Corrections and Retractions
Indian Journal of Mental Health and Neurosciences editorial’s policies on corrections and retractions are based on the Public Knowledge Project (PKP)’s documentation and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)’s retraction guidelines.
Corrections
Corrections can be of the following types
Author Correction: An Author Correction may be published to correct an important error(s) made by the author(s) that affects the scientific integrity of the published article, the publication record, or the reputation of the authors or the journal.
Publisher Correction: A Publisher Correction may be published to correct an important error(s) made by the journal that affects the scientific integrity of the published article, the publication record, or the reputation of the authors or the journal.
All the Corrections made to a published article will be with the authorization of the editor of the journal. Editors will decide the magnitude of the corrections. Minor corrections are made directly to the original article. For major changes below cases are applicable.
Erratum
An Erratum is a statement by the authors of the original paper that briefly describes any correction(s) resulting from errors or omissions. Any effects on the conclusions of the paper should be noted. The corrected article is not removed from the online journal, but notice of erratum is given. The Erratum is made freely available to all readers and is linked to the corrected article
Corrigenda
A corrigendum is a notification of a significant error made by the authors of the article that affects the publication record or the scientific integrity of the paper, or the reputation of the authors or the journal. All corrigenda need to be approved by the editors of the journal.
Addendum
An addendum is a notification of an addition of information to an article. Addenda are published when the editors decide that the addendum is crucial to the reader’s understanding of a significant part of the published contribution.
Addenda do not contradict the original publication, but if the author inadvertently omitted significant information available at the time, this material can be published as an addendum.
Addenda may be peer reviewed, according to journal policy, and are normally subject to oversight by the editors of the journal. Addenda relating to the article content are published only rarely and only when the journal editors decide that an addendum is crucial to the reader’s understanding of a significant part of the published article. All addenda are linked to the original article to which they relate.
Retraction
A Retraction is a notice that the paper should not be regarded as part of the scientific literature. Retractions are issued if there is clear evidence that the findings are unreliable, this can be as a result of misconduct or honest error. Retraction takes place if:
- The findings have previously been published elsewhere without proper referencing, permission or justification.
- If the work is plagiarized
- If the work reports unethical research.
To protect the integrity of the record, the retracted article is not removed from the online journal, but notice of retraction is given, also it is made freely available to all readers, and is linked to the retracted article. Retractions can be published by the authors when they have discovered substantial scientific errors; in other cases, the Editors or Publisher may conclude that retraction is appropriate. In all cases, the retraction indicates the reason for the action and who is responsible for the decision. If a retraction is made without the unanimous agreement of the authors, that is also noted.
COPE Guidelines for Retracting Articles
Article replacement
In cases where the article, if acted upon, might pose a serious health risk, the authors of the original article may wish to retract the flawed original and replace it with a corrected version. In these circumstances the procedures for retraction will be followed with the difference that the retraction notice will publish a link to the corrected re-published article and a history of the document.
Expression of concern
If any misleading content, is found in the published paper and if deducted by the editor or any member of the editorial board member, and if they want to make the reader aware of those content without retracting the paper, the journal issues an “Expression of Concern”. This editorial “Expression of concern” makes the reader aware of the flaws that influence the paper's integrity. But this is issued if there is any undecided conclusion of any investigations of the respective article or judgment would be unavailable for an undetermined period and if found rationale for issuing the expression of concern.
Article removal
In very rare circumstances it may be necessary to remove an article from the online journal. This will only occur where the article is clearly defamatory, or infringes others' legal rights, or where the article is, or there is good reason to expect it will be, the subject of a court order, or where the article, if acted upon, might pose a serious health risk.
In these circumstances, while the bibliographic information (title and authors) will be retained online, the text will be replaced with a page indicating that the article has been removed for legal reasons.