ETHICAL PRINCIPLES AND PUBLICATION POLICY

Publication Ethics

The following ethical duties and responsibilities are based on the guidelines and policies published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) as open access.

Ethical Responsibilities of Authors

Author(s) submitting manuscripts to Seleucia Journal are expected to comply with the following ethical responsibilities:

The publication processes applied in Seleucia Journal constitute the basis for the development and dissemination of knowledge in an impartial and reputable manner. The processes applied in this direction are directly reflected in the quality of the work of the authors and the institutions supporting the authors. Peer-reviewed studies are studies that embody and support the scientific method. At this point, it is important that all stakeholders of the process (authors, readers and researchers, publisher, referees and editors) comply with the standards for ethical principles. Within the scope of Seleucia Journal publication ethics, all stakeholders are expected to carry the following ethical responsibilities.
The work submitted by the author(s) is expected to be original. In case the author(s) utilize other works or use other works, they are required to cite and/or quote them completely and accurately.
Persons who did not contribute intellectually to the content of the study should not be listed as authors.
All manuscripts submitted for publication should disclose any conflicts of interest and relationships.
The author(s) may be requested to provide raw data on their manuscripts as part of the review process, in which case the author(s) should be prepared to provide the expected data and information to the editorial board and scientific committee.
The author(s) must have a document showing that they have the rights to use the data used, the necessary permissions related to the research/analyses, or that the consent of the experimental subjects has been obtained.
In the event that the author(s) becomes aware of an inaccuracy or error in a published, early view, or under review manuscript, the author(s) has an obligation to notify the journal editor or publisher and to cooperate with the editor in correcting or withdrawing the manuscript.
Authors cannot have their work in the submission process of more than one journal at the same time. Each submission can be initiated after the completion of the previous submission. Work published in another journal cannot be submitted to Seleucia Journal.
It cannot be proposed to change the author responsibilities (such as adding an author, changing the author order, removing an author) of a study whose evaluation process has started.

Ethical Duties and Responsibilities of Editors

The editors of Seleucia Journal should have the following ethical duties and responsibilities based on the “COPE Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors” and “COPE Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors” published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in open access.

General duties and responsibilities

The editors are responsible for every publication in Seleucia Journal. In the context of this responsibility, the editors have the following roles and obligations:

Strive to meet the information needs of readers and writers,
Ensuring the continuous development of the journal,
Carrying out processes to improve the quality of studies published in the journal,
Supporting freedom of thought,
Ensuring academic integrity,
Maintaining business processes without compromising intellectual property rights and ethical standards,
Demonstrating openness and transparency in terms of publication in matters requiring correction and clarification.

Relations with the reader

Editors should make decisions by taking into account the expectations of knowledge, skills and experience needed by all readers, researchers and practitioners. They should make sure that the published studies contribute to the readers, researchers, practitioners and scientific literature and are original. In addition, editors are obliged to take into account the feedback from readers, researchers and practitioners and to provide explanatory and informative feedback.

Relations with authors

The duties and responsibilities of the editors towards the authors are as follows

Editors should make a favorable or unfavorable decision based on the importance, original value, validity, clarity of expression, and the journal's goals and objectives.
Studies that are suitable for publication should be included in the preliminary evaluation stage unless they have serious problems.
Editors should not ignore favorable referee recommendations unless there is a serious problem with the manuscript.
New editors should not change the decisions made by the previous editor(s) unless there is a serious problem.
“A ”Peer Review Policy" should be published and editors should prevent deviations from the defined processes.
Authors should be notified and returned in an explanatory and informative manner.

Relations with referees

The duties and responsibilities of the editors towards the referees are as follows:

The referees should be determined in accordance with the subject of the study.
The referees are obliged to provide the information and guidance they will need during the evaluation phase.
The authors and reviewers should be aware of any conflicts of interest among the authors and reviewers.
In the context of blinded refereeing, the identity of the referees should be kept confidential.
Encourage reviewers to evaluate the manuscript in an impartial, scientific and objective manner.
It should determine practices and policies to improve the performance of referees.
Take the necessary steps to dynamically update the referee pool.
It should prevent unkind and unscientific evaluations.
It should take steps to ensure that the pool of referees is broad.

Relations with the editorial board

Editors should ensure that all editorial board members follow the processes in accordance with the editorial policies and guidelines. They should inform editorial board members about publication policies and keep them informed about developments. Editors should also;

It should enable editorial board members to evaluate the work impartially and independently.
The new editorial board should identify members who can contribute and are of appropriate quality.
The editorial board members should send the studies appropriate to their field of expertise for evaluation.
It should interact regularly with the editorial board.
The editorial board should hold meetings at regular intervals to discuss publication policies and the development of the journal.

Relations with the magazine owner and publisher

The relationship between editors and publishers is based on the principle of editorial independence. Pursuant to the written agreement between editors and publishers, all decisions made by editors are independent of the publisher and journal owner.

