The journal follows the ethical principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE, https://publicationethics.org) and expects all authors to adhere to standards of honesty, transparency, and accurate reporting. The "Ava" Research Ethics Education and Testing System (http://ava.irandoc.ac.ir) can serve as a starting point for familiarising oneself with the concepts and instances of research ethics.
Originality, Plagiarism, and Overlapping Publication
Authors must ensure that their work is entirely original.
Plagiarism: Presenting the work, data, text, or ideas of others as one's own is unethical and unacceptable. This includes unauthorised copying, indirect quotation without attribution, or claiming ownership of others' research results. The journal uses Samim Noor (https://www.samimnoor.ir) or the IranDoc similarity check system (https://tik.irandoc.ac.ir) to examine all submitted manuscripts.
Proper Citation: If the words or works of others are used, they must be properly cited or quoted, and necessary permissions must be obtained where required. Information obtained privately (e.g., from correspondence or conversations) requires explicit written permission from the original source.
Multiple or Overlapping Publication: Authors should not publish manuscripts describing essentially the same research in more than one primary journal. Simultaneous submission of the same manuscript (or one with substantially similar content) to multiple journals is unethical and unacceptable.
Inappropriate Fragmentation: A single study should not be inappropriately divided into smaller pieces to increase the number of submitted manuscripts.
Permitted Reuse: Exceptions include preprints, abstracts, published lectures, or university theses, provided they are disclosed at the time of submission. When reusing previous work, proper citation and cross‑referencing must be carried out to avoid "self‑plagiarism" or text recycling.
Use of Generative AI and Its Disclosure
Although generative AI tools can assist authors, human accountability and transparency remain the highest priority. According to journal policies, AI cannot be listed as an author, and any use of AI in writing or analysis must be transparently reported. The table below summarises the journal's policies in this area.
Activity Type Journal Policy Authorship Prohibited. AI tools cannot be listed as authors. Content Generation Prohibited. Should not be used to create or draft essential sections (abstract, background, conclusions). Data Generation Prohibited. Generating, manipulating, or reporting data and statistics using AI is not allowed. Literary Editing Permitted. Using AI to improve language clarity, grammar, and readability of the author's original text is allowed. Image Creation Prohibited. Not permitted for creating scholarly or artistic images, unless it is part of the research methodology (with precise disclosure in the text). Disclosure Mandatory. Use of generative AI must be declared, including the tool name, version, and purpose, in a separate section before the references. Ultimate Responsibility of Authors
Authors are personally responsible for the accurate verification of all output generated by AI. This responsibility includes:
Source Verification: Ensuring the accuracy of references, as AI may produce fabricated or incorrect sources.
Data Protection: Ensuring that the use of these tools does not violate the privacy of research data or intellectual property rights.
Accountability: Authors must ensure that the final content has been reviewed and that they accept full responsibility for its validity.
Ethical Procedures in Research (Human/Animal Subjects)
If the research involves human participants, animals, or sensitive data, full ethical and legal documentation must be provided.
Human Participants: The research must be conducted in accordance with national and institutional guidelines. Authors must confirm that informed consent was obtained from participants (or their legal representatives) (https://www.apaservices.org/practice/business/management/informed-consent and https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/ethics/process-seeking-if-printing.pdf?sfvrsn=3fac5edb_4). Adherence to the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki (https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki) is also required at all stages of the research.
Ethical Approval: Where required, the manuscript must contain a statement confirming that the research received approval from an institutional or national ethics committee. This statement should include the name and location of the committee, the approval number, and the date of approval. Failure to provide this documentation may result in rejection of the manuscript.
Animal Subjects: Animal research must adhere to the 3R principles (Replacement, Reduction, Refinement; https://nc3rs.org.uk/who-we-are/3rs). Compliance with guidelines such as ARRIVE (https://arriveguidelines.org) and provision of institutional ethical approval are mandatory in this context.
Hazardous Materials: If the research involves chemicals, processes, or equipment with unusual inherent risks, the author must clearly identify and declare these hazards.
Conflict of Interest
Authors are obliged to disclose any financial or personal relationships that could inappropriately influence the results of their work. This includes interests that existed during the 3 years prior to the start of the research, or interests outside that period that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the work.
Financial interests include grants, employment, consultancy, stock ownership, honoraria, patents, or financial support.
Non‑financial interests include professional affiliations, personal relationships, or ideological beliefs that might introduce bias.
Authors should ask themselves: "Is there any agreement that, if disclosed after publication without prior declaration, would embarrass me or my colleagues?" Authors must complete the official "Declaration of Competing Interests" form and upload it at the time of submission (https://zenodo.org/records/17764062/files/Declaration_Competing_Interests_Form.docx?download=1). A summary of this statement should also be included in a dedicated section within the manuscript text.
Research Integrity and Authenticity
Presenting results transparently and honestly is a fundamental duty of authors. Any fabrication, falsification, or unauthorised manipulation of images constitutes scientific misconduct. If a significant error is discovered in a published article, the author is obliged to notify the Editor‑in‑Chief immediately and cooperate with efforts to correct or retract the article. Furthermore, image manipulation (e.g., selective enhancement, obscuring, moving, or removing specific features) is not permitted and is considered a violation of scientific ethics.
