Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement
Our publication ethics and publication malpractice statement is based on adherence to:
The COPE Code of Conduct and Best-Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors
Authors, reviewers and Editors involved in the publication of Indian Journal of Mental Health and Neurosciences are supposed to carefully follow the publication ethics described below to check and discourage publication malpractices of any kind.
Author Responsibilities
The research being reported should have been conducted in an ethical and responsible manner and should comply with all relevant legislation.
Authors should present their results clearly, honestly, and without fabrication, falsification or inappropriate data manipulation.
Authors should strive to describe their methods clearly and unambiguously so that others can confirm their findings.
Authors should adhere to publication requirements that submitted work is original, is not plagiarized, and has not been published elsewhere.
Authors should take collective responsibility for submitted and published work.
The authorship of research publications should accurately reflect individuals’ contributions to the work and its reporting.
Funding sources and relevant conflicts of interest should be disclosed.
Reviewer Responsibilities
Reviewers should only agree to review manuscripts for which they have the subject expertise required to carry out a proper assessment and which they can assess in a timely manner.
Respect the confidentiality of peer review and not reveal any details of a manuscript or its review, during or after the peer-review process, beyond those that are released by the journal.
Not to use information obtained during the peer-review process for their own or any other person’s or organization’s advantage, or to disadvantage or discredit others.
Declare all potential conflicting interests, seeking advice from the journal if they are unsure whether something constitutes a relevant interest.
Not allow their reviews to be influenced by the origins of a manuscript, by the nationality, religious or political beliefs, gender or other characteristics of the authors, or by commercial considerations.
Be objective and constructive in their reviews, refraining from being hostile or inflammatory and from making libelous or derogatory personal comments.
Recognize that impersonation of another individual during the review process is considered serious misconduct.
Editor Responsibilities
Editors are accountable and should take responsibility for everything they publish.
Editors should make fair and unbiased decisions independent from commercial consideration and ensure a fair and appropriate peer review process.
Editors should adopt editorial policies that encourage maximum transparency and complete, honest reporting.
Editors should guard the integrity of the published record by issuing corrections and retractions when needed and investigating suspected or alleged research and publication misconduct.
Editors should investigate any reviewer
Editors should critically assess the ethical conduct of studies in humans and animals.
Editors should have appropriate policies in place for handling editorial conflicts of interest.
Publisher Responsibilities
Handling of Unethical Publishing Behavior: In cases of alleged or proven scientific misconduct, fraudulent publication or plagiarism, the publisher, in close collaboration with the editors, will take all appropriate measures to clarify the situation and to amend the article in question. This includes the prompt publication of an erratum, clarification or, in the most severe case, the retraction of the affected work. The publisher, together with the editors, shall take reasonable steps to identify and prevent the publication of papers where research misconduct has occurred, and under no circumstances encourage such misconduct or knowingly allow such misconduct to take place.
Access to Journal Content: The publisher is committed to the permanent availability and preservation of scholarly research and ensures accessibility by partnering with organizations and maintaining own digital archive.