Principles of Publication Ethics
Committed to the highest standards of publication ethics, bilig adheres to the ethical publishing principles titled “Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing” published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA), and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) (see https://doi.org/10.24318/cope.2019.1.12). Authors submitting their work to bilig are required to comply with the ethical principles outlined below.
Co-authorship: The authors of a submitted manuscript should be limited to those who have made significant contributions to the work. The authorship of the manuscript is finalized prior to submission. It is unacceptable to include the names of individuals who did not contribute to the work (guest authorship) or to omit the names of those who did contribute (ghost authorship).
Acknowledgments: Authors are required to acknowledge the organizations and financial sources that supported their work in the Acknowledgments section.
Originality and Avoidance of Plagiarism: The submitted work must be entirely the authors’ own. If the work of other researchers is cited within the article, it must be properly cited, and these works must be listed in the references. The author is required to check the manuscript using one of the plagiarism detection software programs, such as Turnitin or iThenticate, and submit the similarity report to the journal along with the manuscript submission. Manuscripts with a similarity rate of 15% or higher will not be considered for review.
Ethics Committee Approval: For studies that require data collection from participants via surveys, scales, interviews, observations, etc., it must be stated in the manuscript that ethics committee approval has been obtained. Evidence that ethical considerations were taken into account during the data collection process (such as obtaining permission to use scales, surveys, or photographs belonging to others) must be provided in the manuscript.
Resubmission of a Previously Published Work: Authors are expected to submit previously unpublished works to bilig. It is not acceptable for a work to have been submitted to another journal at the same time as it is submitted to bilig.
Splitting: Authors should not divide the results of a study into parts in a manner that compromises the integrity of the research or is inappropriate, and should not publish these parts as separate publications for the purpose of academic appointments and promotions.
Providing and Storing Raw Data: Authors are required to provide the raw data from their research when requested by editors and reviewers, and to store this data even after their articles have been published.
Identification of Errors in Published Articles: If an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in an article published in bilig, they must immediately notify the journal editor and cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the article. Articles that do not comply with accepted ethical standards will not be considered for review; articles found to contain potential violations or irregularities during the review process or after publication to be suspended and removed from publication.
Principles of Research Ethics
bilig adheres to international principles of research ethics that uphold the highest standards. Authors are responsible for ensuring that their articles comply with the ethical guidelines outlined below.
- The principles of integrity, quality, and transparency must be upheld in the design, review, and conduct of research.
- Researchers must share the data, materials, equipment, resources, and findings they use with the public. They must be open to criticism and new ideas.
- The researcher must not fabricate findings, plagiarize, or misinterpret data. Results, methods, and procedures must be reported accurately, and the researcher must not mislead colleagues, sponsors, or the public.
- Respect for patents, copyrights, and other intellectual property rights is required. Data, methods, and results must not be used without permission, and contributors must always be cited. For special collections or archival sources requiring copyright or permission (visual materials, maps, etc.), researchers must possess the necessary rights and obtain the required permissions.
- The research team and participants must be fully informed about the purpose, methods, and anticipated potential uses of the research; the requirements for participation; and any associated risks.
- The confidentiality of information provided by research participants and the anonymity of respondents must be ensured. The research must be designed to protect the autonomy and dignity of participants.
- Research participants must participate voluntarily and must not be under any coercion.
- Participants should not be harmed. Research must be designed in a way that avoids risking participants.
- There must be transparency regarding the independence of the research; any conflicts of interest must be disclosed.
- In experimental studies, consent form must be obtained from participants who decide to participate in the research. For children, individuals under legal guardianship, or those with a diagnosed mental illness, consent must be obtained from their legal guardian.
- If the study is to be conducted at any institution or organization, approval must be obtained from that institution or organization.
Responsibilities of Authors
All authors submitting to bilig are expected to voluntarily adhere to the journal’s ethical publishing principles and international standards.
- Authors must confirm that their manuscripts are original works. Plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, and data fabrication are unacceptable.
- Authors must confirm that the article has not been previously published and is not currently under consideration for publication elsewhere.
- In works with two or more authors, the authors’ contribution ratios must be specified, and the nature of their contributions to the article must be explained.
- All authors must confirm that they have reviewed and approved the final version of the submitted article and accept full responsibility for the work.
- Authors must identify the individuals or institutions (sponsors) that supported the research.
- The reference list must be complete, and all cited sources must be clearly indicated.
- Should an author discover a significant error or inaccuracy in a published work, they must immediately notify the journal editor or publisher and collaborate with the editor to retract or correct the article.
- Authors must disclose any potential conflicts of interest to the journal editorial board.
Responsibilities of Reviewers
Once reviewers have accepted an invitation to review, they are expected to voluntarily adhere to the journal’s ethical publishing principles and international standards (the ethical principles established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE): https://publicationethics.org/). Accordingly, reviewers must:
- Conduct an objective and impartial evaluation.
- Not breach confidentiality; they must not share the manuscript with third parties other than the relevant author(s), editor, or other reviewers.
- Evaluate manuscripts based on their scientific merit.
- Bring to the attention of the Editorial Board all information that could serve as grounds for rejecting the manuscript for publication.
- Evaluate manuscripts objectively based solely on their originality, significance, and suitability for the journal’s scope.
- Reviewers assigned to evaluate a manuscript must be experts in the subject matter; if they lack sufficient knowledge of the topic, they must decline the review invitation.
- They must not use any data from a manuscript that has been reviewed but not yet published.
- They must not have a conflict of interest with the authors, the study, the institutions involved, or any funding sources. Should such a conflict arise, they must withdraw from the review process.
- They must conduct the review of the accepted manuscript in a timely manner and in accordance with the ethical responsibilities outlined above.
Responsibilities of Editors and Editorial Board Members
Editors and Editorial Board Members of bilig are expected to voluntarily adhere to the principles of ethical publishing and international standards (the ethical principles established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). https://publicationethics.org/). In this regard, editors and Editorial Board members must:
- Keep all information regarding submitted manuscripts confidential.
- Be responsible for deciding whether to send manuscripts to reviewers, accept, reject, or request revisions.
- Ensure the quality of published material and safeguard the integrity of the published record.
- Attach the utmost importance to scientific quality and originality, and strive to enhance the quality of bilig.
- Conduct work processes in accordance with intellectual property rights and ethical standards to ensure that studies are evaluated fairly and impartially.
- Not use any data from an article that has been accepted for publication but has not yet been published.
- The double-blind peer review process must be rigorously applied. The confidentiality of authors and reviewers must be ensured, and the review process must be administered accordingly.
- There must be no conflict of interest with authors, the work, institutions, or, if applicable, funding sources. If a conflict of interest is identified, the editor must withdraw from the editorial process.
Publication Policy
All the articles published in bilig are also available in full text as open access at bilig.yesevi.edu.tr
In bilig, the author is not charged in any way during the evaluation and publication phase of the article. No royalty is paid to the author.