Publication Ethics Statement
The following statements describe the ethical behavior expected of all parties involved in the publication of an article in Majalah Kedokteran Bandung (MKB) / Bandung Medical Journal, including authors, editors, and peer reviewers.
MKB is committed to maintaining high standards of publication ethics and research integrity. These principles are based on the guidance and best practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) .
Contents
Duties of Authors
Reporting Standards. Authors of original research should present an accurate account of the work performed and an objective discussion of its significance. Underlying data should be represented accurately in the manuscript. A paper should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to understand and, where appropriate, replicate the work. Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.
Data Access and Retention. Authors may be asked to provide raw data related to a manuscript for editorial review and should be prepared to provide access to such data when practicable. Authors should retain relevant research data for a reasonable period after publication in accordance with applicable institutional, ethical, and legal requirements.
Originality and Plagiarism. Authors must ensure that their work is original. When the work, ideas, data, or words of others are used, they must be appropriately cited or quoted. Plagiarism in any form, including presenting another person's work as one's own, copying or substantially paraphrasing material without attribution, or claiming results obtained by others, constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.
Submitted manuscripts may be screened using Turnitin or other appropriate similarity-detection tools as part of the journal's editorial assessment.
Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication. Authors should not publish manuscripts describing essentially the same research in more than one journal or primary publication. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. Authors should not submit a previously published paper for consideration unless this is clearly permitted and appropriately disclosed.
Acknowledgment of Sources. Proper acknowledgment of the work of others must always be given. Authors should cite publications that have influenced the reported work. Information obtained privately through conversations, correspondence, peer review, grant review, or other confidential services must not be used or reported without appropriate permission from the source.
Authorship of the Paper. Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, analysis, or interpretation of the reported study. All individuals who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. Individuals who contributed to specific aspects of the work but do not meet authorship criteria should be appropriately acknowledged.
The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all appropriate co-authors, and no inappropriate co-authors, are included in the manuscript; that all authors have reviewed and approved the final version; and that all authors agree to its submission for publication.
Hazards and Human or Animal Subjects. If the research involves chemicals, procedures, equipment, or materials with unusual hazards, these should be clearly identified in the manuscript. Research involving human participants or animals must be conducted in accordance with relevant laws, institutional requirements, and ethical standards.
For research involving human participants, authors should state that appropriate informed consent was obtained when required. The privacy and confidentiality of participants must be protected.
Ethical Approval. Research articles submitted to MKB must include a statement confirming that ethical approval was obtained, or stating why ethical approval was not required. Where applicable, the statement should include the name of the ethics committee or institutional review board, the approval number or ID, and confirmation that participants provided informed consent before participating in the study.
Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest. All authors should disclose any financial or other substantive conflicts of interest that could be perceived to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial support should also be disclosed.
Potential conflicts of interest may include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications or registrations, grants, financial relationships, or other relevant personal or professional relationships.
Fundamental Errors in Published Works. When authors discover a significant error or inaccuracy in their published work, they must promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate in correcting or retracting the article when necessary.
If the editor or publisher becomes aware through a third party that a published article contains a significant error, the authors are expected to cooperate with the journal and provide evidence regarding the accuracy of the published work or assist with an appropriate correction or retraction.
Duties of the Editorial Board
Publication Decisions. The editors of MKB are responsible for deciding which submitted manuscripts should be published. Editorial decisions should be based on the scientific quality, originality, validity, relevance, and importance of the work to researchers, clinicians, and readers.
Editors may be guided by the policies of the journal and by applicable legal and ethical requirements concerning matters such as copyright infringement, plagiarism, libel, research integrity, and publication ethics. Editors may consult other editors or reviewers when making publication decisions.
Fair Play. Editors should evaluate manuscripts solely on their intellectual and scientific merit, without discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, political philosophy, institutional affiliation, or other personal characteristics of the authors.
Confidentiality. Editors and editorial staff must not disclose information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.
Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest. Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted manuscript must not be used in an editor's own research without the author's explicit written consent. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must remain confidential and must not be used for personal advantage.
Editors should recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest arising from competitive, collaborative, personal, financial, institutional, or other relationships with the authors, organizations, or institutions associated with the work.
Editors should require contributors to disclose relevant competing interests. If significant competing interests are identified after publication, appropriate action should be taken, which may include publication of a correction, expression of concern, retraction, or other editorial notice.
Involvement and Cooperation in Investigations. Editors should take appropriate action when ethical concerns or complaints are raised regarding a submitted or published article. Such action may include contacting authors, requesting clarification or supporting documentation, consulting relevant institutions or research bodies, and following established publication ethics procedures.
When allegations are substantiated, the journal may publish a correction, retraction, expression of concern, or other appropriate notice. Reports of unethical publishing behavior should be investigated regardless of when the issue is identified.
Duties of Reviewers
Contribution to Editorial Decisions. Peer review assists editors in making editorial decisions and may also help authors improve the quality, clarity, and scientific rigor of their manuscripts. Peer review is an essential component of scholarly communication and scientific publishing.
Promptness. A reviewer who feels unqualified to evaluate a manuscript or who is unable to complete the review within the requested period should promptly inform the editor and decline the review invitation.
Confidentiality. Manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shared, shown, discussed, or distributed to others except when explicitly authorized by the editor.
Standards of Objectivity. Reviews should be conducted objectively and constructively. Personal criticism of authors is inappropriate. Reviewers should express their assessments clearly and provide supporting arguments for their recommendations.
Acknowledgment of Sources. Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Statements concerning observations, derivations, arguments, or findings that have previously been reported should be accompanied by appropriate references.
Reviewers should also inform the editor of any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and other published or submitted work of which they are aware.
Disclosure and Conflict of Interest. Unpublished material disclosed in a submitted manuscript must not be used in a reviewer's own research without the author's explicit written consent. Information or ideas obtained through peer review must remain confidential and must not be used for personal advantage.
Reviewers should not evaluate manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, financial, personal, institutional, or other relationships with the authors, organizations, or institutions associated with the manuscript.
These principles are based on the COPE Guidelines and Best Practices in Publication Ethics .
For additional information, please see the Journal Policies .
