Publication Ethics and Integrity Policies

Publication Ethics

The Indonesian Journal of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Digestive Endoscopy (INA JGHE) adopts the guidelines from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

For Editors:

  1. Editors are responsible for every article published in INA JGHE.
  2. Editors must evaluate manuscripts objectively for publication.
  3. Editors should send manuscripts for review as double-blind review documents.
  4. Editors must communicate reviewers’ comments (both positive and critical) to the authors, as well as the final decision.
  5. Editors should respect requests from authors to exclude specific individuals as reviewers, provided the reasons are reasonable and practical.
  6. Editors and all staff must guarantee the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts.
  7. Editors must ensure a fair and unbiased review process, free from discrimination and conflicts of interest.
  8. Editorial decisions must be based solely on the scientific merit, originality, and relevance of the manuscript.

For Reviewers:

  1. Reviewers should comment on ethical issues and possible research or publication misconduct.
  2. Reviewers should complete their work in a timely manner and notify the editor if they are unable to finish.
  3. Reviewers must keep all manuscripts confidential.
  4. Reviewers should decline to review any manuscript in which they have a potential conflict of interest with the authors.

For Author: 

  1. Authors affirm that the material has not been previously published and that rights to the article have not been transferred elsewhere.
  2. Authors must ensure the originality of the work and properly cite others’ work in accordance with the reference format.
  3. Authors must not engage in plagiarism or self-plagiarism.
  4. Salami publication is strictly prohibited in INA JGHE.
  5. Authors must follow the authorship criteria from ICMJE, as explained in the Instructions for Authors of INA JGHE. Each author should have made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, data acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of the study, and approved the final version of the manuscript. Contributors who do not meet these criteria should be acknowledged in the acknowledgment section.
  6. Authors must not include personal information that could reveal a patient’s identity in text, photographs, or pedigrees. If patient photographs are essential, authors must obtain written informed consent and clearly state it.
  7. For research involving humans, authors must certify that the study complies with the ethical standards of the Helsinki Declaration and relevant national or institutional committees. A copy of the ethical clearance letter from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) must be submitted as a supplementary file.
  8. For research involving animals, authors must certify that they followed relevant national and international guidelines for laboratory animal experiments.
  9. Authors must provide data and details of their work to the editor if there are suspicions of data falsification or fabrication.
  10. Authors must disclose all potential conflicts of interest, such as employment, research funding, consultancy, or intellectual property, using the ICMJE disclosure form.
  11. Authors guarantee that the manuscript is not under review or published elsewhere.
  12. Authorship manipulation (e.g., guest authorship, ghost authorship) is strictly prohibited.

Plagiarism Policy:

INA JGHE has a strict policy against plagiarism and other forms of inappropriate reuse of published material. Authors must submit original work and appropriately acknowledge all sources.

Plagiarism includes presenting another person's ideas, words, data, figures, or other creative or intellectual work as one's own without appropriate attribution. The journal also considers substantial reuse of an author's previously published work without proper citation to constitute self-plagiarism.

The journal strictly prohibits:

  • plagiarism and self-plagiarism;
  • duplicate or redundant publication;
  • inappropriate text or data reuse;
  • salami publication; and
  • manipulation or misrepresentation of previously published material.

All manuscripts submitted to INA JGHE must be accompanied by a plagiarism or similarity report with a similarity score of less than 15% at the time of submission. A similarity score is used as a screening tool and does not by itself determine whether plagiarism has occurred. Editors may conduct further investigation when substantial or inappropriate similarities are identified.

Allegation of Research Misconduct: 

INA JGHE takes allegations of research and publication misconduct seriously. Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to:

  • fabrication of data or results;
  • falsification or manipulation of data, images, or research procedures;
  • plagiarism;
  • duplicate or redundant publication;
  • inappropriate manipulation of citations;
  • authorship manipulation, including guest, honorary, or ghost authorship;
  • undeclared conflicts of interest;
  • unethical research involving human participants or animals; and
  • other practices that compromise the integrity of the research or publication process.

When an allegation of misconduct is received, the Editor-in-Chief or designated editor will conduct an initial assessment to determine whether the concern warrants further investigation. Where appropriate, the journal may request clarification or supporting documentation from the authors and may contact the relevant institution, Ethics Committee, or other responsible authority.

Investigations will be conducted in accordance with applicable COPE guidelines and principles of fairness and confidentiality. If misconduct is confirmed, the journal may take appropriate action, including rejection of the manuscript, publication of a correction or expression of concern, retraction of a published article, notification of the authors' institution, or other measures appropriate to the case.

