Ownership and Management

Ownership and Management

AIJOSH maintains transparency regarding its ownership, publishing arrangements, editorial management, and governance. This policy identifies the organizations responsible for the journal and explains the respective responsibilities of its owner, publisher, and editorial team.

1. Journal Identity

2. Ownership and Publishing Arrangements

AIJOSH is owned by LPPM Universitas Andalas and published by LPPM Universitas Andalas. Where the owner and publisher are the same organization, that organization holds both responsibilities.

The owner is responsible for the journal’s overall governance and for ensuring that appropriate publishing and editorial arrangements are maintained.

The publisher manages the administrative and publishing arrangements, including the infrastructure and organizational support necessary for the journal’s operation.

Any collaborating organization and the scope of its involvement are identified on the journal’s website. Collaboration does not confer authority to influence decisions on individual manuscripts. Editorial responsibilities are exercised through the journal’s established procedures.

Ownership of the journal is distinct from copyright ownership of individual articles. Authors retain copyright in accordance with the journal’s Copyright Statement and Licensing Policy.

3. Editorial Management

The journal is managed by an editorial team responsible for assessing submissions, coordinating peer review, communicating with authors and reviewers, and preparing accepted manuscripts for publication.

The Editor-in-Chief oversees editorial standards and decision-making. Handling editors manage assigned manuscripts, while copyeditors, layout editors, proofreaders, and other editorial personnel perform their designated publication tasks.

The names, affiliations, and roles of current editorial personnel are published on the journal’s Editorial Team page. This page serves as the official record of the journal’s editorial composition and is updated when appointments or responsibilities change.

Editorial appointments must be made with the knowledge and consent of the individuals concerned. Listed affiliations and roles must accurately reflect their involvement.

4. Editorial Independence

Editorial decisions are based on scholarly merit, relevance to the journal’s scope, the quality of methods and evidence, ethical compliance, and the results of editorial assessment and peer review.

The owner, publisher, collaborating organizations, sponsors, and other interested parties must not improperly influence reviewer selection, manuscript evaluation, or publication decisions.

Financial support, publication charges, institutional affiliation, or relationships with journal personnel must not confer preferential treatment or guarantee acceptance.

Editors with relevant conflicts of interest must withdraw from handling the affected manuscript. Submissions involving editorial personnel or their close associates are assigned to an independent editor in accordance with the Conflicts of Interest Policy and Peer-Review Policy.

5. Management Responsibilities

The owner, publisher, and editorial team are responsible, within their respective roles, for:

  • Maintaining clear and accessible editorial policies and author guidance.

  • Supporting fair, confidential, and appropriately documented peer review.

  • Maintaining publication records and accurate article metadata.

  • Implementing and accurately describing digital preservation and backup arrangements.

  • Providing reliable communication channels for authors, reviewers, and readers.

  • Addressing complaints, appeals, ethical concerns, and post-publication issues through established procedures.

  • Keeping information about publication charges, licensing, ownership, and publishing arrangements transparent and current.

  • Supporting continuity of journal operations and access to published content.

Access to confidential editorial records is limited to individuals with a legitimate role in manuscript handling, journal administration, or an authorized investigation. Ownership or organizational seniority alone does not justify access to confidential manuscript or reviewer information.

6. Changes to Ownership and Governance

Material changes to ownership, institutional responsibility, publishing arrangements, collaboration, or editorial leadership will be reflected on the journal’s official website.

Where a change affects authors, reviewers, or published content, the journal will communicate the relevant implications and take reasonable steps to maintain editorial continuity, preserve publication records, and protect access to published articles.

Transfers of ownership or publishing responsibility must include appropriate arrangements for editorial records, confidential information, article metadata, and preservation responsibilities.

Changes in ownership or management do not, by themselves, alter authors’ copyright or permissions already granted under published articles’ licenses.

7. Contact and Accountability

Questions concerning ownership, publishing arrangements, or editorial governance may be directed to aijosh.lppm@gmail.com.

Concerns involving a particular editor will be referred to an appropriate person without a relevant conflict of interest. Matters involving the Editor-in-Chief may be referred to LPPM Universitas Andalas for independent consideration.

Where the concern also involves the owner or publisher, an independent external editor or adviser will be assigned as appropriate.

Current editorial and publisher contact information is available on the journal’s Contact page.

This policy is reviewed periodically to ensure that it accurately reflects the ownership, management, and publishing arrangements of AIJOSH.