Publication Ethics

i) Journal Policies on Authorship and Contributorship

An individual must meet all four of these conditions to be listed as an author:

  1. Substantial Contribution: Significant involvement in the project's design, data collection, or analysis.
  2. Intellectual Involvement: Drafting or critically revising the manuscript for important content.
  3. Final Approval: Reviewing and approving the final version to be published.
  4. Accountability: Agreeing to be responsible for the accuracy and integrity of all parts of the work.

CRediT(Contributor Roles Taxonomy) is a community-owned taxonomy of 14 contributor roles designed to represent the key types of contributions typically made to research outputs, including journal articles. The Journal of Science, Technology and Arts Research (STAR journal)  adopts the CRediT framework to allow authors to check off specific roles among fourteen. https://credit.niso.org/

Prohibit Unethical Practices

STAR  journal will not tolerate common authorship misconduct.

  • Guest/Gift Authorship: Including someone who didn't contribute significantly (e.g., a senior department head or higher officials).
  • Ghost Authorship: Excluding someone who made a significant contribution (often to hide conflicts of interest).
  • Authorship for Sale: Buying or selling authorship positions.

ii) Handling Appeals (Authors challenging an editorial decision)

Appeals are formal requests from authors to reconsider a rejection.

  • Submission Threshold: Appeals are generally only considered if the author provides a detailed, evidence-based response to specific reviewer or editor concerns—not just a disagreement on the paper’s "novelty" or "suitability."
  • Review Process: The Editor-in-Chief or a designated "Ombudsperson" reviews the appeal letter. If valid, the manuscript may be sent for a new round of independent peer review or reevaluated by the Editorial Board.
  • Final Decision: If a reviewer identifies a fundamental methodological error or any flaws, ethical violations, etc., that the editor agrees with, the paper will be rejected regardless of other positive feedback. Based on both the reviewers' decisions on the revised manuscript, the final decision will be made by the Editor-in-Chief. The Editor-in - Chief has the authority to overrule reviewers in special cases—for instance, rejecting a paper despite positive reviews if it doesn't fit the journal's current scope or accepting one despite a split decision.
  • Author Name Changes: Authors are requested to verify their names and affiliations clearly in the galley proof. After publishing, corrections will not be entertained. Any spelling errors regarding appeals will be handled by the Editor-in- Chief. Based on the condition, a decision will be made. Finalize the author list and sequence before submitting. Any changes made during the review process must be approved by the entire author group. Authorship changes are strictly prohibited after a manuscript has been accepted for publication.

iii) Journal policies on conflicts of interest / competing interests

The authors are responsible for resolving their own disputes before submission. If a dispute arises after submission:

  • The journal will typically suspend the review process until it is resolved.
  • Editors are not arbiters; disagreements should be referred to the authors' home institutions for investigation.
  • New author names will not be permitted after the completion of the review process.
  • The authors are requested to provide a conflict of interest statement in their manuscripts. A Conflict of Interest or Competing Interest is defined as a set of conditions in which professional judgment concerning a primary interest, such as the validity of research, may be influenced by a secondary interest, such as financial gain. STAR journal adopts the FACTSHEET: Competing Interests.  

iv) Journal policies on data sharing and reproducibility

  • Encourages Sharing: Authors are prompted to share data but it is not required for publication.
  • Expects Sharing: Authors are expected to share data and must provide a Data Availability Statement (DAS) explaining if and how data can be accessed.
  • Mandates Sharing: Data sharing is a mandatory condition for publication. Persistent identifiers like a DOI are typically required.
  • Mandates Sharing & Peer Review: The underlying data itself is peer-reviewed to ensure it actually reproduces the reported results.
  • Data Availability Statement (DAS): A formal section in the manuscript describing how readers can access the data.
  • Persistent Identifiers: Strong preference for depositing data in recognized repositories (e.g., Dryad, Zenodo, Figshare) that issue a DOI.
  • Reproducibility Standards: Authors are often encouraged or required to provide analysis scripts, code, and detailed protocols alongside the raw data.
  • Exceptions: Policies generally allow for exemptions due to ethical constraints, participant privacy (GDPR/HIPAA), or legal/contractual restrictions.

v) Journal’s policy on ethical oversight

STAR journal follows guidelines set by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). The authors are requested to provide a detailed Ethical approval statement for their research.

