CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY

A conflict of interest is understood as anything that prevents or may prevent a full, proper, and objective procedure of reviewing and making decisions regarding the publication of research articles or other materials. A conflict of interest exists if persons involved in the editorial process are in relationships — personal or otherwise — that can potentially compromise them or hinder objectivity, or influence decisions related to publication.

During the editorial process, conflicts of interest between the Chief Editor, Reviewers, and Authors may occur in situations such as:

• the Author and the Chief Editor and/or Reviewer work in the same department or research group;
• the Author is a student, and the Reviewer is his/her instructor or academic supervisor;
• the Author is a student, and the Reviewer and/or Chief Editor is supervising his/her student research project.

When submitting an article, Authors must disclose all potential conflicts of interest. Once manuscripts are assigned for review, Reviewers are requested to inform the Editor of any conflicts that may arise. The Corresponding Author, as designated by the Co-Authors, must declare any conflicts of interest on behalf of all Authors.

Conflicts of interest may also relate to employment, sources of funding, personal financial interests, membership in relevant organizations, or other circumstances that may cause bias and influence decision-making.

Reviewers must not evaluate manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships/connections with any of the Authors, or companies or institutions associated with the manuscript Author.

Editors must not edit/handle manuscripts if they have a conflict of interest arising from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the Authors, companies, or institutions related to the research.

Statements on conflicts of interest made by Authors, Reviewers, or Editors are considered by the Chief Editor of the Journal. In cases of justified statements on the conflict of interest with the Chief Editor, such statements are reviewed with the participation of two members of the Editorial Board of the Journal.