Publication Ethics

Rheedea is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. The journal follows established principles of publication ethics and best practices in scholarly publishing, including the guidelines and principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

All parties involved in the publication process—including authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher—are expected to uphold these standards. Rheedea does not tolerate plagiarism, fabrication or falsification of data, duplicate or redundant publication, manipulation of citations, authorship misconduct, or any other form of unethical publishing practice.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to Rheedea are expected to:

Ensure that the submitted work is original and has not been published previously, except where appropriately disclosed and permitted.
Ensure that the manuscript is not under consideration for publication elsewhere during the review process.
Provide accurate and reliable information and data and ensure that there is no fabrication, falsification, or inappropriate manipulation of data or images.
Properly acknowledge and cite all sources, specimens, datasets, images, and other material used in the research.
Avoid plagiarism, including self-plagiarism and inappropriate reuse of previously published material.
Ensure that all individuals who have made significant scholarly contributions to the work are appropriately acknowledged as authors and that all listed authors have approved the final version of the manuscript.
Obtain appropriate permission for the use of copyrighted material where required.
Disclose any potential conflicts of interest that could influence the research, interpretation, or publication of the work.
Disclose the sources of financial or other support received for the research.
Where applicable, provide relevant permits, institutional approvals, field collection permissions, and other required authorisations.
Cooperate with the editors in addressing questions concerning the integrity of the submitted or published work.

Authors are expected to notify the Editor promptly if a significant error or inaccuracy is identified in their published article and to cooperate in issuing an appropriate correction or other post-publication notice.

Authorship and Contributions

Authorship should be based on substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data, preparation or substantial revision of the manuscript, and approval of the final version.

All authors must agree to the submission and accept responsibility for the integrity of the work. Individuals who have contributed to the work but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be appropriately acknowledged.

Any changes to the authorship of a manuscript after submission, including addition, removal, or change in the order of authors, must be approved by all authors and communicated to the Editor with an appropriate explanation.

Conflicts of Interest

Rheedea requires authors, editors, and reviewers to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest that could influence their judgement or the publication process.

Conflicts of interest may arise from financial, professional, personal, institutional, academic, or other relationships.

Authors

Authors must disclose any relationships or circumstances that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the research or its interpretation. Where no conflict exists, authors should state that there are no conflicts of interest.

Editors

Editors must not handle manuscripts where they have a conflict of interest, including manuscripts authored by themselves, close collaborators, students, or individuals with whom they have a significant personal or professional relationship. In such cases, the manuscript will be assigned to another appropriate editor.

Reviewers

Reviewers must disclose any potential conflict of interest before accepting a review. Reviewers should decline to review a manuscript if their relationship with the authors, subject matter, institution, or other circumstances could compromise their impartiality.

Conflicts of interest do not necessarily prevent publication or participation in the review process, but they must be disclosed so that appropriate measures can be taken.

Peer Review Ethics

Rheedea follows a peer-review process designed to ensure objective, fair, and scholarly evaluation of submitted manuscripts.

Reviewers are expected to:

Treat manuscripts and all associated information as confidential.
Provide objective, constructive, and scientifically justified comments.
Avoid personal criticism of authors.
Identify relevant published work that has not been appropriately cited.
Inform the Editor of any suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, fabricated data, or other ethical concerns.
Not use information obtained during peer review for personal advantage or research purposes.
Decline the review if they have a conflict of interest or are unable to provide an impartial assessment.

Editors are responsible for ensuring that manuscripts are evaluated fairly and that editorial decisions are based on the scholarly quality, originality, relevance, and scientific integrity of the work.

Plagiarism and Research Misconduct

Rheedea considers plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, inappropriate image or data manipulation, citation manipulation, and other forms of research or publication misconduct to be serious ethical violations.

Manuscripts may be screened for plagiarism or other forms of inappropriate text reuse. Where misconduct is suspected, the Editor may investigate the matter and request clarification or supporting information from the authors or their institution.

