Conflicts of Interest

AIJOSH is committed to maintaining the integrity, independence, and credibility of scholarly publishing. This policy explains how authors, reviewers, editors, journal staff, and the publisher must disclose and manage interests that could influence, or reasonably appear to influence, research, peer review, or editorial decisions.

1. Definition and Scope

A conflict of interest, also called a competing interest, arises when financial, personal, professional, or institutional interests could compromise an individual’s judgment or responsibilities in research and publication.

Conflicts may be actual, potential, or reasonably perceived. Their existence does not automatically indicate misconduct or disqualify a manuscript from publication. Disclosure allows the journal to assess their relevance and determine whether safeguards are needed.

This policy applies to authors, reviewers, the Editor-in-Chief, handling editors, guest editors, editorial board members, journal staff, and the publisher.

2. Types of Conflicts of Interest

Financial interests may include employment, consultancy fees, honoraria, research grants, paid advisory roles, travel support, stock ownership, royalties, patents, or other financial relationships with organizations that could benefit from the research or its publication.

Non-financial interests may include:

Close personal or family relationships with individuals involved in the research or publication process.
Current or recent collaboration, supervisory relationships, professional rivalry, or academic disputes.
Institutional responsibilities or leadership positions in organizations discussed or evaluated in the manuscript.
Involvement in advocacy groups, political organizations, foundations, or other bodies with a direct interest in the research.
Competing research projects or unpublished work that could compromise impartial assessment.
Personal or professional commitments directly relevant to the work that could reasonably affect independent judgment.

Subject expertise, shared research interests, theoretical perspectives, or disagreement with an argument do not, by themselves, constitute a conflict of interest. Disclosure should focus on relevant relationships and commitments rather than unrelated personal beliefs or identities.

3. General Disclosure Requirements

All participants in the publication process must disclose relevant interests promptly and accurately. When uncertain whether an interest is relevant, they should seek guidance from the editorial office.

Authors must provide a declaration at submission and update it if circumstances change during review, revision, or publication.

Reviewers must disclose relevant interests before accepting an invitation and report any newly recognized conflict immediately.

Editors and staff must disclose relevant interests before participating in manuscript handling or decision-making.

Disclosures should explain the nature of the relationship, the individual or organization involved, and its relevance to the work. Where no relevant conflicts exist, an explicit declaration should be provided as required by the journal.

4. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors must disclose financial and non-financial interests that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the design, conduct, interpretation, or presentation of their research.

The corresponding author must collect disclosures from all co-authors and ensure that the submitted declaration accurately represents each author’s circumstances. Every author remains responsible for the completeness and accuracy of their own disclosure.

A Conflicts of Interest statement must be provided at submission and included in the final manuscript’s declarations section, normally before the References.

During double-anonymous review, identifying disclosures must be supplied separately to the editor. An appropriate placeholder may be used in the anonymous manuscript. Complete disclosures must be restored before publication.

Where no relevant interests exist, authors may use the following statement:

“The authors declare no financial or non-financial conflicts of interest relevant to this work.”

Where interests exist, the statement must identify the author concerned and describe the relevant relationship. Declaring a conflict does not automatically result in rejection.

The journal may request individual declarations, a disclosure form, or further clarification when necessary.

5. Funding and the Role of Sponsors

All financial and material support for the research and manuscript preparation must be disclosed. Authors should identify funding organizations and provide grant numbers where applicable.

Authors must explain whether funders or sponsors participated in:

Study design.
Data collection or source acquisition.
Analysis and interpretation.
Manuscript preparation.
The decision to submit the work for publication.

Restrictions imposed by sponsors on access to data, interpretation, or publication must also be disclosed.

If funders had no involvement in these activities, this should be stated explicitly. If no specific funding was received, authors should provide an appropriate declaration.

Funding and conflicts of interest are related but distinct disclosures. A funding statement does not replace a conflicts-of-interest statement.

6. Responsibilities of Peer Reviewers

Reviewers must assess whether they can provide an independent and impartial evaluation before accepting an invitation.

Reviewers must disclose and normally decline assignments involving significant conflicts, including:

Employment at the same institution as an author.
Close personal or family relationships.
Direct financial interests relevant to the manuscript.
Current or recent close collaboration.
Supervisory relationships or serious professional disputes that could compromise impartiality.

For this journal’s screening purposes, recent collaboration normally includes joint research, shared grants, or supervisory relationships within the preceding three years. This period is not an automatic clearance rule: older relationships must also be disclosed if they remain relevant.

