Publication Ethics

To ensure that scientific publications maintain the highest standards of quality and integrity, and to uphold public trust in scholarly knowledge across all disciplines covered by FJS, the FUDMA Journal of Sciences has established comprehensive ethics guidelines. All authors must fully adhere to these standards when submitting manuscripts.

Falsification and Fabrication of Data

Data Fabrication occurs when a researcher invents or manufactures data without conducting any actual study. Data Falsification occurs when a researcher has conducted research but subsequently alters, manipulates, or selectively reports the data or results. Both constitute grave research misconduct.

Consequences: Manuscripts found to contain fabricated or falsified data — including manipulation of images, figures, or datasets — will be immediately rejected. Published articles in which such misconduct is subsequently identified will be retracted. Authors may face sanctions including exclusion from future submissions and prohibition from serving as reviewers or editors of FJS.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism involves presenting the words, ideas, data, or other intellectual outputs of other researchers as one's own without proper attribution. This includes reproducing any phrase, passage, figure, or table from any published or unpublished source without appropriate citation. Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty that violates intellectual property rights.

Consequences: Manuscripts identified as containing plagiarised content will be rejected. Published articles found to contain plagiarism will be retracted or formally corrected as appropriate.

Multiple Simultaneous Submissions

Submitting an identical or substantially similar manuscript to more than one journal at the same time is unacceptable and constitutes a serious breach of publication ethics. This practice places an undue burden on editors and reviewers and undermines the credibility of both authors and journals.

Consequences: Authors discovered to have submitted concurrently to multiple journals will face severe sanctions, including rejection of the manuscript and a prohibition from submitting to FJS for two years.

Redundant Publication

Publishing multiple papers from the same dataset or research findings without a substantive new contribution is considered redundant publication. Authors are expected to consolidate related findings into a single, comprehensive manuscript rather than fragmenting results across several submissions.

Consequences: Redundant publications will be rejected and may result in sanctions against the author(s) concerned.

Incorrect Authorship or Author Attribution

Every listed author must have made a genuine and demonstrable scientific contribution to the research and must have approved the final manuscript for submission. All individuals who contributed meaningfully — including postgraduate students and laboratory personnel — must be included. Adding individuals who made no substantive contribution ("gift authorship") is unethical and strictly prohibited.

Consequences: Misrepresentation of authorship may lead to rejection of the manuscript, notification of the authors' institutions, and further sanctions including a ban from future submissions.

Citation Manipulation

Authors must not engage in practices designed to artificially inflate citation counts — whether for their own publications or for articles in particular journals. Editors and reviewers must not request that authors insert references in order to boost citation metrics for themselves, colleagues, or affiliated journals.

Consequences: Confirmed citation manipulation will result in manuscript rejection and potential sanctions against the parties involved.

Editor and Reviewer Responsibilities

Editors and reviewers who have a recent or current collaborative, supervisory, or personal relationship with any of the authors of a submitted manuscript must recuse themselves from involvement in reviewing that submission. Any prior discussion of the manuscript's content with the authors must be disclosed to the Editor-in-Chief.

SANCTIONS FOR ETHICS VIOLATIONS

FJS may impose the following penalties for confirmed breaches of its publication ethics guidelines:

  • Rejection of the manuscript and any other manuscripts submitted by the same author(s) at the time of the violation
  • Submission Ban: Authors will be prohibited from submitting to FJS for 2 years following a confirmed violation
  • Editorial Restrictions: Prohibition from serving as an editor or reviewer for the journal
  • Additional Sanctions: For serious violations, FJS reserves the right to impose further penalties as deemed appropriate

In cases of severe misconduct, FJS may issue a public statement and notify the author's institution.

Investigation Procedure

Suspected breaches of FJS's publication ethics policies — whether identified before or after publication — must be reported promptly to: FJS Editorial Office

All investigations will be conducted in accordance with established protocols to ensure fairness and confidentiality for all parties involved, and in line with COPE guidelines.

Corrections and Retractions

When errors are identified in published articles, FJS will:

  1. Assess the Error: The Editorial Board will examine the matter and consult with relevant editors and, where appropriate, the author's institution, to determine the nature and severity of the error.
  2. Minor Corrections: Authors may submit corrections for minor errors, which will be published as an Erratum linked to the original article.
  3. Significant Errors: For substantial errors that do not affect the core validity of conclusions, a formal correction will be published to clarify the matter.
  4. Misconduct-Related Retractions: Where misconduct is established, the article will be retracted in accordance with the COPE Retraction Guidelines and other applicable international standards.

Retraction Notice: Published retraction notices will remain linked to the original article and will be clearly flagged as retracted across all relevant databases and indexing services.

Author Acknowledgement

All authors submitting manuscripts to FJS confirm that they have read and understood these publication ethics guidelines. By submitting a manuscript, authors agree to comply with all policies set out herein and accept full responsibility for the accuracy, integrity, originality, and ethical soundness of their work.

Commitment to Integrity

FJS is steadfastly committed to the highest standards of publication ethics in order to protect the integrity of scientific knowledge, sustain public and professional trust in research, and ensure appropriate attribution of intellectual contributions across all disciplines published in the journal. Ethical publishing practices are essential to the advancement of science and the credibility of the research community.

CONTACT AND SUPPORT

For enquiries: FJS Editorial Office

Last Updated: 28th May, 2026 – FJS Editorial Board