Editor Duties

Committed to Upholding Integrity, Promoting Fair Play, and Ensuring Excellence in Scholarly Publishing Through Transparent and Ethical Editorial Practices.

1Publication Decisions

Editors bear sole responsibility for deciding which articles are published in the journal, often in collaboration with relevant societies for society-owned or sponsored journals. Decisions are based on:

  • Validation of the work.
  • Its significance to researchers and readers.

Editors must adhere to the journal’s editorial board policies and applicable legal standards, such as libel, copyright infringement, and plagiarism. They may consult with other editors, reviewers, or society officers when making decisions.

2Peer Review

Editors are responsible for ensuring a fair, impartial, and timely peer-review process. Key responsibilities include:

  • Ensuring research articles are reviewed by at least two independent reviewers.
  • Seeking additional opinions when necessary.
  • Selecting reviewers with appropriate expertise while considering inclusivity and diversity.
  • Avoiding untrustworthy reviewers and addressing potential biases, such as conflicts of interest or self-citation suggestions.
> Link to Peer Review

3Fair Play

Manuscripts must be evaluated solely on intellectual merit, without bias related to:

  • Authors’ race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, ethnicity, citizenship, or political views.

Editors should:

  • Consider diversity and inclusivity when appointing editorial board members.
  • Promote transparency and honest reporting by clearly communicating expectations to authors and reviewers.
  • Conduct all interactions through the journal’s standardized electronic submission system.
  • Collaborate with publishers to establish transparent processes for appealing editorial decisions.

4Journal Metrics

Editors must not manipulate journal rankings or artificially increase metrics. Key guidelines include:

  • References to the journal or editor’s own work should serve legitimate scholarly purposes.
  • Authors should not be pressured to cite the editor’s articles or related products for personal gain.
 

5Confidentiality

Editors are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of:

  • Submitted materials.
  • Reviewer communications.

Exceptions apply only with explicit consent or in cases of suspected ethical breaches, in consultation with the publisher. For journals using open peer-review systems, reviewers’ identities must only be disclosed with their consent.

Other confidentiality guidelines:

  • Unpublished content from submitted manuscripts must not be used in an editor’s research without the author’s written consent.
  • Privileged information or ideas obtained during peer review must remain confidential and not be used for personal benefit.

For inquiries, please write to us at send@researchrise.org

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