Research Ethics Policy

The Editorial Board of the “Journal of Research and Applications in Agricultural Engineering” is committed to maintaining the high quality of published materials and takes decisive action against any neglect of publication standards. All participants in the publication process, including authors, editors, reviewers, and publishers, are expected to adhere to ethical standards in scientific publications. The following principles are derived from the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics as outlined in the Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors and COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers.

Responsibilities of Authors

1. Authorship of articles in the “Journal of Research and Applications in Agricultural Engineering” should be limited to individuals who have significantly contributed to the research concept, implementation, and interpretation of results. Authors must ensure that all contributors are acknowledged and have approved the final version before submission.

2. Scientific misconduct, such as duplicating publications, plagiarism, data fabrication, false authorship, ghost authorship, and conflict of interest, is strictly prohibited. False authorship includes omitting the name of a contributor or excluding them from acknowledgments, while ghost authorship involves attributing authorship to individuals with minimal or no contribution.

3. Authors must disclose all funding sources, contributions from research entities, associations, and any conflicts of interest that may influence the results or interpretation of their work. Providing false or knowingly inaccurate information is unethical.

4. Authors should not submit the same research to multiple journals (duplicate publication). Simultaneous submissions to different editorial offices are also considered unethical. Translating a previously published text for submission is also discouraged.

5. If errors or inaccuracies are discovered after submitting an article to “Journal of Research and Applications in Agricultural Engineering” authors must promptly notify the editors.

6. Proper attribution of authors cited in the work and accurate citation of sources must be ensured by the authors.

7. Violations of ethical standards may lead to the rejection of the article from the “Journal of Research and Applications in Agricultural Engineering”.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

1. Reviewers unable to assess the manuscript within the stipulated timeframe should promptly inform the Editorial Board.

2. Reviews should be objective, adhering to ethical standards and grounded in scientific arguments. Personal criticism of the author is deemed inappropriate.

3. All reviewed papers are treated as confidential documents and should not be disclosed or discussed outside the Editorial Board. Reviews should not be exploited for personal gain.

4. The anonymity of reviewers is maintained, and the editors do not disclose authors' data to reviewers.

5. Reviewers should abstain from evaluating works involving a suspected conflict of interest arising from a relationship with the author, company, or institution.

6. Reviewers must promptly inform the Editorial Board of ethical breaches by authors, such as significant similarity, partial overlap with other published works, or suspected plagiarism, ghost authorship, or false authorship.

Responsibilities of Editors

1. The Editor-in-Chief makes the decision to publish a submitted article based on reviews and opinions of the Editorial Board.

2. Editorial decisions should align with the thematic scope of the journal, irrespective of the author's background, affiliation, nationality, ethnicity, political views, gender, race, or religion.

3. Editors maintain confidentiality regarding authors' and reviewers' data.

4. Information obtained during the evaluation process, along with rejected articles or fragments, must not be used for personal research without the author's express written consent.

5. The Editorial Board does not appoint individuals in direct personal relationships with authors as reviewers to avoid conflicts of interest.

6. The Editor-in-Chief adheres to current legal standards related to defamation, copyright infringement, and plagiarism.

7. Upon receiving information about ethical breaches by authors, the Editor-in-Chief must take action to verify the allegations, including rejection of the text, collecting evidence, informing authors, contacting their institution, and notifying reviewers of the actions taken.

Appeals Policy

If authors hold any doubts concerning the ethics of the publication process, they may submit an appeal or a complaint. The following procedure has been developed in alignment with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines.

Grounds for appeal
Authors may lodge an appeal if they believe that:
1. There were significant lapses in the journal’s established editorial processes (procedural errors).
2. The evidence suggests that a reviewer exhibited bias or had an undisclosed conflict of interest.
3. The decision was based on a misunderstanding or misinterpretation of the manuscript’s content.

Appeals should be based on substantial evidence; disagreements over the decision without new supporting information will not be considered.

Appeal procedure

Submission of appeal:

Authors must submit a detailed appeal letter via e-mail to katarzyna.boch@pit.lukasiewicz.gov.pl within 30 days of the decision notification. The letter should clearly outline the grounds for appeal and provide supporting evidence. Editor-in-Chief will assess the appeal within 30 days.

Initial evaluation:
The Editor-in-Chief will assess the appeal to determine its validity based on the provided grounds. If the appeal lacks sufficient basis, it will be dismissed, and the author will be informed accordingly.

Further review:
If the appeal is deemed valid, the Editor-in-Chief may:
• Solicit an independent review from a new reviewer.
• Consult with the editorial board or an appeals committee for further deliberation.

Final Decision:
After thorough consideration, a final decision will be made and communicated to the author. The decision is conclusive, and no further appeals will be entertained.

Confidentiality and integrity
All appeals will be handled with strict confidentiality and the appeal process will be conducted impartially and without bias.
For additional information on the appeal process, please contact katarzyna.boch@pit.lukasiewicz.gov.pl.


In accordance with COPE recommendations, “Journal of Research and Applications in Agricultural Engineering” is committed to transparency in handling updates to published content.

Corrections (Errata)
Minor errors that do not affect the scientific validity or conclusions of the article may be corrected through a formal correction notice. These notices are clearly labelled and linked to the original article.

Retractions
Retractions are issued when research findings are found to be unreliable due to misconduct (e.g. plagiarism, data falsification) or unintentional error. Each retraction notice clearly states the reason for retraction and is permanently linked to the original article, which will be clearly marked as “retracted”.

Expressions of Concern
In cases where serious concerns are raised but conclusive evidence is not yet available, the Editorial Board may issue an expression of concern. This notice will remain linked to the article and will be updated once the issue has been resolved.