Publication Ethics Statement

Authorship and Contributorship

• Only individuals who made significant intellectual or experimental contributions should be listed as authors.
• Contributors who do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately.
• All authors share responsibility for the content of the published work.
• Authorship disputes must be resolved prior to submission.

Originality and Integrity of Research

Submitted manuscripts must present original research. Authors must avoid plagiarism, falsification, or fabrication of data. Previous work must be properly cited, and overlapping or duplicate publications must be disclosed.

Editorial Responsibilities

• Editors evaluate submissions impartially, based on academic merit and relevance to the journal’s scope.
• Confidentiality of manuscripts is strictly maintained during the review process.
• Editors recuse themselves from decisions where conflicts of interest exist.
• Editors are responsible for ensuring corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern when errors or misconduct are identified.

Reviewer Responsibilities

• Reviewers must provide objective, timely, and constructive feedback.
• They must maintain confidentiality and not use unpublished data for personal advantage.
• Reviewers should highlight relevant published work not cited by the authors.
• Conflicts of interest must be declared and may disqualify a reviewer from participating.

Publisher Responsibilities

Heighten Science Publications supports APCR in ensuring adherence to ethical standards. The publisher provides systems for plagiarism detection, archiving, and secure editorial management to maintain the integrity of the published record.

Dealing with Misconduct

APCR investigates all allegations of misconduct, including plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification, and unethical research practices. Outcomes may include rejection, retraction, institutional notification, or sanctions on future submissions.

Conflict of Interest Disclosure

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial or personal relationships that could influence their work. These disclosures are made transparent to readers where relevant.