Ethics and Malpractice

MET Manthan: Journal of Management, Innovation and Strategic Studies

Introduction

MET Manthan is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics, academic integrity, transparency, and professional conduct in scholarly publishing. The journal recognizes the importance of ethical behavior by all parties involved in the publication process, including authors, editors, reviewers, editorial board members, publishers, and readers.

The journal follows internationally accepted ethical publishing practices and expects all participants to adhere to these standards to ensure the credibility and quality of published research.

Ethical Principles

The journal is guided by the following principles:

  • Academic Integrity
  • Transparency
  • Objectivity
  • Fairness
  • Accountability
  • Confidentiality
  • Responsible Research Conduct
  • Respect for Intellectual Property

All stakeholders are expected to uphold these principles throughout the submission, review, publication, and post-publication processes.

Duties and Responsibilities of Authors

Originality and Plagiarism

Authors must ensure that submitted work is entirely original.

Authors shall:

  • Submit only original research.
  • Properly cite and acknowledge the work of others.
  • Avoid plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and duplicate publication.
  • Use quotation marks and appropriate citations when reproducing published content.

The journal may use plagiarism detection software to evaluate submissions.

Manuscripts containing significant plagiarism may be rejected immediately.

Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Submission

Authors must not:

  • Submit the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously.
  • Publish substantially similar research in multiple journals without proper disclosure.

Concurrent submissions constitute unethical publishing behavior and may result in manuscript rejection.

Data Integrity

Authors must ensure that:

  • Research data are accurate and authentic.
  • Findings are honestly reported.
  • Data are not fabricated, manipulated, or falsified.
  • Statistical analyses are accurately presented.

Authors should retain original research data and provide them upon reasonable request from editors.

Authorship

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made significant intellectual contributions to the study.

Authors should have participated in:

  • Research conception and design.
  • Data collection or analysis.
  • Drafting or revising the manuscript.
  • Approval of the final version.

Individuals who contributed in a limited manner should be acknowledged appropriately but not listed as authors.

All authors must approve the final manuscript prior to submission.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Generative Tools

Authors who use Artificial Intelligence tools for language editing, coding assistance, data analysis support, literature organization, or manuscript preparation must disclose such use within the manuscript.

Authors remain fully responsible for:

  • Accuracy of content.
  • Validity of results.
  • Interpretation of findings.
  • Ethical compliance.

Artificial Intelligence systems, software, or language models cannot be listed as authors.

Conflict of Interest

Authors must disclose any financial, professional, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence the research.

Potential conflicts may include:

  • Research funding.
  • Employment relationships.
  • Consulting arrangements.
  • Stock ownership.
  • Intellectual property interests.

If no conflicts exist, authors should state:

"The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding this research."

Research Ethics

For research involving human participants, authors must confirm:

  • Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board approval.
  • Informed consent from participants.
  • Compliance with applicable ethical standards and regulations.

Authors should provide ethical approval details where required.

Duties and Responsibilities of Reviewers

Confidentiality

Reviewers must treat manuscripts as confidential documents.

Reviewers shall not:

  • Share manuscripts with unauthorized individuals.
  • Use unpublished information for personal benefit.
  • Discuss manuscript contents outside the review process.

Objectivity and Fairness

Reviews should be:

  • Objective.
  • Constructive.
  • Evidence-based.
  • Free from personal criticism.

Reviewers should focus solely on scholarly merit and relevance.

Conflict of Interest

Reviewers must disclose any conflicts of interest and decline review assignments where impartial evaluation is not possible.

Conflicts may arise from:

  • Personal relationships.
  • Institutional affiliations.
  • Financial interests.
  • Previous collaborations.

Identification of Ethical Concerns

Reviewers should notify the Editor if they identify:

  • Plagiarism.
  • Duplicate publication.
  • Data manipulation.
  • Ethical violations.
  • Significant similarity to previously published work.

Duties and Responsibilities of Editors

Publication Decisions

Editors are responsible for making publication decisions based on:

  • Academic merit.
  • Originality.
  • Methodological rigor.
  • Relevance to the journal scope.

Editorial decisions shall not be influenced by:

  • Author nationality.
  • Gender.
  • Race.
  • Religion.
  • Political beliefs.
  • Institutional affiliation.

Fair Review Process

Editors shall ensure:

  • Double-blind peer review.
  • Impartial manuscript evaluation.
  • