WIJAR’s Ethics and Malpractice Statement

Research Misconduct  

Westcliff International Journal of Applied Research is dedicated to maintaining ethical standards in the distribution of research. Through the review process, the editorial board is committed to the prevention of research misconduct, including but not limited to, elements of plagiarism, citation manipulation, and  data falsification/fabrication. Should the editorial board become aware of any allegation of research misconduct relating to a published article in the journal, the editor-in-chief will follow COPE’s guidelines to deal with said allegations. In the case where a retraction is required, WIJAR will follow COPE’s Retraction Guidelines. Editors reserve the right to retract an article without author consent.

Publication Ethics

Westcliff International Journal of Applied Research adheres to the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Writing as per the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). WIJAR mandates that all research adheres to ethical practices, including but not limited to, evidence of consent from participants, confidentiality/anonymity of participants, and no harm to participants involved. Should there be any indication that ethical practices have not been upheld in research, the article will be automatically rejected. 

Responsibility of WIJAR Editors

All WIJAR editors agree to the following stipulations:

  1. Editors possess the right to accept or reject any article submitted for review based on their discretion while taking into account the reviewer’s feedback.
  2. Editors will review all articles without discrimination of race, religion, affiliation, age, gender, or political philosophy. 
  3. Editors will not disclose any information related to the research or findings of the research without express consent from the author. 
  4. Editors will attempt to identify and prevent research misconduct and take action should need be to protect ethical standards. 

Responsibility of Reviewers

All reviewers agree to the following stipulations: 

  1. Reviewers will be dedicated to adherence of deadlines set for the review process and be in consistent and prompt communication with the editorial board. 
  2. Reviewers will review each article sent with the intention to aid the journal and author in publishing the highest quality of work possible. This can be done through suggestions and constructive feedback. 
  3. Reviewers will remove their name from any aspect of the review (the feedback sheet and any comments left throughout the document).
  4. Reviewers will maintain objectivity and confidentiality when reviewing any article. 
  5. Reviewers should not consider reviewing articles should a conflict of interest be present. 

Responsibility of Authors

All authors agree to the following stipulations: 

  1. The author submits work that is original and devoid of plagiarism, citation manipulation, and data falsification/fabrication. 
  2. The author will not submit the same article to an alternate journal(s) until after the decision has been made by the WIJAR editorial board. 
  3. The author will not have published the article in any other online or printed versions. 
  4. The author will disclose all applicable conflicts of interest during the initial submission for review (please see below for a list of items that quality as conflicts of interest)
  5.  The author will notify the journal should any inaccuracies or factual inconsistencies be identified within their work. The author will work alongside the journal to either retract or correct the article. 
  6. The author grants to Westcliff International Journal of Applied Research the non-exclusive right to reproduce and/or distribute their submission worldwide in any medium for non-commercial, academic purposes. 
  7. The author agrees that Westcliff International Journal of Applied Research may, without changing content, translate the submission to any medium or format and keep more than one copy for  the purposes of security, backup, and preservation. 

Conflict of Interest Policy

Westcliff International Journal of Applied Research mandates that authors reveal, at the time of submission, any financial interests or personal considerations that indicate or have the appearance of indicating bias in the research process or the results of said research. Examples of these conflicts include: 

  • Sources of funding for either an individual author or associated department/organization 
  • Personal relationships
  • Research funding or grants
  • Direct academic competition

Should a measure of doubt exist, it is the author’s responsibility to disclose this information at the time of submission. Conflicts of interest must be disclosed for authors and co-authors of the article submitted. The conflict of interest must be clearly stated in the final version of the article should it be published. WIJAR will adhere to COPE’s guidelines for handling conflicts of interests/competing interests