The International Journal of Business and Economics Insights (IJBEI) recognizes that the credibility of academic publishing rests on trust. Authors must trust that editors and reviewers will handle manuscripts objectively; readers must trust that published research is accurate, original, and reliable; and the broader academic community must trust that the journal’s editorial and publishing processes uphold the highest ethical standards.

To safeguard this trust, IJBEI maintains a comprehensive ethical framework built on integrity, transparency, accountability, and respect for intellectual property. These standards are aligned with globally recognized guidelines, including the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and the Publishing Ethics Resource Kit (PERK).

This extended policy document details the responsibilities of all stakeholders in the publishing process  authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher and defines IJBEI’s stance on ethical conduct, plagiarism, authorship, conflicts of interest, peer review, and misconduct.

Research Ethics and Integrity

IJBEI requires all research published under its name to conform to internationally accepted standards of research integrity. Authors are expected to:

·         Present research findings with honesty, without falsification, fabrication, or selective reporting.

·         Ensure that research design and methodology are appropriate, transparent, and replicable.

·         Clearly acknowledge all contributors, collaborators, and institutions involved in the research.

·         Disclose all funding sources, grants, or institutional support relevant to the study.

Human Subjects and Ethics Review

For studies involving human participants (e.g., surveys, interviews, behavioral economics experiments), authors must:

·         Obtain approval from a relevant Institutional Review Board (IRB) or ethics committee.

·         Document how informed consent was obtained from participants.

·         Ensure anonymity, confidentiality, and respect for privacy.

·         Avoid coercion or exploitation of vulnerable groups.

Compliance with Regulations

Authors must adhere to applicable national and international regulations, including data protection laws such as GDPR (for European Union participants) and relevant local ethical standards.

Failure to comply with research ethics requirements may result in rejection, retraction, or notification to relevant authorities.

Authorship and Contributions

Authorship in IJBEI must reflect substantial intellectual contribution. The journal follows the four ICMJE criteria:

1.      Significant contribution to the conception, design, data acquisition, or analysis.

2.      Drafting or revising the manuscript for intellectual content.

3.      Final approval of the submitted version.

4.      Agreement to be accountable for the integrity and accuracy of the work.

Authorship Transparency

·         All authors must be listed at the time of submission.

·         The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors approve the submission and final version.

·         Any changes to authorship (addition, removal, reordering) after submission require written consent from all authors.

Prohibited Practices

·         Ghost authorship: excluding genuine contributors.

·         Guest authorship: including individuals who made no meaningful contribution.

·         Honorary authorship: listing senior or prominent individuals to enhance credibility.

Violation of authorship integrity will result in rejection, correction, or retraction.

Plagiarism Policy

IJBEI enforces a strict zero-tolerance policy toward plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined broadly and includes:

·         Copying text, figures, or data from other sources without attribution.

·         Close paraphrasing without proper acknowledgment.

·         Self-plagiarism, or the reuse of one’s own previously published work without citation or disclosure.

·         Submitting AI-generated content as original human-authored material without disclosure.

Plagiarism Screening

All manuscripts undergo plagiarism detection using advanced software such as iThenticate and Turnitin.

·         A similarity index of more than 15% (excluding references and quotations) may result in revision requests, rejection, or investigation.

·         Authors may be asked to provide raw data or documentation to verify originality.

Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools

Recognizing the growing role of generative AI in research, IJBEI permits its use under strict guidelines:

·         Authors must disclose any use of AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot) in an “Acknowledgment of AI Assistance” section.

·         AI cannot be listed as an author.

·         AI must not replace critical human intellectual contributions.

·         Excessive or undisclosed use of AI may lead to rejection or retraction.

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and ethical compliance of their manuscripts.

Data Availability and Transparency

Transparency in research data is central to IJBEI’s ethical publishing philosophy. Authors are encouraged to provide:

·         Data availability statements specifying where datasets can be accessed.

·         Supplementary files with raw data, codes, or statistical models.

·         Replication packages for studies with complex econometric or computational models.

Authors must retain original data for a reasonable period and provide it upon reasonable request.

Data falsification, fabrication, or manipulation will be treated as serious misconduct and may result in retraction and blacklisting.

Duplicate and Redundant Publication

Authors must avoid practices that distort the academic record, including:

·         Simultaneous submissions: sending the same manuscript to multiple journals.

·         Duplicate publication: publishing the same article in more than one journal.

·         Redundant publication (“salami slicing”): dividing one research project into multiple papers without clear justification.

Authors must disclose prior submissions, conference versions, or overlapping manuscripts at the time of submission.