Research Misconduct & Whistleblower Policy

Research Misconduct Policy

The Medical and Life Sciences (MLS), published by SMARCONS Publisher, is committed to maintaining the integrity, transparency, and reliability of the scholarly record. MLS follows rigorous ethical publishing standards and takes all allegations of research misconduct, publication misconduct, and peer review misconduct seriously.

For the purpose of this policy, research and publication misconduct includes, but is not limited to:

  • Fabrication, falsification, or manipulation of research data, images, results, or findings

  • Plagiarism, including the use of text, ideas, data, images, or other scholarly material without proper acknowledgment

  • Self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, redundant publication, or simultaneous submission of the same manuscript to more than one journal

  • Misrepresentation of authorship, including ghost authorship, guest authorship, or undisclosed contributors

  • Citation manipulation or inappropriate citation practices

  • Manipulation of the peer review process, including fabricated reviewer identities or false reviewer information

  • Undisclosed conflicts of interest, including financial, institutional, personal, professional, or academic conflicts

  • Failure to obtain required ethical approval for research involving human participants, animals, or sensitive data

  • Misuse of confidential information obtained during the review or editorial process

Handling Allegations of Misconduct

All allegations of misconduct are handled carefully, confidentially, fairly, and without bias. Allegations may be raised by editors, reviewers, authors, readers, institutions, funding bodies, or other concerned individuals.

The Editor-in-Chief conducts an initial assessment of all allegations. Where necessary, the Editor-in-Chief may consult the editorial board, external experts, the author’s institution, the reviewer’s institution, funding bodies, or other relevant authorities.

MLS follows relevant guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) when handling suspected misconduct, corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern.

During the investigation process:

  • All parties will be treated fairly and respectfully.

  • The identity of complainants and whistleblowers will be protected as far as reasonably possible.

  • Authors, reviewers, or editors against whom allegations are made will normally be given an opportunity to respond.

  • Relevant evidence will be reviewed before any final decision is made.

  • Institutions, employers, funders, or ethics committees may be contacted where necessary.

Actions in Proven Cases of Misconduct

If misconduct is confirmed, MLS may take one or more of the following actions, depending on the nature and seriousness of the case:

  • Reject the manuscript

  • Request correction of the manuscript before publication

  • Publish a correction notice

  • Publish an expression of concern

  • Retract the published article

  • Notify the author’s institution, employer, funding body, or relevant authority

  • Restrict future submissions from the involved author(s), reviewer(s), or editor(s), where appropriate

  • Correct the publication record in accordance with the journal’s correction and retraction policy

Corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern will be issued transparently and linked to the original article where applicable.

Whistleblower Policy

MLS encourages editors, reviewers, authors, readers, institutions, and other stakeholders to report suspected research misconduct, publication misconduct, peer review misconduct, or ethical concerns.

Whistleblowers may report concerns related to:

  • Plagiarism or duplicate publication

  • Fabrication, falsification, or manipulation of data, images, or results

  • Authorship disputes, ghost authorship, or guest authorship

  • Undisclosed conflicts of interest

  • Ethical approval concerns

  • Peer review manipulation

  • Citation manipulation

  • Breach of peer review confidentiality

  • Misleading reporting or unsupported conclusions

Reports should be made in good faith and should include relevant details, evidence, or documentation where available. Anonymous reports may be considered if sufficient information is provided to allow an appropriate assessment.

Protection and Confidentiality

All whistleblower reports are treated as confidential. The identity of whistleblowers will be protected and disclosed only where required by law, institutional investigation, or ethical obligation.

Retaliation against whistleblowers who report concerns in good faith is strictly prohibited. MLS will take reasonable steps to protect whistleblowers from unfair treatment related to their report.

Malicious, knowingly false, or deliberately misleading allegations may themselves be treated as misconduct and may be addressed under the journal’s ethical policies.

Investigation Process

The Editor-in-Chief conducts the initial screening of all reports. Where necessary, the editorial board, external experts, relevant institutions, funding bodies, or ethics committees may be involved in the investigation.

The investigation process may include:

  • Reviewing the submitted complaint and supporting evidence

  • Checking manuscript files, similarity reports, data, images, peer review records, and editorial correspondence

  • Requesting clarification from the author(s), reviewer(s), editor(s), or complainant

  • Consulting independent experts where required

  • Contacting institutions, funders, or ethics committees where appropriate

  • Issuing an editorial decision or publication notice based on the evidence

MLS is committed to handling all inquiries fairly, confidentially, transparently, and in accordance with recognized publication ethics practices.

Policy Review

This policy is reviewed periodically to ensure alignment with evolving best practices, publication ethics standards, COPE guidance, DOAJ transparency expectations, and scholarly publishing requirements.

Contact

To report a concern related to research misconduct, publication misconduct, peer review misconduct, or whistleblower protection, please contact the editorial office at mls@smarcons.com.