Conflict of Interest

The journal requires authors, editors, and reviewers to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the research, peer-review process, editorial decision-making, or publication of a manuscript.

Conflicts of interest may be financial or non-financial. Examples include research funding, employment, consultancies, financial investments, patents, personal relationships, professional collaborations, institutional affiliations, and other interests that could compromise, or appear to compromise, objectivity.

Authors’ Responsibilities

Authors must disclose relevant conflicts of interest at the time of submission. They must also identify funding sources and explain the role of funders, where applicable, in the study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, and decision to submit the work for publication.

If no relevant conflict of interest exists, authors should provide an explicit declaration stating that they have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Reviewers’ Responsibilities

Reviewers must inform the editor of any circumstances that may compromise their impartiality. These may include close personal relationships, recent or ongoing collaborations, direct competition, financial interests, or other relationships with the authors or the subject matter. Reviewers may be asked to decline an assignment when a conflict cannot be appropriately managed.

Editors’ Responsibilities

Editors must disclose relevant conflicts of interest and refrain from making decisions on manuscripts where their impartiality may reasonably be questioned. Such manuscripts will be reassigned to an independent editor who can oversee the editorial process objectively.

Management and Disclosure

The journal evaluates disclosed conflicts of interest and determines whether additional measures are necessary to safeguard the integrity of the editorial process. Relevant declarations may be published in the article or accompanying publication statements, as appropriate.

If a previously undisclosed conflict of interest is identified after publication, the journal will assess the circumstances and take appropriate action, which may include publishing a correction or other editorial notice.