The Indian Journal of Asian Affairs (IJAA) is committed to observing the highest standards of integrity in publication and adheres to core practices set out by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Instructions for the Editorial Board
Ethical Oversight
The Board has the responsibility to publish research that has been carried out in observance of ethical principles.
Response to Allegations of Research Misconduct
The Journal has a zero-tolerance policy toward research misconduct. It will take any reported research misconduct, such as plagiarism, seriously. A panel will be formed to investigate such allegations. If the allegation is valid, the author(s) will be notified of manuscript rejection. In the case of allegations post-publication, backed by an evidence of misconduct, published articles may be retracted or errata may be posted. Research misconduct can be reported at editor@ijaaworld.com.
Peer-review Process
The Board adheres to the double-blind peer-review process which entails that identities of authors are hidden from peer-reviewers, and vice-versa. A minimum of two independent peer reviewers review manuscripts.
Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections
In line with COPE guidelines, IJAA has a retraction mechanism. On valid grounds such as unreliable findings, significant plagiarism, and prior publication without attribution, IJAA will promptly issue a retraction notice and attach it to the article itself wherever possible. Where retractions are inappropriate, such as data issues or disputed authorship, the Editorial Board will consider publishing errata.
Responsibilities of Authors
It is incumbent on authors to abide by ethical research standards and the Journal’s submission instructions.
Ethical Oversight
Authors are expected to submit research or study carried out through ethical data collection processes, including informed consent of research participants. It is expected that their submissions carry non-fabricated data.
Intellectual Property
Authors are expected to submit manuscripts that are their own work, with proper attribution to ideas and texts sourced from others’ works as well as proper citations of one’s own previously published works.
Conflict of Interest
Authors are required to disclose actual or potential conflicts of interest at the time of submission. Such conflicts involve inappropriate influence on the preparation of their manuscripts by virtue of financial, professional, or personal relationships. They are expected to disclose funding sources, if any.
Authorship and Contributorship
The authors listed on the manuscript should be those who made a significant contribution to the study's conception or design, or to data analysis or interpretation. It should equally be ensured that no such authors have been excluded from the manuscript. The corresponding author has the primary obligation for communication with the Journal from the submission process through the publication process, including response to revisions and signing of the publication contract.
Data Sharing and Reproducibility
If reviewers suspect that the submitted manuscript has fabricated data, the COPE flowchart will be followed for action. The steps involve contacting the author to communicate the concerns, requesting author(s)' institutions to carry out investigation in the event of unsatisfactory explanation by the author(s), and rejecting the manuscript if the guilt is established.