Authorship

Authorship Criteria

Catalyst Research Chronicles (CRC Journals) adheres to the authorship criteria established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Individuals meeting the following criteria can be designated as authors:

  • Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data; AND
  • Drafting the manuscript or revising it critically for intellectual content; AND
  • Final approval of the version to be published; AND
  • Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work, ensuring the accuracy and integrity of every part of the manuscript is appropriately investigated and resolved.

Corresponding Author

In cases where a manuscript has multiple authors, one author must be designated as the corresponding author. The corresponding author is responsible for:

  • Communicating with the journal;
  • Managing communication between co-authors;
  • Handling submission requests, such as providing details of authorship, ethics committee approval, clinical trial registration, conflict of interest statements, and any additional required documents;
  • Being available throughout the submission, peer review, production process, and post-publication to address questions or respond to critiques.

Dual Authorship

Catalyst Research Chronicles (CRC Journals) recognizes dual first/last authorship when two authors contribute equally to the manuscript. This should be clearly outlined in the Author Contributions statement.

Group Authorship

For large, multi-author works, the group should ideally decide who will be listed as authors. All listed authors must meet the criteria outlined above and be confident in the accuracy and integrity of the group’s collective work. In some cases, the group name may be used for authorship, with or without listing individual names. The corresponding author must specify the group name and clarify the authorship responsibilities of each group member.

Authorship Disputes

It is the responsibility of the authors, rather than the journal editors, to resolve authorship disputes. Disagreements regarding who qualifies for authorship or the order of authorship should be addressed by the institution(s) where the work was conducted. Editors should refer to COPE’s flowcharts and “How to spot authorship problems” to manage any disputes. In cases where the dispute cannot be resolved by the authors, the institution should investigate the matter.

Authorship Changes

Authorship changes are permitted only before a manuscript is officially accepted. If authors wish to add or remove names, a signed statement must be provided, detailing the reasons for the change and signed by all listed authors and the individual being added or removed.

Author Contributions

To ensure proper credit and accountability, authors are required to include an Author Contributions statement in the manuscript. This statement should outline each author’s specific contributions using the CRediT Taxonomy.

ORCID

Authors are strongly encouraged to provide their ORCID (Open Researcher Contributor ID). This provides a unique digital identifier that distinguishes authors from others with similar names and links their research outputs.

Acknowledgments

Individuals who contributed to the research but do not meet the authorship criteria should be listed in the Acknowledgments section, along with a brief description of their contribution. Minors involved in the research (such as children participating in studies) should also be acknowledged.

AI and AI-assisted Technologies in Scientific Writing

Catalyst Research Chronicles (CRC Journals) does not recognize AI or AI-assisted technologies as authors or co-authors. These tools cannot replace the tasks of researchers, such as developing scientific insights, analyzing and interpreting data, drawing conclusions, or presenting findings. AI tools may be used to improve readability and language quality, but the authors remain ultimately responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the content.

If AI tools were used in the writing process, the following statement should be included in the Declarations section:

AI-Assisted Work Statement: During the preparation of this work, author(s) used the [name tool/service] for [specific purpose]. After using the tool, author(s) reviewed and edited the content and take full responsibility for the manuscript.

This declaration does not apply to basic tools such as grammar checkers or reference managers. If AI assistance was not used, no statement is required.

Note: Violations of this policy will be considered scientific misconduct, and the journal will address any misconduct in accordance with COPE, WAME, and ICMJE guidelines.