ALLEGATION OF RESEARCH MISCONDUCT POLICY

The International Journal of Counseling and Psychotherapy (IJCP) is firmly committed to upholding the integrity of the scholarly record. All statements, decisions, and actions taken by IJCP in response to allegations of research misconduct are grounded in internationally recognized ethical publishing standards. IJCP statements and actions regarding Allegations of Research Misconduct are based on the following policies:

International Journal of Counseling and Psychotherapy (IJCP) takes seriously all allegations of potential misconduct. IJCP will follow the COPE guidelines outlining how to deal with cases of suspected misconduct.

IJCP defines misconduct as including, but not limited to, the following unethical practices:

  • Plagiarism: Using another individual’s ideas, text, images, or data without proper attribution or citation. This includes: (1) Direct plagiarism (verbatim copying); (2) Mosaic plagiarism (patchwriting); (3) Self-plagiarism (reusing one's own previously published work without disclosure).
  • Fabrication: The intentional creation of false or fictitious data, results, or references that were never observed or collected.
  • Falsification: Manipulating research data, procedures, materials, or images with the intent to mislead, misrepresent findings, or suppress negative results.
  • Authorship Misconduct: Improper practices in crediting authorship, including: (1) Gift/guest authorship: Listing individuals who did not contribute significantly; (2) Ghost authorship: Omitting those who did make significant contributions; (3) Order manipulation: Misrepresenting author contributions.
  • Redundant or Duplicate Submission: Submitting the same or substantially similar manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously or without appropriate disclosure.
  • Citation Manipulation: Adding citations with the intent to: (1) Artificially increase the citation count of a particular author or journal; (2) Satisfy coercive citation demands from reviewers or editors; (3) Inflate the perceived impact of the manuscript without scholarly justification.
  • Failure to Disclose Conflicts of Interest: Not reporting financial, personal, institutional, or professional relationships that may be perceived to influence the objectivity or credibility of the manuscript.
  • Ethics Approval Violations: Failing to obtain appropriate ethics committee approval for studies involving human participants or animals, or conducting research without informed consent from participants.
  • General Research Misconduct: Any violation of ethical standards in the research process, such as: (1) Data mismanagement; (2) Misuse of confidential information; (3) Obstruction of the review process.
  • Copyright Infringement: Using copyrighted material figures, tables, or text without permission or not respecting intellectual property rights.

IJCP Procedures for Handling Allegations:

1. Reporting
Allegations may be submitted confidentially by authors, reviewers, readers, editorial staff, or external parties. Reports must be directed to the editorial office and supported with credible evidence.

2. Preliminary Assessment
The Editor-in-Chief will conduct an initial review to determine whether the allegation has merit. If valid, a formal investigation will be initiated.

3. Notification
The corresponding author (or all authors if needed) will be informed of the allegation and given an opportunity to respond in writing within 14 working days.

4. Investigation
The editorial team may consult independent experts, request raw data, or communicate with affiliated institutions as part of the investigation process. All parties involved will be treated with confidentiality and impartiality.

5. Outcomes and Corrective Actions
If misconduct is confirmed, the following actions may be taken:

  • Rejection of the manuscript (if under review),
  • Retraction or correction of the article (if published),
  • Publication of an expression of concern,
  • Temporary or permanent ban on future submissions from the responsible author(s),
  • Notification to the author's institution or relevant authorities.

6. Transparency and Documentation
All steps of the investigation process will be documented and archived by the editorial office. Where appropriate, IJCP will publicly disclose the outcomes (e.g., through retraction notices) to maintain transparency and uphold academic standards.

7. Policy Review
This policy will be reviewed annually and revised to reflect evolving standards and best practices in publication ethics.