Ethics and Policies

The OCEM Journal of Management, Technology & Social Sciences (OCEM-JMTSS) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and accountability in scholarly publishing. We strictly adhere to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines and expect all parties — authors, reviewers, editors, and publishers — to uphold the highest ethical standards.

Research Integrity and Originality

  • Submitted manuscripts must be original works that have not been published previously, in whole or in part, in any language.
  • Concurrent submissions to other journals are strictly prohibited.
  • Authors must properly acknowledge and cite all sources that have influenced their work.
  • Plagiarism, including self-plagiarism and text recycling, will result in rejection or retraction. OCEM-JMTSS uses plagiarism detection software to ensure compliance.

    i. Authorship and Contribution

  • Authorship must be limited to individuals who have made substantial contributions to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the study.
  • The Corresponding Author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors approve the final manuscript and agree to its submission.
  • Any changes in authorship (addition, removal, or order change) must be requested before acceptance, with written approval from all listed authors.

  ii. Changes to Authorship

The journal considers authorship a serious matter and discourages changes to a manuscript once it has been submitted. Requests to add, remove, or rearrange authors must be formally made by the corresponding author and must include written consent from all listed authors, including those being added or removed. The Editorial Office will evaluate any such request, and approval will be at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief. Changes requested after acceptance are only permitted in exceptional circumstances, and if approved, will be reflected through a corrigendum. Unauthorized or disputed authorship changes may result in rejection of the submission or retraction of the published article.

  iii. Peer Review Ethics

  • OCEM-JMTSS follows a double-blind peer review process: both authors and reviewers remain anonymous.
  • Reviewers are expected to provide fair, constructive, and timely feedback, free from personal bias.
  • Editors ensure that reviewers have no conflict of interest with the manuscript under evaluation.
  • Manuscripts authored by editorial board members will be handled independently to avoid bias.

   iv. Declaration of Conflicts of Interest

  •  All authors must disclose any financial, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence (or be perceived to influence) their research.
  • Reviewers and editors must also declare potential conflicts of interest and recuse themselves where appropriate.

  v. Data Transparency and Availability

  • Authors are encouraged to provide access to research data, code, or supplementary material supporting their findings.
  • A Data Availability Statement should be included in the manuscript, specifying whether data are openly accessible, available upon request, or restricted due to ethical/legal considerations.
  • Fabrication, falsification, or selective reporting of data constitutes research misconduct.

   vi. Ethical Approval for Research

  • Research involving human participants must comply with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and obtain clearance from a recognized Ethical Review Board.
  • Authors must include a statement on ethical approval and informed consent in their manuscripts.
  • For studies involving secondary data, authors must ensure compliance with data protection and privacy regulations.

vii.  Use of Generative AI and Writing Tools

  • Generative AI or AI-assisted tools may only be used for language polishing or editing clarity, with human oversight.
  • Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy and originality of the work.
  • Use of AI tools must be disclosed in the manuscript under a “Declaration of Generative AI in Scientific Writing.”

viii. Misconduct and Retraction Policy

  • OCEM-JMTSS takes allegations of plagiarism, duplicate publication, data manipulation, authorship disputes, or unethical research seriously.
  •  If misconduct is proven, corrective actions may include rejection, publication of an erratum, retraction of the article, or banning of authors from future submissions.
  • Retractions and corrections will follow COPE’s retraction guidelines.

   ix.  Inclusive Language and Diversity

  • Authors must use inclusive, unbiased language that respects diversity across gender, race, ethnicity, culture, religion, disability, and orientation.
  • Discriminatory or offensive terms are unacceptable.

  x.  Funding and Acknowledgments

  • Authors must disclose all sources of funding that supported the research.
  • The role of funders in study design, analysis, and publication must also be stated.
  • Individuals who contributed to the study but do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately.

   xi. Jurisdictional Claims

OCEM-JMTSS maintains a neutral position regarding territorial or jurisdictional disputes. The designations used in articles, including maps, institutional affiliations, and geographic references, are solely those of the authors and do not represent the views of the journal or its publisher. Authors are required to ensure that any maps or institutional details presented in their manuscripts are accurate and limited to the scope of the study. Where applicable, authors should include a note clarifying that boundary lines, place names, or affiliations shown in figures and text are for research purposes only and do not necessarily reflect officially accepted national boundaries or policies.