If misconduct is confirmed, appropriate action will be taken in accordance with established publication-ethics principles and the seriousness of the violation.

Corrections and Post-Publication Changes

Rheedea recognises that errors may occasionally be identified after publication.

Corrections

A correction may be issued as an erratum when an error in a published article affects the accuracy, clarity, or completeness of the published record but does not invalidate the main findings or conclusions of the work.

Authors should inform the Editor as soon as they become aware of a significant error in their published article. The Editor will assess the nature and significance of the error and determine whether a correction is appropriate.

Corrections will be clearly linked to the original article and will identify the changes made to the published record.

Retractions

A published article may be retracted when there is clear evidence that the findings or conclusions are unreliable, for example because of major errors, fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, duplicate publication, unethical research practices, or other serious forms of misconduct.

A retraction is intended to correct the scholarly record and does not necessarily imply misconduct by the authors.

When an article is retracted, the original article will normally remain accessible for the purpose of maintaining the publication record, but it will be clearly identified as RETRACTED, together with an appropriate retraction notice explaining the reason for the action.

Expression of Concern

Where there are substantial concerns about the integrity or reliability of a published article but the available evidence is insufficient to make an immediate decision regarding correction or retraction, Rheedea may publish an Expression of Concern.

An Expression of Concern may be issued while an investigation is ongoing or while additional information is being obtained from the authors, reviewers, institutions, or other relevant parties.

The notice will be linked to the affected article and will remain part of the publication record until the matter is resolved.

Ethical Handling of Allegations

Allegations of research or publication misconduct may be raised by authors, reviewers, readers, editors, institutions, or other individuals.

Rheedea will consider such allegations seriously and will seek relevant evidence before reaching a decision. Authors may be asked to provide explanations, original data, documentation, or other supporting information where necessary.

Where appropriate, the journal may contact the authors' affiliated institution or other relevant authority for further investigation.

Editorial Independence and Fairness

Editorial decisions are based on the scholarly merit, originality, relevance, and scientific quality of manuscripts and are not influenced by the authors' nationality, gender, institutional affiliation, academic status, personal characteristics, or political or commercial considerations.

Editors must maintain editorial independence and avoid situations that could compromise impartial decision-making.

Confidentiality and Data Protection

Information relating to submitted manuscripts, including manuscripts under review, reviewer reports, and correspondence, will be treated as confidential.

Editors and reviewers must not disclose or use unpublished information obtained through the editorial or peer-review process without appropriate permission.

Personal information collected during submission, peer review, and publication will be handled only for legitimate journal and publication-related purposes.

Complaints and Appeals

Authors may raise concerns regarding editorial decisions, peer-review procedures, or other aspects of the publication process by contacting the Chief Editor.

Appeals should provide a clear explanation of the grounds for reconsideration and should be supported by relevant evidence. Appeals will be considered by the editorial team in accordance with the journal's policies.

Complaints concerning publication ethics or research misconduct will be handled according to the nature of the concern and, where appropriate, in accordance with recognised publication-ethics practices.

Use of Third-Party Ethical Guidelines

Rheedea supports and follows the principles and recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in matters concerning publication ethics and research misconduct.

For detailed guidance, authors, reviewers, and editors are encouraged to consult the COPE Core Practices and other relevant COPE resources.

COPE website: https://publicationethics.org/

Ethical Responsibilities of the Journal

Rheedea is committed to:

Maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record.
Providing a fair and transparent peer-review process.
Protecting the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts.
Investigating credible allegations of publication misconduct.
Correcting the published record when necessary.
Issuing corrections, retractions, or Expressions of Concern when warranted.
Ensuring that conflicts of interest are appropriately disclosed and managed.
Following recognised international standards of publication ethics.

Rheedea reserves the right to take appropriate editorial action whenever there is evidence that these ethical standards have not been met.

Last updated: September 2026