Conflict of Interest/Competing Interests: 

All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest that could influence the research, peer-review process, or editorial decision.

Conflicts of interest may include, but are not limited to, employment, consultancy, research funding, financial relationships, personal relationships, institutional affiliations, intellectual property, or other interests related to the submitted work.

Authors must disclose relevant conflicts of interest using the ICMJE Disclosure Form. Reviewers and editors must also disclose conflicts and should recuse themselves from reviewing or making editorial decisions when a conflict exists.

Failure to appropriately disclose a relevant conflict of interest may constitute a publication ethics concern and may require further investigation or corrective action.

Post Publication Discussion:

INA JGHE recognizes the importance of post-publication discussion in maintaining the integrity and transparency of the scientific record.

Readers, authors, reviewers, and other members of the scientific community may raise substantive questions, comments, or concerns regarding articles published in the journal. Such communications should be based on scientific evidence and presented in a professional and constructive manner.

Post-publication concerns should be submitted to the editorial office. The editors will assess the concern and, when necessary, seek clarification from the authors, reviewers, or relevant institutions. Appropriate action will be taken in accordance with the nature of the concern and applicable COPE guidelines.

Where a concern affects the reliability or interpretation of the published record, the journal may publish a correction, expression of concern, retraction, or other appropriate editorial notice.

Correction and Retraction Policy:

INA JGHE is committed to maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the published scientific record. When errors or concerns are identified after publication, the journal will assess the matter and take appropriate action.

Corrections

A correction may be published when an error in a published article affects the accuracy or clarity of the article but does not invalidate its main findings or conclusions. Corrections will be linked to the original article and clearly identified.

Retractions

An article may be retracted when there is clear evidence that its findings are unreliable due to major errors, fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, unethical research, duplicate publication, or other serious forms of misconduct.

Retraction decisions will be made by the editorial team based on the available evidence and in accordance with COPE guidelines. Retracted articles will remain part of the journal's publication record but will be clearly identified as retracted, with an explanation of the reason for retraction where appropriate.

Expression of Concern

When there are serious concerns regarding the reliability or integrity of a published article but an investigation has not yet been completed or the available evidence is inconclusive, the journal may issue an Expression of Concern while the matter is investigated.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy: 

INA JGHE recognizes the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, including Large Language Models (LLMs), in scientific research and publication. To ensure academic integrity, confidentiality, and transparency, the following principles apply:

  1. AI Authorship

Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, including Large Language Models (LLMs), cannot be listed or credited as authors or co-authors.

Only human individuals who meet the ICMJE authorship criteria may be designated as authors. Human authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, integrity, originality, and accountability of the work, including any content produced or assisted by AI.

  1. Disclosure of AI Use in Manuscript Preparation

Authors must disclose the use of AI-assisted technologies during manuscript preparation and describe the AI tool used and how it was used, as appropriate.

When AI is used for writing assistance, its use should be disclosed in the Acknowledgment section. When AI is used for data collection, data analysis, or figure generation, its use should be described in the Methods section, as appropriate.

Authors must carefully review and edit all AI-assisted output and remain responsible for its accuracy, completeness, originality, and potential bias.

  1. AI-Generated Data, Figures, or Images

Any data, figures, or images created or modified using AI tools must be explicitly declared and described with sufficient methodological details, including the AI tool name, version, and relevant description.

AI-generated visuals must not be presented as actual experimental or clinical data. Misrepresentation, fabrication, or misleading use of AI-generated content constitutes a serious breach of publication ethics.

  1. AI in Peer Review

Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts. Manuscripts, including any part thereof, must not be uploaded, copied, or entered into generative AI or LLM tools.

Reviewers must not use AI to generate, formulate, or substantially assist in preparing peer-review reports or editorial recommendations.

If AI is used solely for minor language editing of a reviewer's own comments, this use should be disclosed to the Editor.

  1. AI Use by Editors and Editorial Team

Editors and the editorial team must maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts, reviewer reports, and other confidential editorial materials. Such materials must not be uploaded, copied, or entered into generative AI or LLM tools where confidentiality cannot be assured.

AI tools must not be used to make or determine editorial decisions, assess scientific validity or originality, select reviewers, or generate substantive editorial recommendations.

AI may be used for limited administrative or minor language-editing purposes only when confidentiality, editorial independence, and integrity are fully maintained. Such use should be disclosed to the Editor-in-Chief or designated authority, as appropriate.