Publication Ethics
The relationships among authors, editors, and reviewers in our journal are founded on academic goodwill, unbiased evaluations, and a commitment to academic quality and accuracy.
Responsibilities of the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board
Decision-making
The Editor-in-Chief makes the final decision on which manuscripts get published in the journal. The decision must be made without restrictions based on the author’s race, gender, nationality, citizenship, or political views.* The Editor-in-Chief must follow the journal’s ethical policy, which is agreed upon by the Editorial Board. The Editor-in-Chief is assisted in making decisions regarding the publication of manuscripts by the issue editors, section editors, managing editor, reviewers, or members of the Editorial Board.
* The Editorial Board of the journal does not publish submissions from authors who in any way support Russian aggression against Ukraine or collaborate with Russian organizations that support Russian aggression.
Confidentiality
The journal's Editorial Board is fully responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts. Information about these manuscripts should only be shared with the author(s), reviewers, potential reviewers, other journal editors, or consultants, and not disclosed to any third parties (not involved in the publication process).
Disclosure and conflict of interest
The Editorial Board of the journal is fully responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts. The editor-in-chief, the editorial working group, all members of the Editorial Board, reviewers, and other involved consultants must not use unpublished submitted materials for their own academic research or for any other personal gain. All parties should disclose any potential conflicts of interest. If an editor, reviewer, or any other consultant recognizes a conflict of interest, that individual should be excluded from the review process.
Participation and cooperation in the complaint review process
The Editor-in-Chief should take responsible action on ethical complaints about a submitted manuscript or published article. This may include suspending publication of the manuscript until the validity of the complaints has been determined, corresponding with the author of the manuscript and giving due consideration to the complaints or allegations, corresponding with the relevant research centers, and, if the complaint is confirmed, publishing a correction, retraction, concern, or other note. Every act of unethical behavior is considered, even if it is discovered several years after publication.
Reviewers' Responsibilities
Assistance in editorial decisions
The review process is a crucial part of evaluating manuscripts, aiding the Editor-in-Chief in making informed publication decisions. It also promotes transparency and accountability in academic research.
Timeliness
If a reviewer feels that they are not sufficiently qualified to review a submitted manuscript or cannot complete the review in a timely manner, they should decline to participate in the review process.
Confidentiality
The reviewer must keep the information or ideas obtained during the review process confidential and not use them for personal gain. Manuscripts received for review should not be shown or discussed with anyone else, except those authorized by the Editor-in-Chief.
Conflict of interest
Reviewers should avoid reviewing texts in which they might have a conflict of interest, such as due to competition, collaboration, or other relationships or connections with the authors.
Standards of objectivity
Reviews must be unbiased, avoiding personal criticism of the author. Reviewers should clearly state their opinions and support them with arguments.
Sources acknowledgment
If quotations lack proper references to authorship, reviewers should specify the relevant works that the manuscript's author did not cite. Any statement claiming that observations, conclusions, or arguments have been previously published must be accompanied by an appropriate citation. The reviewer should also be attentive to the similarity of the reviewed manuscript to any other published article known to them.
Use of AI tools for reviewing texts
The Editorial Board of the journal does not encourage the use of artificial intelligence tools for manuscript review. AI may only be used to correct grammatical errors or to format the style of your own text. If a reviewer employs AI tools to write a review, they must disclose how these tools were used to prepare the review. The review must include the author's original thoughts and adhere to the standards of academic integrity.
A reviewer must respect the author's manuscript and treat it as confidential material. That is why the Editorial Board prohibits reviewers from uploading reviewed manuscripts to AI applications for data generation.
Authors' Responsibilities
Compliance with academic integrity standards
Authors must submit original research for publication that includes an objective and well-reasoned analysis of the research topic. The manuscript must specify the research methods, results, and source data that allow other researchers to reproduce or verify the work. All statements in the manuscript must be accurate and supported by relevant sources. Submitting false, falsified, or misleading information intentionally is a serious violation of ethical standards and is unacceptable in academic publications.
Originality and plagiarism
The author must ensure their manuscript is entirely original research. If they have used the work and/or words of others, it must be acknowledged with a citation. The use of any form of plagiarism is considered unethical and is unacceptable in academic publications.
Publishing simultaneously in multiple journals
Authors should avoid submitting the same research to multiple journals at the same time. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously is considered unethical publishing behavior.
Acknowledgment of sources
Authors should cite publications that have influenced their work. Information obtained privately, such as in conversations or discussions with third parties, should not be used without the explicit written permission of the source. Similarly, information gained while providing confidential services, like reviewing a manuscript, may not be used without the explicit written permission of the manuscript's author.
Authorship of a publication
Authorship is attributed to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, conduction, or interpretation of the research. All individuals who contributed substantially should be listed as co-authors. The lead author (or corresponding author) is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors approve the manuscript’s submission to the journal and agree with its content. The lead author is also responsible for ensuring that all co-authors have reviewed the final version of the manuscript. The Editorial Board reserves the right to request confirmation of each author's contribution in case of ethical concerns.
Disclosure and conflict of interest
All authors should notify the Editorial Board of any financial or other significant conflicts that could affect the results or interpretation of their manuscript. They must disclose all sources of financial support for the project. It is recommended to inform the Editorial Board of potential conflicts of interest as early as possible.
Fundamental errors in published works
If an author finds a significant error or inaccuracy in their published manuscript, they should promptly inform the Editorial Board to retract or correct it.
Use of AI tools for the composition of manuscripts
The Editorial Board of the journal does not encourage authors to use artificial intelligence tools for writing academic texts. The use of AI is permitted only for correcting grammatical errors or formatting the text style (CMS). If an author uses AI tools to write an article, essay, book review, etc., they must inform the Editorial Board in writing about how the tools were used to prepare the manuscript. All submissions should contain the author's original thoughts and comply with the standards of academic integrity.
To protect confidentiality, the journal's Editorial Board advises authors not to upload their texts to AI applications.
The author is responsible for all texts generated using AI tools. Non-compliance with academic integrity standards and representing AI-generated ideas as personal authorship may lead to rejection of the manuscript by the journal.
Plagiarism Policy
The Editorial Board defines the following as plagiarism:
- the verbatim use of any materials without citing the source;
- the use of images, drawings, photographs, tables, diagrams, charts, or any other forms of graphic information without citing the source;
- the use of images, drawings, pictures, tables, diagrams, charts, or any other forms of graphic information published in academic and popular publications without the permission of the copyright holder;
- using materials without the written consent of the authors or copyright owners, unless they approve the use of their materials.
The Editorial Board suggests that authors review their articles’ content before submitting them for publication using software.
The journal employs Grammarly's plagiarism detection tool. If plagiarism is found at any point during the publication process by editors, reviewers, or the editorial team, the manuscript may be rejected, and the author will be informed.
Repository Policy
Authors have full rights to post their articles on any non-commercial repositories and websites. The Editorial Board of the journal permits the publication of all formats of author manuscripts: submitted for publication, accepted for publication, or published in the journal. Published articles must include information about the publisher, a link to the journal's homepage, or the DOI of the manuscripts.
Open Access Policy
Theological Reflections: Eastern European Journal of Theology is an open-access journal. All texts published in the journal are freely available on the journal's website in PDF format, with no restrictions or embargo period.
Archiving
PKP Preservation Network (PN)
