to authorship after acceptance of a manuscript are not permitted. This includes adding or removing authors, changing the order of authors, or changing the Corresponding Author. In exceptional circumstances, such a change may be considered only with a clear justification and the approval of all authors and the Editor-in-Chief.

Changes to authorship during the revision stage are generally discouraged and will be considered only in exceptional circumstances. Any request to add, remove, or reorder authors during revision must be accompanied by a detailed explanation of the reasons for the change and confirmation that all authors have agreed to the proposed change.

The final decision regarding any authorship change during the revision stage rests with the Editor-in-Chief, who may request additional documentation or clarification where necessary. Authorship changes will not be considered solely for administrative, personal, or non-substantive reasons.

Author name change

An author who has changed their name may request that their name, pronouns, and other relevant biographical information be updated in articles published before the change.

IJCESEN will consider such requests respectfully and confidentially. Authors may request that the change be made silently, without a public notice or indication of the change appearing in the PDF or HTML version of the article. Alternatively, authors may request a formal and publicly accessible Author Correction.

Such requests will be handled in accordance with the author's wishes, applicable privacy requirements, and the journal's correction policies. The journal will make reasonable efforts to ensure that the author's current identity and personal information are accurately reflected while maintaining the integrity of the published record.

Author identification

Authors are strongly encouraged to provide their ORCID iD when submitting a manuscript to IJCESEN. Authors who do not yet have an ORCID iD are encouraged to register for one during the submission process.

ORCID iDs help ensure accurate author identification, distinguish researchers with similar names, and improve the attribution and discoverability of authors' scholarly contributions.

Deceased or incapacitated authors

If a co-author dies or becomes incapacitated during the preparation, submission, or peer-review process, and the remaining co-authors consider it appropriate to retain the individual as an author, they should obtain consent from the author's legally authorized representative, where applicable.

The journal may request appropriate documentation confirming the representative's authority to provide such consent. The authorship decision should remain consistent with the journal's authorship criteria and publication ethics principles.

Confidentiality

Authors must treat all communications with the journal as confidential. This includes correspondence with the Editor-in-Chief, Handling Editors, Editorial Board members, and reviewers, as well as peer-review reports and editorial decisions.

Authors must not disclose, reproduce, distribute, or share such communications or materials with third parties without the explicit permission of the journal or the relevant individuals. Any disclosure or use of confidential information obtained during the editorial and peer-review process must be consistent with the journal's publication ethics policies and applicable confidentiality requirements.

Authorship issues or disputes

In the event of an authorship dispute arising during the peer-review process or after acceptance or publication, IJCESEN will generally not adjudicate disputes concerning authorship or determine the appropriate allocation of authorship among the individuals involved.

The authors will be expected to resolve the dispute among themselves and, where appropriate, through their affiliated institutions or other relevant authorities.

If the dispute cannot be resolved, IJCESEN reserves the right to suspend or withdraw the manuscript from the editorial process. In the case of an article that has already been published, the journal may refer the matter to the relevant institution(s) for investigation and follow the recommendations or procedures of the appropriate authority.

Where necessary, the journal may take appropriate editorial action in accordance with its publication ethics policies and applicable guidelines.

Corrections, retractions and matters arising

Corrections and retractions

In exceptional circumstances, it may be necessary to publish corrections to or retract articles that have already been published in order to maintain the accuracy, integrity, and reliability of the scholarly record.

Corrections and retractions will be issued through a formal Correction or Retraction notice that is clearly and bidirectionally linked to the original article. The notice will explain the reason for the correction or retraction and, where applicable, describe the changes made to the original article.

Whenever possible, the original article will remain publicly accessible, with the corresponding Correction or Retraction notice clearly displayed and linked to it. Corrections and retractions will be made available for indexing and discoverability in accordance with applicable scholarly publishing practices.

In exceptional circumstances, where published material is determined to violate applicable laws, infringe the rights of a third party, breach privacy or confidentiality, or constitute defamatory or otherwise unlawful content, IJCESEN may remove or restrict access to the relevant material from its website and, where appropriate, from associated archives.

Authors, readers, or organizations who identify a potential error, ethical concern, or other issue affecting a published article are encouraged to contact IJCESEN through the contact information provided on the journal's website. All reports will be carefully considered by the Editors. Where necessary, the Editors may seek advice from independent experts, ethics committees, or relevant institutions before determining the appropriate course of action.

Any corrective action will be taken in accordance with the journal's publication ethics policies, applicable international standards, and relevant legal requirements.

Corrections

Errors identified in published articles that affect the accuracy or clarity of the article but do not substantially invalidate its findings or conclusions may, at the discretion of the Editor(s), be corrected through the publication of a formal Correction notice.

The Correction notice will be clearly identified, indexed where applicable, and bidirectionally linked to the original article to ensure transparency and maintain the integrity of the scholarly record. The original article will remain accessible whenever possible, with the nature of the correction clearly indicated.

Retractions

In rare circumstances, where the validity or interpretation of a published article is substantially compromised, retraction of the article may be necessary to protect the integrity and reliability of the scholarly record.

Editorial decisions regarding retraction are based on the reliability of the published work and whether the Editors continue to have sufficient confidence in the interpretation, findings, or conclusions presented in the article. Retraction is intended as a neutral mechanism for correcting the scholarly record and should not be regarded as a punitive measure against the authors.

