Guidelines on the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Scholarly Publishing

1. Guidelines for Authors

• AI Tools Cannot Be Listed as Authors: Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, including ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft Copilot, and similar applications, cannot be credited as authors or co-authors of a manuscript. Authors retain full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, validity, and integrity of all content submitted for publication.
• Permitted Uses of AI: AI tools may be used to support language refinement, proofreading, grammar correction, improvements in clarity and readability, translation, and preliminary assistance with coding or data processing. Such uses must remain under the direct supervision of the authors, who must independently verify all outputs before incorporating them into the manuscript.
• Prohibited Uses of AI: Authors must not use AI tools to generate substantive scholarly arguments, fabricate research findings, produce unsupported scientific interpretations, manipulate research data, or create fictitious references and citations. AI-generated content must not be presented as original scholarly work without appropriate human verification and intellectual contribution.
• Mandatory Disclosure of AI Use: Authors who use generative AI or AI-assisted technologies during manuscript preparation must disclose such use in a dedicated statement placed at the end of the manuscript, immediately before the reference list. The statement should identify the tool used and clearly describe its purpose.

Example of an AI Disclosure Statement:

"The authors used Grammarly and ChatGPT to assist with language refinement, sentence restructuring, and improvements in manuscript readability. All AI-assisted suggestions were critically reviewed and revised by the authors. The authors take full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the final manuscript and its contents."

Authors who have not used AI tools in preparing their manuscripts may provide a declaration of non-use if required by the journal.

2. Guidelines for Reviewers and Editors

• Confidentiality of Manuscripts: Reviewers and editors must not upload unpublished manuscripts, abstracts, supplementary materials, or confidential editorial correspondence to publicly accessible generative AI platforms. This restriction protects authors' intellectual property, unpublished research findings, and the confidentiality of the peer-review process.
• Independent Scholarly Assessment: Reviewers must formulate their evaluations, recommendations, and review reports based on their own academic expertise and critical judgment. AI-generated assessments must not replace independent evaluation or determine editorial decisions.
• Responsible Use of AI-Assisted Tools: Any permitted use of AI-assisted technologies in editorial workflows must comply with the journal's confidentiality requirements, applicable data protection standards, and established publication ethics. Editors and reviewers remain accountable for the integrity and fairness of their assessments.

3. Detection, Investigation, and Actions for Non-Compliance

The journal reserves the right to investigate suspected violations of its AI-use policy through editorial assessment, examination of supporting research materials, and appropriate AI-detection or research-integrity screening tools.

Cases involving undisclosed AI use, fabricated citations, manipulated data, misleading attribution, or other forms of research misconduct may be subject to further investigation in accordance with the journal's publication ethics procedures.

Depending on the severity of the violation and the findings of the investigation, possible actions include requesting clarification or manuscript revisions, rejecting the submission, notifying the relevant institution when warranted, or retracting a published article if a serious breach of publication ethics is established.

AI-detection results alone shall not be treated as conclusive proof of misconduct. Editorial decisions should be based on a fair assessment of the available evidence, the author's explanation, and the journal's applicable ethical standards.

4. Authors' Responsibility and Policy Compliance

All authors are responsible for ensuring that their use of AI technologies complies with these guidelines and any additional requirements specified by the journal. Authors must verify factual claims, references, data interpretations, and other scholarly content before submission.

Failure to comply with this policy may result in editorial action in accordance with the journal's publication ethics framework. The journal may revise these guidelines as AI technologies and recognized standards of scholarly publishing evolve.

Guidelines on the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Scholarly Publishing

1. Guidelines for Authors

• AI Tools Cannot Be Listed as Authors: Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, including ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft Copilot, and similar applications, cannot be credited as authors or co-authors of a manuscript. Authors retain full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, validity, and integrity of all content submitted for publication.
• Permitted Uses of AI: AI tools may be used to support language refinement, proofreading, grammar correction, improvements in clarity and readability, translation, and preliminary assistance with coding or data processing. Such uses must remain under the direct supervision of the authors, who must independently verify all outputs before incorporating them into the manuscript.
• Prohibited Uses of AI: Authors must not use AI tools to generate substantive scholarly arguments, fabricate research findings, produce unsupported scientific interpretations, manipulate research data, or create fictitious references and citations. AI-generated content must not be presented as original scholarly work without appropriate human verification and intellectual contribution.
• Mandatory Disclosure of AI Use: Authors who use generative AI or AI-assisted technologies during manuscript preparation must disclose such use in a dedicated statement placed at the end of the manuscript, immediately before the reference list. The statement should identify the tool used and clearly describe its purpose.

Example of an AI Disclosure Statement:

"The authors used Grammarly and ChatGPT to assist with language refinement, sentence restructuring, and improvements in manuscript readability. All AI-assisted suggestions were critically reviewed and revised by the authors. The authors take full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the final manuscript and its contents."

Authors who have not used AI tools in preparing their manuscripts may provide a declaration of non-use if required by the journal.

2. Guidelines for Reviewers and Editors

• Confidentiality of Manuscripts: Reviewers and editors must not upload unpublished manuscripts, abstracts, supplementary materials, or confidential editorial correspondence to publicly accessible generative AI platforms. This restriction protects authors' intellectual property, unpublished research findings, and the confidentiality of the peer-review process.
• Independent Scholarly Assessment: Reviewers must formulate their evaluations, recommendations, and review reports based on their own academic expertise and critical judgment. AI-generated assessments must not replace independent evaluation or determine editorial decisions.
• Responsible Use of AI-Assisted Tools: Any permitted use of AI-assisted technologies in editorial workflows must comply with the journal's confidentiality requirements, applicable data protection standards, and established publication ethics. Editors and reviewers remain accountable for the integrity and fairness of their assessments.

3. Detection, Investigation, and Actions for Non-Compliance

The journal reserves the right to investigate suspected violations of its AI-use policy through editorial assessment, examination of supporting research materials, and appropriate AI-detection or research-integrity screening tools.

Cases involving undisclosed AI use, fabricated citations, manipulated data, misleading attribution, or other forms of research misconduct may be subject to further investigation in accordance with the journal's publication ethics procedures.

Depending on the severity of the violation and the findings of the investigation, possible actions include requesting clarification or manuscript revisions, rejecting the submission, notifying the relevant institution when warranted, or retracting a published article if a serious breach of publication ethics is established.

AI-detection results alone shall not be treated as conclusive proof of misconduct. Editorial decisions should be based on a fair assessment of the available evidence, the author's explanation, and the journal's applicable ethical standards.

4. Authors' Responsibility and Policy Compliance

All authors are responsible for ensuring that their use of AI technologies complies with these guidelines and any additional requirements specified by the journal. Authors must verify factual claims, references, data interpretations, and other scholarly content before submission.

Failure to comply with this policy may result in editorial action in accordance with the journal's publication ethics framework. The journal may revise these guidelines as AI technologies and recognized standards of scholarly publishing evolve.