Publication Ethics

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is strictly prohibited in CRC Journals. It includes the unauthorized copying or reuse of text, ideas, images or data from other sources without proper attribution. It also includes self-plagiarism, which is reusing text from an author's earlier publications without citation. These practices violate the principles of academic integrity and scholarly publishing.

Guidelines for authors

• Proper citation. Cite every source where it is used. Keep reused wording limited and clearly quoted or attributed.
• Self-plagiarism. Credit any previous work of your own that is cited or reused.
• Originality. Submit original work. Any significant overlap with existing publications must be disclosed and cited.

Detection and consequences

CRC Journals is a member of CrossCheck and uses iThenticate to screen submissions for originality before publication. iThenticate compares manuscripts against millions of published papers and billions of web sources. If plagiarism is suspected, we investigate following COPE guidelines. Possible outcomes are:

• Rejection of the manuscript
• Correction or retraction, if the paper is already published
• Notification of the author's institution in serious cases

Reporting plagiarism

Editors and peer reviewers are encouraged to report concerns at any stage of review, publication or post-publication. Readers may also report suspected plagiarism after publication. We follow the COPE flowcharts for submitted manuscripts and published articles.

Misconduct

Publication ethics misconduct includes the following.

• Inappropriate behavior regarding misconduct. Unfounded or knowingly false allegations, failure to report misconduct, withholding or destroying information relevant to an investigation, and retaliation against people involved in the process.
• Duplicate publication. Submitting the same work, in any language, to several journals at the same time.
• Failure to declare conflicts of interest. Not disclosing conflicts of interest, funding sources or other information that affects the transparency of the research.

Dealing with allegations

We encourage peer reviewers to report suspected misconduct in the manuscripts they review, and readers to contact us about possible misconduct in published content. All allegations are taken seriously and investigated following the COPE flowchart. Action depends on severity and may include retraction, correction or other measures in line with best practice.

Appeals and complaints

Appeals

Authors may appeal editorial decisions or review reports. To submit an appeal, contact the editorial office at editor@crcjournals.org.

• Grounds. Editors consider appeals that add factual input, revisions or extra material, or that raise concerns about conflicts of interest or biased peer review. An appeal must give enough reasoning to justify reconsideration.
• Mediation. Editors mediate all exchanges between authors and reviewers. They may seek additional reviewers to help reach the final decision.
• Final decision. The editor's decision after an appeal is final. Protest alone does not change an editorial decision.

Complaints about the editorial process or ethics

Send concerns about the editorial process or publication ethics to editor@crcjournals.org. The editor responsible for the journal handles complaints about the editorial process. Ethics complaints are handled following COPE guidelines.

Advertising policy

CRC Journals supports scientific and technological progress by providing immediate and unrestricted access to its content. Advertising follows these rules.

• Identification. Advertisements are clearly labelled and distinguishable from editorial content.
• Independence. Editorial decisions and publishing policies are made independently of advertisers and sponsors, and are not influenced by financial or commercial interests.
• Accuracy and legality. Advertisements must not be deceptive or misleading and must comply with applicable national and international law. Products or services that pose significant health risks are not accepted.
• Targeting. Advertising does not target specific articles or appear on pages whose content relates to the advertised product or service, especially treatment-specific or drug-specific products.
• Final approval. The Editor(s)-in-Chief have full and final authority over approval of any advertisement.
• Right to decline or remove. We may decline advertisements that could harm the value and reputation of the journal, and may remove an advertisement at any time at the request of the Editor(s)-in-Chief or the publisher.
• Proofs. Once an advertisement is proofed and approved, CRC Journals is not responsible for errors in it.
• Complaints. Complaints about advertisements are considered, and the nature of the complaint is noted on the advertisement page.