Allegation of Research Misconducts
Research misconduct involves acts such as fabricating, falsifying, manipulating citations, or plagiarizing during the stages of creating, executing, reviewing, or reporting research. Authors engaging in such misconduct concerning published works are accountable for preserving the accuracy and integrity of the scientific records.
When misconduct is suspected, the editors and editorial board of the Journal of Holistic Medical Technologies (JHMT) follow the best practices recommended by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) to address complaints and manage misconduct fairly. This includes a comprehensive investigation by the editors. Any manuscript found to contain misconduct will be promptly rejected. If a published paper is implicated, a retraction will be issued and linked to the original article.
The initial step in responding to an allegation involves assessing its validity and ensuring it aligns with the definition of research misconduct. This also includes evaluating whether the accusers have any conflicts of interest.
If scientific misconduct or significant research irregularities are possible, the corresponding author will be notified and asked to provide a detailed response on behalf of all co-authors. Upon receiving and reviewing the response, additional reviews and the involvement of experts, such as statistical reviewers, may be required. If misconduct is deemed unlikely, publishing clarifications, additional analyses, or both as letters to the editor, often accompanied by a correction notice and amendment to the published article, is sufficient.
Institutions are expected to thoroughly investigate allegations of scientific misconduct. Authors, journals, and institutions share a critical responsibility to ensure the accuracy of scientific records. By appropriately addressing concerns about scientific misconduct and taking necessary actions based on the evaluation of such concerns—such as issuing corrections, retractions with replacement, or retractions—the Journal of Holistic Medical Technologies (JHMT) is dedicated to maintaining the validity and integrity of the scientific record.
The handling of allegations of research misconduct follows the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), which can be accessed at https://publicationethics.org/misconduct.
Retraction
Papers published in the Journal of Holistic Medical Technologies (JHMT) are subject to retraction under the following conditions:
- Clear evidence indicates that the findings are unreliable due to misconduct (e.g., data fabrication) or honest error (e.g., miscalculation or experimental error).
- Findings have been previously published elsewhere without proper cross-referencing, permission, or justification (i.e., cases of redundant publication).
- The content constitutes plagiarism.
The retraction process adheres to the Retraction Guidelines outlined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), available at https://publicationethics.org/files/retraction%20guidelines.pdf.