A formal Retraction notice will be published, indexed where applicable, and clearly and bidirectionally linked to the original article. The original article will remain accessible whenever possible and will be clearly marked with a “Retracted” watermark. The article title will also be amended by adding the prefix “Retracted article:” to ensure that the retracted status is immediately identifiable.

Editorial expressions of concern and editor’s notes

An Editor’s Note is a notification intended to alert readers that the journal has initiated an inquiry in response to concerns raised regarding a published article. An Editor’s Note may be issued while an investigation is ongoing and does not, in itself, constitute a finding of research or publication misconduct.

An Editor’s Note is published as an online-only update to the HTML version of record of the article. It is not independently indexed.

Editorial Expression of Concern

An Editorial Expression of Concern is a formal statement issued by the Editors to alert readers to serious concerns regarding the integrity, reliability, or interpretation of a published article when the available information does not yet justify a correction or retraction, or while an investigation remains ongoing.

An Editorial Expression of Concern is assigned a DOI and may be indexed in relevant scholarly databases, where applicable, to ensure that readers are made aware of the concerns associated with the published article. The notice is clearly linked to the affected article and remains part of the scholarly record.

Removal of published content

In exceptional circumstances, IJCESEN reserves the right to remove an article or restrict access to its content on the journal’s online platforms where continued availability of the content would create significant legal, ethical, or public-interest concerns.

Such action may be taken where:

IJCESEN has been advised that the published content is defamatory, infringes a third party’s intellectual property rights, right to privacy, or other legal rights, or is otherwise unlawful;
a court, governmental authority, or other competent body has issued, or is reasonably expected to issue, an order requiring the removal or restriction of access to the content; or
continued access to, or use of, the published content could pose an immediate and serious risk to public health or safety.

Depending on the circumstances, removal or restriction of access may be temporary or permanent and will be undertaken in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and ethical standards.

Where an article is removed, its bibliographic metadata, including the title, authors, publication information, and DOI where applicable, will be retained to the extent reasonably possible. The bibliographic record will include a clear statement explaining the reason for the removal or restriction of access, thereby maintaining transparency and preserving the integrity of the scholarly record.

Matters arising

IJCESEN recognizes the importance of post-publication commentary on published research as a means of promoting scientific discussion, clarification, and further development of scholarly knowledge.

Formal post-publication commentary may include substantive challenges to the published work, requests for clarification, methodological or interpretative observations, or, where appropriate, attempts to replicate the reported research. Such commentary should be based primarily on the scientific knowledge and evidence available at the time the original article was published, while subsequent developments may be considered where they are directly relevant to the issues raised.

At the discretion of the Editor(s), and depending on the nature and substance of the submission, post-publication comments or discussions may be subject to editorial assessment and peer review. Following this process, the commentary may be published online as a Matters Arising article.

Authors of the original article will normally be given an opportunity to respond to substantive comments concerning their work. Where appropriate, the authors’ response may be peer-reviewed and published alongside the post-publication commentary to facilitate a balanced and transparent scientific discussion.

Publication of post-publication commentary does not, in itself, imply that the Editors endorse the views expressed in the commentary or that the validity of the original article has been called into question.

Vulnerable Populations and Participants Under 18 Years of Age

IJCESEN recognizes that research involving vulnerable populations requires additional ethical safeguards to protect participants from potential harm, coercion, undue influence, or exploitation. Researchers must ensure that the rights, dignity, safety, privacy, and welfare of vulnerable participants are protected throughout the research process.

For research involving participants under 18 years of age, authors must obtain approval from the relevant institutional or research ethics committee before the research begins, where such approval is required. In addition, written informed consent must normally be obtained from a parent or legally authorized guardian before a minor participates in research. Where appropriate and developmentally feasible, the minor’s assent should also be obtained. Assent should be sought in language and a manner that the participant can reasonably understand.

Parental or guardian consent does not replace the requirement to respect the minor’s wishes. A minor who is capable of understanding the nature and implications of the research should be given an appropriate opportunity to agree to or decline participation. Researchers should not enroll a minor who refuses participation, even where parental or guardian consent has been obtained, except where otherwise permitted by applicable law and approved by the relevant ethics committee.

In exceptional circumstances, parental or guardian consent may not be required where a waiver or alternative consent procedure is permitted by applicable law and has been approved by the relevant ethics committee or competent authority. Authors must clearly describe the basis for any such waiver or alternative procedure in the manuscript.

Research involving other vulnerable populations, including individuals who may have limited decision-making capacity or may be particularly susceptible to coercion or undue influence, must include appropriate additional safeguards. Where participants cannot provide legally valid informed consent themselves, consent must be obtained from an appropriate legally authorized representative in accordance with applicable law and ethical requirements.

Authors must provide sufficient information in the manuscript regarding ethics committee approval, informed consent, parental or guardian consent, participant assent, and any applicable consent waiver. IJCESEN may request documentation of ethical approval or consent procedures where necessary.

Manuscripts reporting research involving vulnerable populations may be rejected if the Editors determine that appropriate ethical safeguards, consent procedures, or protections for participants were not adequately implemented or documented.