Ethical Principles and Publication Policy

The publication processes of the journal Zemin: Literature, Language and Cultural Studies are conducted in a manner that serves the development of impartial and respected knowledge. Our journal adopts the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) “Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors” and “Code of Conduct for Journal Publishers” within the scope of publication ethics. It expects all stakeholders (authors, reviewers, publishers, and editors) to fulfill the following ethical responsibilities. The ethical duties and responsibilities listed below are prepared considering the guidelines and policies published by COPE as open access (see https://publicationethics.org).

Ethical Responsibilities of Authors

It is the author’s responsibility to ensure that the submitted article is original and based on research appropriate to the specified academic fields.

The submitted article should not violate scientific publication ethics (plagiarism, forgery, distortion, duplicate publication, slicing, unjust authorship, failure to disclose supporting institutions).

The article should not be submitted to different journals/platforms simultaneously and should not have been published elsewhere before.

It is against scientific ethics to list individuals who did not contribute academically as authors or to arrange the author order based on non-scientific criteria such as title, age, and gender. No proposal should be made to change the author order, remove authors, or add authors after a manuscript has been submitted for publication. All authors of a work must consent to its publication.

Authors are obliged to provide the raw data of the article to the journal editors if requested.

Authors submitting articles to the journal are assumed to have read and accepted the journal’s publication and writing policies and are expected to commit to these principles.

Cited sources must be indicated in the bibliography, and the bibliography list must be prepared completely and accurately.

If authors notice an error in their article during the review or early appearance stage or after electronic publication, they must inform the editor, correct the error, or withdraw the article by contacting the editor.

Authors must consider the “Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive” as stated by the Higher Education Council.

Ethical Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers should evaluate the articles to be published in the journal with the responsibility of enhancing academic quality.

Reviewers should only agree to review articles for which they have the necessary expertise, can maintain confidentiality, and can keep the details of the article confidential in every way.

Information regarding the reviewed article should not be shared with others during and after the review process.

Reviewers should only evaluate the content of the articles and their adherence to academic standards. The reviewer’s differing opinions from the article’s ideas should not affect the evaluation.

Reviewer reports should be objective and measured. Insulting, derogatory, and accusatory expressions should be avoided.

Reviewers should avoid superficial and ambiguous expressions in their evaluation reports. In negative evaluations, the deficiencies and faults on which the decision is based should be clearly indicated.

Reviewers should evaluate the articles within the specified time frame. If they are not going to review, they should inform the journal within a reasonable time.

Responsibilities of Editors

Editors should accept articles that contribute to the related fields as specified in the journal’s policy.

Editors should not have any conflict of interest/relationship with the accepted or rejected articles and their authors.

Editors have full responsibility and authority to accept or reject an article.

It is the responsibility of the editors to keep the names of reviewers and authors confidential.

Editors should make every effort to ensure that submitted articles are screened for plagiarism.

It is the duty of the editors to ensure the completion of the preliminary review, review, editing, and publication processes of the submitted articles in a timely and healthy manner.

Editors should prioritize academic concerns and standards when accepting articles for the journal.

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Actions Violating Scientific Research and Publication Ethics According to Article 4 of the Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive:

1. Actions violating scientific research and publication ethics include:

a) Plagiarism: Presenting others’ original ideas, methods, data, or works as one’s own work, partially or completely, without proper citation.

b) Forgery: Using non-existent or falsified data in scientific research.

c) Distortion: Falsifying research records or obtained data, showing devices or materials not used in the research as if they were used, distorting or shaping research results to fit the interests of supporting persons and organizations.

d) Duplicate Publication: Presenting multiple publications of the same research results as separate publications in academic appointments and promotions.

e) Slicing: Dividing the results of a research study in a way that disrupts the integrity of the research and improperly publishing them as multiple separate publications and presenting these publications as separate works in academic appointments and promotions.

f) Unjust Authorship: Including individuals who did not actively contribute among the authors or excluding those who did contribute, changing the order of authors unjustifiably and inappropriately, removing names of contributors from subsequent editions, or including names due to influence despite lack of contribution.

Other Types of Ethical Violations:

a) Failing to mention supporting individuals, institutions, or organizations and their contributions in publications based on supported research.

b) Using unpublished or unapproved theses or works as a source without the permission of the owner.

c) Not adhering to ethical rules in research involving humans and animals, not respecting patient rights in publications.

d) Violating relevant legislation in biomedical and other clinical research involving humans.

e) Sharing information in a work assigned for review with others without the explicit permission of the author before publication.

f) Misusing resources, facilities, and equipment allocated for scientific research.

g) Making unfounded, baseless, and intentional accusations of ethical violations.

h) Publishing data obtained from surveys and attitude studies conducted without the explicit consent of participants or, if conducted in an institution, without the institution’s permission.

i) Causing harm to animal health and ecological balance in research and experiments.

j) Starting research and experiments without obtaining necessary permissions from authorized units in writing.

k) Engaging in research and experiments contrary to the provisions of legislation or international conventions that Turkey is a part of, regarding relevant research and experiments.

l) Not complying with the obligation to inform and warn relevant parties about possible harmful practices related to a scientific research.

m) Using data and information obtained from other persons and institutions in scientific studies to the extent and manner permitted, not respecting the confidentiality of this information and ensuring its protection.

n) Making false or misleading statements regarding scientific research and publications in academic appointments and promotions.

Actions That Cannot Be Considered as Violating Scientific Research and Publication Ethics:

Article 5 – (1) The use of anonymous information, fundamental knowledge of scientific fields, mathematical theorems, and proofs in studies without using the original expression and style of another person is not considered an ethical violation.