  • Institutional Approval:Authors must provide evidence of approval from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) or ethics committee for studies involving human or animal subjects.
  • Informed Consent:For research involving people, journals require a statement confirming that participants provided informed consent, particularly when publishing identifiable images or case reports.
  • Vulnerable Populations:Specific protections and higher scrutiny are applied to research involving children, the elderly, or other vulnerable groups to ensure their rights and safety.
  • Confidentiality:Journals have strict protocols for handling confidential data and protecting participant privacy in accordance with standards like GDPR or HIPAA.
  • Plagiarism and Fabrication: The STAR Journal uses Turnitin similarity detection software to identify unoriginal content and investigate suspected data falsification. If the manuscript contains more than 20% plagiarism, it will be declined.

vi) Journal’s policy on intellectual property

The STAR Journal publishes the article in open access. Open access is the free, immediate access to, and unrestricted reuse of, original works of all types by any user. Therefore, all content of the STAR journal is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), and authors retain copyright. Even when copyright is transferred, journals often grant back certain "retained rights" to authors, such as the ability to reuse figures in future works, use the article for teaching, or share a version of the manuscript in an institutional repository.

  • Third-Party Material:Authors are responsible for obtaining written permission to include any copyrighted images, tables, or data from other sources.
  • Moral Rights:Regardless of who owns the economic copyright, authors generally retain moral rights, which include the right to be properly credited ("paternity") and the right to object to harmful modifications ("integrity").

vii) Journal’s options for post-publication discussions and corrections.

The STAR Journal facilitates scholarly debate through both internal and external platforms.

  • Letters to the Editor: The readers submit critiques or queries regarding a published study to the Email: star@wgu.edu.et. Original authors are typically invited to provide a Response or Reply, which may also be peer-reviewed.
  • External Moderated Sites: STAR Journal encourages discussions on independent platforms like PubPeer, where researchers can leave feedback using their ORCID or anonymously.

viii) Process for identification of and dealing with allegations of research misconduct

The process for handling research misconduct (such as fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism) is a high-stakes procedure governed by strict protocols to ensure fairness to both the whistleblower and the accused.

  • Identification and Reporting
  • Whistleblowing:Allegations typically come from peer reviewers, readers (often via platforms like PubPeer), or "whistleblowers" within a research group.
  • Anonymity: Most journals allow for anonymous reporting, though they require specific, evidence-based details rather than general accusations.
  • Initial Screening:The Editor-in-Chief (EiC) conducts a preliminary assessment to see if the claim is credible and falls under the definition of misconduct.
  • The Investigation Phase

                  STAR Journal follows the COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) standards:

  • Contacting the Authors: The editor first asks the authors for an explanation and access to raw data or original images.
  • Institutional Involvement:  STAR journal is not an investigative body; they lack the legal power to subpoena. If the author’s explanation is unsatisfactory, the editor formally refers the case to the author’s home institution (e.g., University Ethics Office) for a full investigation.
  • Confidentiality: The process is kept confidential to protect the reputations of all involved until a final verdict is reached.
  • Resolution and Outcomes

           Once the investigation is complete, the journal takes action based on the severity of the  

            findings:

  • Dismissal: If the allegations are unfounded or deemed an "honest error," no action is taken (or a minor correction is issued).
  • Expression of Concern: If there is strong evidence of a problem but the investigation is lengthy, the journal may issue a public "warning" note on the article.
  • Retraction: If misconduct is proven, the paper is formally retracted. The original PDF remains, but is clearly watermarked "RETRACTED."
  • Sanctions: Journals may ban the authors from submitting to that journal (or a family of journals) for a set period (e.g., 1–5 years). 

ix) Article Processing Charges

No Article Processing, subscription charges, and no administrative charges for submitting manuscripts to the STAR Journal. Wollega University offers self-support to ensure the continuity of publication. Business or any advertisements are not entertained.

x) Access:

It is an open-access journal. Readers can download the articles from the journal website.

xi) Ownership:

The STAR Journal is an international, peer-reviewed publication of Wollega University, a public institution in Ethiopia affiliated with the Ministry of Education.