Publication Ethics

 

Al-Nahrain Journal for Engineering Sciences (NJES) is dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics. Researchers are required to conduct their research—from proposal to publication—in line with the codes of conduct of professional national and international regulatory bodies.

NJES adheres to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines. We encourage responsible publication practices and are committed to investigating any allegations of misconduct.

1. Handling Misconduct and Malpractice To avoid misjudgments, all involved parties must maintain confidentiality and remain neutral when treating potential misconduct cases.

  • Reporting: Issues must be raised with care and in a timely manner. All communications, including evidence and allegations, must be recorded.

  • Investigation: Facts will be investigated thoroughly to ensure transparent assessments.

  • Legal Action: All legal questioning and cases are handled in coordination with the Legal Department of the College of Engineering at Al-Nahrain University, which serves as the official legal advisor to NJES.

  • Outcomes: If evidence of misconduct is found (e.g., data fabrication, stolen data), the author’s institution may be notified to assist with the investigation.

2. Specific Ethical Issues

A. Fabrication of Data This refers to the intentional manipulation of data to provide false impressions. This includes:

  • Removing outliers or inconvenient results.

  • Adding, changing, or omitting data.

  • Image Manipulation: While technical image improvement (adjusting contrast, brightness, or color balance of a complete image) is acceptable for readability, obscuring, deleting, or adding new elements into an image is considered unethical. If the Editorial Board suspects questionable manipulation, original data will be requested for investigation.

B. Duplicate and Redundant Publication

  • Duplicate Submission: Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal at the same time is strictly prohibited.

  • Redundant ("Salami") Publishing: Splitting a manuscript into several parts to submit to multiple journals is unacceptable.

  • Self-Plagiarism: Recycling content from previous work without proper cross-referencing or justification is considered self-plagiarism. Translation of articles or resubmission of previously published Open Access articles without permission is also considered duplication.

C. Plagiarism Plagiarism occurs when the work of others (data, text, theories, diagrams, etc.) is submitted as one's own without permission or proper citation. NJES recognizes different forms of plagiarism, including:

  • Literal copying of another author’s work.

  • "Patchwork copying" (mixing literal copied materials from multiple sources).

  • Copying material while only changing keywords or phrases.

  • Rephrasing material from multiple sources and presenting it as new work without attribution.

Note on Review Papers: While review papers summarize existing literature, authors must use their own words and interpretations, with exceptions only for properly cited quotations.

D. Conflict of Interests A conflict of interest arises when financial or personal considerations could compromise professional judgment. NJES requires authors to sign a Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form prior to submission to avoid potential bias.

3. Plagiarism Detection (Turnitin) NJES uses Turnitin software to screen all submitted manuscripts. This tool checks work against millions of scholarly articles and web pages.

  • Plagiarism Policy: Plagiarism per source must be less than 5%. Total plagiarism must not exceed 20% (excluding bibliography).

  • Although Turnitin identifies matching text, the Editorial Board conducts manual examinations to determine if the match constitutes plagiarism or legitimate citation.

4. Literature Correction and Retraction To maintain the integrity of the research literature:

  • Corrections: The Editorial Board may request corrections for honest errors (e.g., typos or miscalculations).

  • Expression of Concern: If evidence of misconduct is inconclusive or the investigation is ongoing, an expression of concern may be issued.

  • Retraction: If there is clear evidence of plagiarism, unethical research, or previously published findings without permission, the Editorial Board retains the right to issue a retraction note.

  • Sanctions: In cases of repeated offenses or unprofessional behavior (e.g., abusive language), the Editorial Board retains the right to refuse future submissions from the authors involved.

5. Contact Us Please contact the editorial team immediately if you have any suggestions, comments, or wish to report a potential case of publishing misconduct.