Principles of Editorial Ethics

Editors are expected to embody the following principles in all their duties:

• Integrity: Editorial decisions must reflect honesty, independence, and consistency.
• Fairness: Authors must be evaluated on scholarly merit, not background, funding, or affiliation.
• Confidentiality: Editors must protect the privacy of authors, reviewers, and unpublished data.
• Transparency: Clear and justifiable communication of editorial decisions is essential.
• Responsibility: Editors must uphold the standards of APCR and the wider academic community.

Conflicts of Interest

Editors must declare and manage conflicts of interest that may compromise impartiality. This includes financial, institutional, or personal relationships. In such cases, editors must recuse themselves from handling the affected manuscript, transferring responsibility to another qualified editor.

Confidentiality

Editors are required to maintain strict confidentiality regarding all manuscripts under review. Information may not be shared with anyone outside the editorial process. Unpublished materials must not be used in editors’ own research or disclosed to third parties.

Fairness in Decision-Making

Editorial decisions must be based solely on the intellectual quality and contribution of the work. Editors must guard against bias linked to gender, nationality, language, or institutional prestige, and ensure equitable opportunities for all authors.

Ethical Oversight

Editors must ensure that all published work meets the highest ethical standards. This includes verifying ethics approvals for human or animal studies, confirming informed consent, and ensuring authors declare funding and competing interests. Editors are responsible for addressing suspected misconduct, including plagiarism or data manipulation.

Interactions with Authors and Reviewers

Editors must foster respectful and constructive communication with both authors and reviewers. Feedback must be delivered courteously, and queries must be addressed promptly. Editors must also ensure reviewers adhere to ethical standards, providing clear guidance and monitoring reviewer conduct.

Accountability

Editors are accountable to the journal, the publisher, and the scientific community. They must be willing to correct, retract, or clarify published material when required. They must collaborate with institutions or ethical bodies to resolve concerns of misconduct swiftly and fairly.