The editorial board of the Social Development: Economic and Legal Issues Journal by the Eastern European Union of Scientists pays special attention to transparency and objectivity in publishing scientific materials. We recognize the critical importance of preventing conflicts of interest at all stages of the editorial process, from manuscript submission to peer review and publication.
A conflict of interest arises when personal, professional, or financial circumstances may affect the objectivity of peer review, editorial decision-making, or publication. It can be both actual and potential, that is, such that it can be perceived as bias.
Categories of conflict of interest
- Personal conflict of interest
- Personal or professional relationships (e.g., friends, relatives, colleagues, former or present) between authors, reviewers, or editors may affect the assessment's objectivity.
- Ideological, political, or religious beliefs that may interfere with impartiality in the consideration of the material.
- Professional conflict of interest
- Collaboration or other professional ties between the author and reviewer that may affect the objectivity of the evaluation.
- Membership in organizations that have an interest in the results of the study.
- Financial conflict of interest
- Financial support, grants, or other forms of sponsorship related to research results.
- Patent rights or other financial interests that may affect impartiality.
- Fees or rewards that can potentially create bias in the decision-making process.
The process of identifying conflicts of interest
Authors, reviewers, and members of the editorial board are obliged to declare the presence of any actual or potential conflicts of interest. If such conflicts are detected during manuscript submission or review, this may affect the further evaluation of the material.
Measures in case of detection of a conflict of interest
The editorial board reserves the right to:
- Engage an independent reviewer in case of a conflict of interest between the author and the appointed reviewer.
- Reject the manuscript if a conflict of interest calls into question the objectivity of the assessment of the material.
- Make changes or withdraw the article after publication in case of undeclared conflict of interest.
We call on all participants in the publication process — authors, reviewers and editors — to take a responsible attitude to the disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. This is the key to ensuring academic integrity, high quality publications and trust in scientific research.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY
A conflict of interest is any circumstance that may affect the completeness, objectivity or appropriateness of the consideration of a manuscript and the adoption of decisions on its publication.
A conflict of interest arises if the participants in the editorial process have personal, professional or other ties that may call into question their impartiality. Authors should report possible conflicts when submitting a manuscript, and reviewers should report when reviewing.
Any claims of conflicts of interest are considered by the editor-in-chief or editor-in-chief. If the conflict concerns the editor-in-chief, the decision is made with the participation of two members of the editorial board.
COMPLAINTS AND APPEALS
The editorial board considers complaints and appeals in accordance with the recommendations of COPE.
AUTHORSHIP AND CO-AUTHORSHIP
The editorial authorship policy is consistent with the guidelines of COPE, Elsevier, and EASE.
Authorship is granted to persons who have made a significant contribution to the research, in particular:
- in the concept, methodology, collection, analysis and interpretation of data;
- in writing or finalizing an article with a focus on its intellectual content;
- in verifying the accuracy and integrity of all aspects of the study.
The editorial board does not limit the number of authors, but their contribution must be justified in accordance with the criteria of ISMJE (2022).
Changing the composition of the authors after the submission of the manuscript is not allowed, if disputes arise between the co-authors, the consideration of the article is suspended until they are resolved.