Ethics for authors

Bioscientifica is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics to ensure that papers published in our journals create a reliable scientific record and meet the ethical standards expected by the global scientific community.

Bioscientifica is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the body which provides guidance on misconduct.

Use this quick checklist to ensure you’re presenting a concise and accurate report of your work. For more comprehensive, journal-specific guidelines, visit the instructions for authors of the journal you wish to submit to.

Plagiarism

Submitted articles must be original. Previously published work must not be re-submitted
Only present new data in the results section
Check all your references are cited appropriately, including your previous publications
Avoid self-plagiarism – cite yourself, paraphrase, or question why you’re repeating yourself – is the paper of significant originality?
Obtain permission from the copyright holder when publishing previously published content (and cite them!).

Authorship

All authors should have made a significant contribution to the study concept and design; acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data; or drafting or revising the article.
All authors must consent to publication
Don’t include guest authors, anyone who hasn’t contributed to the study or article.
Avoid ghost authorship – always include the person who writes the paper in the author list
All authors are equally accountable for the content – make sure every author checks the paper!

Redundant publication

Don’t submit to more than one journal simultaneously
Avoid segmented publishing: the results and outcomes of a single study should be published in a single paper

Research Fraud

Don’t make up or misrepresent study findings
Report data accurately, not on what you think the reader will want to see
Don’t selectively report data, excluding data that do not show the desired results
Be prepared to provide your raw data if asked by the editorial office
Image manipulation: For every adjustment that you make to a digital image, it is important to ask yourself, “Is the image that results from this adjustment still an accurate representation of the original data?”
Still unsure about image manipulation? Submit the original image as a supplementary file so that the editorial office can check.
Already published? Report any significant error or inaccuracy in the work to the publisher as soon as it is discovered.

Peer review misconduct

Don’t recommend reviewers who may have conflicts of interest
Don’t be tempted to make up reviewers! Peer reviewer fraud is a very serious offence and will result in articles being rejected or retracted.

Listen to the Australasian Associate Editor of EJE, Ken Ho, discuss ethical issues in further detail:

Should you need any further information prior to submission, please email the editorial office of your target journal by clicking ‘Contact’ on the journal homepage.

Ethics for authors

Bioscientifica is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics to ensure that papers published in our journals create a reliable scientific record and meet the ethical standards expected by the global scientific community.