Publication Ethics & Publication Malpractice Statement

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The Asian Review of Social Sciences (ARSS) is committed to integrity, transparency, fairness, accountability and editorial independence in scholarly publishing. ARSS expects authors, reviewers, editors, Editorial Board members and the publisher to follow recognised standards of responsible research and publication practice. Ethical concerns are handled fairly and proportionately with reference, where applicable, to guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

This statement is ARSS’s principal publication-ethics policy and operates together with the Author Guidelines, Peer Review Process, Copyright & Licensing Policy, Generative AI Policy and Post-Publication and Accountability Policy.

1. Authorship and Contributorship

Authorship must be limited to individuals who made substantial intellectual contributions, participated in drafting or critically revising the work, approved the final version and accept accountability for the integrity of the work. Contributors who do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately.

ARSS supports the CRediT Contributor Roles Taxonomy for transparent reporting of individual contributions. Guest, gift, honorary, purchased, ghost or otherwise misleading authorship is not acceptable. Requests to add, remove or rearrange authors should normally be made before acceptance and should include a clear reason and written agreement from all affected authors.

Reference: CRediT Contributor Roles Taxonomy

2. Duplicate, Redundant and Concurrent Publication

Manuscripts submitted to ARSS must be original and must not be under consideration by another journal at the same time. Authors must disclose relevant prior publications, preprints, conference abstracts, datasets or closely related manuscripts where these may affect assessment of originality or overlap.

Duplicate publication, redundant publication, inappropriate salami publication and simultaneous submission to multiple journals are not permitted. Legitimate secondary publication may be considered only when ethically justified, transparently disclosed, appropriately cited and permitted by the relevant editors and rights holders.

3. Plagiarism and Self-Plagiarism

ARSS does not permit plagiarism, including unattributed use of another person’s words, ideas, data, figures, tables, methods or intellectual work. Substantial reuse of an author’s own previously published material without appropriate citation or disclosure may constitute self-plagiarism or redundant publication.

Similarity-detection tools and editorial checks may be used before or during peer review. Similarity reports are interpreted by editors in context and are not treated as an automatic acceptance or rejection threshold.

4. Fabrication, Falsification and Data Integrity

Fabrication of data or results, falsification or selective alteration of research records, misrepresentation of methods or findings, and manipulation that creates a misleading scholarly record are prohibited. Authors must report methods, data, results, limitations and conclusions accurately and transparently.

Images, figures and other visual outputs must accurately represent the underlying data. Editors may request original data, image files, analysis records or supporting documentation when integrity concerns arise.

5. Citation Manipulation

Citations must be relevant to the scholarly content and used to acknowledge sources, support claims and place the work in context. Authors, reviewers and editors must not request or add citations primarily to inflate citation counts, journal metrics, personal metrics or the standing of a particular author, journal, institution or group.

Coercive citation, citation cartels, fabricated references and irrelevant citation padding are considered publication malpractice.

6. Peer-Review Manipulation and Reviewer Integrity

ARSS uses a double-blind peer-review process for manuscripts that pass initial screening, normally involving at least two independent external reviewers with relevant expertise.

Fabricated reviewer identities, false contact details, impersonation, undisclosed relationships, review rings, coercion or improper interference with reviewer selection are prohibited. Reviewers must maintain confidentiality, disclose conflicts and provide objective evidence-based assessments.

Related ARSS policy: Peer Review Process

7. Conflicts of Interest and Funding

Authors, reviewers, editors and Editorial Board members must disclose financial, professional, personal, institutional, academic or other relationships that could reasonably be perceived to influence their work, review or editorial judgement.

Authors must disclose funding sources and, where applicable, the funder’s role in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation or the decision to submit. Editors and reviewers must recuse themselves when a conflict could compromise impartiality.

8. Data Sharing and Reproducibility

Authors should provide sufficient methodological detail to permit critical evaluation and, where reasonably possible, reproducibility. Manuscripts should include a Data Availability Statement explaining whether supporting data are openly available, available on reasonable request, subject to ethical/legal/privacy restrictions or not applicable.

The editorial office may request data, methodological details, analysis files or other records when necessary to evaluate validity, reproducibility or integrity.

9. Ethical Oversight

Research involving human participants, personal or sensitive data, vulnerable groups, animals or other activities requiring ethical oversight must comply with applicable institutional, national, legal and disciplinary requirements.

Where formal approval is required, authors should identify the approving body and approval/reference number where available. Informed consent and participant privacy must be protected where applicable.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that submitted material does not infringe copyright, database rights, trademarks, privacy, confidentiality or other intellectual-property rights. Third-party material must be properly cited and accompanied by permission where required.

Following acceptance, copyright and licensing are governed by the ARSS Copyright & Licensing Policy and Author Declaration/Copyright Form. The Version of Record is distributed under the journal’s stated Creative Commons licence.

Related ARSS policy: Copyright & Licensing Policy | Copyright Form

11. Complaints and Appeals

Authors, reviewers, readers and other stakeholders may submit complaints or appeals in writing to the editorial office. A submission should identify the manuscript or article, describe the issue, state the grounds and provide relevant supporting information.

Complaints and appeals are handled fairly, confidentially and without unnecessary delay. Where a complaint concerns an editor directly involved in the matter, it should be assigned to an independent senior editor or publisher representative.

12. Corrections

ARSS may publish a correction when an error affects accuracy, interpretation, attribution or integrity but does not invalidate the article as a whole. A correction notice should identify the article, explain the change and be linked to the Version of Record.

Minor typographical or formatting errors that do not affect meaning may be corrected without a formal notice where appropriate; significant errors must not be concealed through silent alteration.

Related ARSS policy: Post-Publication and Accountability Policy

13. Expressions of Concern

ARSS may issue an Expression of Concern when substantial questions about the integrity or reliability of a published article remain unresolved and an investigation is incomplete, inconclusive, delayed or dependent on information from another responsible body. The notice should be linked to the article and updated when the matter is resolved.

14. Retractions

An article may be retracted when findings are unreliable because of major error or misconduct, or when there is evidence of plagiarism, redundant publication, fabricated or falsified data, serious ethical non-compliance, manipulated peer review, copyright infringement or another issue that materially undermines the article’s integrity.

Retraction notices should explain the reason, identify the affected article and remain linked to the publication record. The original article normally remains available and clearly marked as retracted except where compelling legal, privacy or safety reasons require removal.

Related ARSS policy: Post-Publication and Accountability Policy

15. Research Misconduct Allegations and Investigation

ARSS takes reasonable steps to identify, prevent and address research and publication misconduct. Allegations may involve plagiarism, duplicate publication, fabrication/falsification, image or citation manipulation, unethical authorship, undisclosed conflicts, peer-review manipulation, misuse of confidential information or other serious breaches.

Depending on the concern, the journal may request explanations or supporting records, seek independent expert advice, review editorial records, consult COPE guidance or contact the relevant institution, employer, funder or ethics body. Proportionate outcomes may include no action, rejection, correction, Expression of Concern, retraction, withdrawal or other measures needed to protect the scholarly record.

16. Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-Assisted Tools

ARSS requires transparency, human accountability, confidentiality and research integrity in the use of generative AI and AI-assisted tools. AI tools cannot be listed as authors because authorship requires human accountability.

Substantive AI-assisted use should be disclosed. AI must not be used to fabricate or falsify data, images, references, quotations or evidence. Authors remain responsible for accuracy, originality, citations, permissions, analysis, interpretation, bias, confidentiality and conclusions. Reviewers and editors must not upload confidential manuscripts or reports to public AI systems where confidentiality could be compromised.

Related ARSS policy: Generative AI Policy

17. Editorial Independence

Editorial decisions are made independently by the Editor-in-Chief and authorised editors on scholarly merit, originality, methodological quality, ethical compliance and relevance to ARSS’s Aims and Scope. Decisions must not be influenced by APCs, an author’s ability to pay, advertising, sponsorship, ownership interests, institutional relationships, marketing activity or other commercial considerations.

18. Responsibilities of the Publisher

The Centre for Research and Innovation (CRI), as publisher of ARSS, supports the integrity and independence of the editorial process and is responsible for maintaining accurate public policies, ownership/contact information, access conditions, fees, copyright/licensing information and preservation arrangements.

The publisher supports investigations into publication misconduct and the publication of corrections, Expressions of Concern, retractions or other notices when needed. Revenue, advertising, marketing and administrative considerations are kept separate from editorial decision-making.

19. Reporting an Ethical Concern

Ethical concerns relating to a submitted manuscript, published article, peer review, authorship, editorial conduct or any matter covered by this statement should be submitted in writing to the ARSS editorial office with sufficient information and supporting evidence to permit assessment.

Editorial Office: Centre for Research and Innovation (CRI), 9/865, Maruthi Nagar, Rakkipalayam Post, Coimbatore - 641031, Tamil Nadu, India. Email: editorial@crijournals.org.