Editorial and blind peer review processes

Editors are responsible for implementing the ‘Peer Review Policy’ outlined in the journal's publication policies. In this context, editors ensure that each work undergoes a fair, impartial and timely evaluation process.

Quality assurance

Editors are responsible for ensuring that every article published in the journal complies with the journal's publication policies and international standards.

Protection of personal data

Editors are responsible for ensuring the protection of personal data relating to subjects or images featured in the works under review. They are obliged to reject any work unless the explicit consent of the individuals involved is documented. Furthermore, editors are responsible for protecting the personal data of authors, reviewers and readers.

Ethics committee, human and animal rights

Editors are responsible for ensuring that human and animal rights are protected in the studies they evaluate. They are responsible for rejecting studies that do not have ethical committee approval for the subjects used in the studies or permission for experimental research.

Measures against potential abuse and misuse of authority

Editors are responsible for taking measures against possible misconduct and abuse of authority. In addition to conducting a thorough and objective investigation into the identification and assessment of complaints regarding such situations, sharing findings related to the matter is among the editor's responsibilities.

Ensuring the integrity of academic publications

Editors should ensure that any errors, inconsistencies or misstatements in the work are promptly corrected.

Protection of intellectual property rights

Editors are responsible for protecting the intellectual property rights of all published articles and defending the rights of the journal and author(s) in the event of any potential infringements. Furthermore, editors are responsible for taking the necessary measures to ensure that the content of all published articles does not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of other publications.

Constructiveness and openness to debate

Editors;

Convincing critiques of works published in the journal should be taken into consideration, and a constructive attitude should be adopted towards these critiques.
The authors of criticised works should be granted the right of reply.
Studies containing negative results should not be disregarded or excluded.
Complaints

Editors are responsible for carefully reviewing complaints received from authors, referees or readers and responding in an informative and explanatory manner.

Political and commercial concerns

The magazine owner, publisher and any other political or commercial elements shall not influence the editors' independent decision-making.

Conflicts of interest

Editors ensure that the publication process is completed independently and impartially, taking into account conflicts of interest between authors, reviewers and other editors.

Ethical Responsibilities of Referees

The evaluation of all works in accordance with the ‘Peer Review Policy’ directly affects publication quality. This process ensures reliability through the objective and independent evaluation of the publication. The Seleucia Journal evaluation process is conducted in accordance with the double-blind peer review principle. Referees cannot communicate directly with authors; evaluations and comments are conveyed through the journal management system. In this process, referee comments on evaluation forms and full texts are communicated to the author(s) via the editor. In this context, referees evaluating work for Seleucia Journal are expected to adhere to the following ethical responsibilities:

They should only accept to evaluate work related to their area of expertise. They should conduct the evaluation impartially and confidentially. If they believe they have a conflict of interest during the evaluation process, they should decline to review the work and inform the journal editor. In accordance with the principle of confidentiality, they should destroy the works they have reviewed after the evaluation process. They may only use the final versions of the works they have reviewed after they have been published. They should evaluate objectively and solely on the basis of the content of the work. They should not allow nationality, gender, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or commercial concerns to influence their evaluation. They should conduct the evaluation in a constructive and polite manner. They should not make derogatory personal comments that contain hostility, slander, or insults. They should evaluate the work they accept in a timely manner and in accordance with the above ethical responsibilities.
The assessment must be conducted impartially and confidentially.
If they believe they have a conflict of interest during the review process, they should decline to review the work and inform the journal editor.
In accordance with the principle of confidentiality, they must destroy the works they have reviewed after the evaluation process. They may only use the final versions of the works they have reviewed after they have been published.
The assessment should be conducted objectively and solely based on the content of the work. Nationality, gender, religious beliefs, political beliefs, and commercial concerns should not be allowed to influence the assessment.
The assessment should be conducted in a constructive and polite manner. Hostile, defamatory, or insulting personal comments should not be made.
They must carry out the work they have agreed to evaluate in a timely manner and in accordance with the ethical responsibilities outlined above.

The Publisher's Ethical Responsibilities

The Editors, Advisory and Publication Boards of Seleucia Journal act in accordance with the following ethical responsibilities:

Editors are responsible for all stages of the process for works submitted to Seleucia Journal. In this context, editors are the decision-makers, without taking economic or political gains into consideration.
Commits to establishing an independent editorial decision.
Seleucia Journal retains ownership and copyright of every article published and undertakes the obligation to retain a record of every published copy.
Editors are responsible for taking all necessary measures against any form of scientific misconduct, citation fraud, and plagiarism.

If you encounter an unethical situation

Should you encounter any unethical behaviour or content in Seleucia Journal beyond the ethical responsibilities mentioned above, please contact the editors of Seleucia Journal.