Reviewers should inform the editor if they have previously reviewed the manuscript for another journal or contributed to its development. A previous review alone does not necessarily prevent further review; the editor will assess the circumstances.

If a conflict becomes apparent after review has begun, the reviewer must notify the editor promptly and pause the assessment until instructed. This obligation also applies when a reviewer recognizes an author’s identity during anonymous review.

The editor may replace the reviewer or obtain an additional independent assessment where necessary.

7. Responsibilities of Editors and Journal Staff

Editors and staff must disclose interests that could affect manuscript handling, reviewer selection, editorial decisions, or access to confidential information.

An individual with a significant conflict must withdraw from the affected responsibilities. An alternative editor without a relevant conflict will oversee the manuscript.

Relevant interests must be reported to the Editor-in-Chief. If the Editor-in-Chief is involved, the matter must be referred to LPPM Universitas Andalas for independent handling by a person without a relevant conflict.

Research expertise or an overlapping subject interest does not automatically require withdrawal. Direct competition, personal involvement, or other circumstances that could compromise impartiality must be disclosed and assessed.

Conflicted individuals must not use their position or access to the editorial system to influence the assessment.

8. Submissions by Editors, Editorial Board Members, and Staff

Manuscripts authored by members of the editorial team or journal staff are subject to the same assessment standards as other submissions.

These manuscripts must be handled by an independent editor without a relevant conflict. The author-editor or staff member must not select reviewers, participate in editorial deliberations, or access confidential review information beyond what is normally available to authors.

Where suitable independent handling cannot be arranged within the journal, an external editor will be appointed. Processing must not proceed without appropriate safeguards.

The author’s relationship with the journal must be disclosed. Published articles will include a statement explaining the independent handling arrangements without compromising reviewer anonymity.

These safeguards also apply to submissions involving publisher personnel or close associates where their relationships create a significant conflict.

9. Assessment and Management of Disclosed Interests

The journal assesses disclosed interests according to their nature, relevance, and potential effect on the integrity of the work or its evaluation.

Appropriate measures may include:

Publishing a clear author disclosure alongside the article.
Requesting additional information or clarification.
Assigning an independent editor.
Replacing a reviewer or restricting access to confidential materials.
Obtaining additional independent peer review.
Pausing manuscript processing while concerns are assessed.
Declining a manuscript when a significant risk to research or editorial integrity cannot be adequately managed.

Decisions will be proportionate to the circumstances. Disclosure alone is not evidence of misconduct, and disclosure does not automatically resolve a conflict that requires additional safeguards.

10. Undisclosed Interests and Post-Publication Concerns

Suspected undisclosed conflicts should be reported through the journal’s official editorial contact channel, with sufficient information and supporting evidence to assess the concern.

The journal will seek an explanation from the individuals concerned and examine the available evidence under its procedures for handling allegations of misconduct.

Before publication, an omitted disclosure may require clarification, amendment, reassessment, or additional review. Serious unresolved concerns may result in rejection.

After publication, the journal may issue a correction to update the disclosure. An expression of concern or retraction may be considered where substantial unresolved concerns or established findings warrant such action under the journal’s correction policies.

An omitted disclosure does not automatically justify retraction. Action depends on its significance and consequences for the reliability of the article or the integrity of its evaluation.

11. Journal and Publisher Independence

AIJOSH and LPPM Universitas Andalas are committed to ensuring that financial, institutional, organizational, or personal interests do not improperly influence editorial decisions.

Editorial judgments must be based on scholarly merit, relevance, research integrity, and the journal’s published policies.

Funding, sponsorship, institutional affiliation, publication charges, or relationships with the publisher must not confer preferential treatment or guarantee acceptance.

Relevant interests at the journal or publisher level must be disclosed and managed through independent oversight. Where publisher personnel are directly involved in a concern, an independent editor or external adviser will be assigned to assess the matter.

12. Records and Policy Review

The journal maintains records of disclosures and the measures taken to manage relevant conflicts. Access to confidential records is restricted to individuals with a legitimate editorial or investigative role.

Author disclosures and funding statements are published with the article. Confidential reviewer and editorial information is handled consistently with the journal’s review procedures and applicable obligations.

This policy is reviewed periodically and should be read together with the Author Guidelines, Authorship and Contributorship Policy, Peer-Review Processes, Publication Ethics, and procedures for handling allegations of misconduct.