IJAERD requires all authors, reviewers, and editors to declare any personal, financial, institutional, or intellectual interests that could reasonably be perceived to influence their conduct in relation to a manuscript. Transparent disclosure protects the integrity of the editorial process and supports informed reading of the published literature. This policy aligns with ICMJE guidance on conflicts of interest.
The journal recognises the following categories, in line with ICMJE guidance. When in doubt, disclose.
Every manuscript submitted to IJAERD must include a Conflicts of Interest section, listing all relevant interests for each author, or stating explicitly that there are none. This section is published with the article as submitted — readers can see exactly what each author has declared.
Authors declare conflicts of interest in the manuscript itself, in a dedicated Conflicts of Interest section, typically placed after the Conclusion and before the References. The section must cover every listed author individually.
Reviewers must decline an invitation to review where they have a conflict of interest with the authors or the submission. Specifically, reviewers must not accept an invitation where they:
Where a conflict emerges after a review has commenced, the reviewer must notify the handling editor immediately and cease further review activity. Reviewers declare any conflict of interest on the OJS review form at the point of accepting or declining an invitation.
Editors complete an annual conflict-of-interest declaration covering personal, financial, institutional, and intellectual interests. Editors recuse themselves from any submission in which they have a competing interest with the authors, including but not limited to:
- Recent co-authorship with any listed author (within five years)
- Shared institutional affiliation with any listed author
- Doctoral supervisory or supervisee relationship with any author
- Financial interest in the research, its results, or its funder
- Personal relationship that could affect objectivity
Recusal is recorded in the editorial workflow, and an alternative editor is assigned by the Editor-in-Chief. Manuscripts authored by editorial team members are handled under a separate, more stringent protocol — see the Editorial Submissions Policy and Editorial Independence pages.
KG Publication, the publisher of IJAERD, plays no role in editorial decisions on individual submissions. The publisher does not have access to manuscript content, reviewer identities, or peer-review reports prior to publication. Full details are on the Publisher and Editorial Independence pages.
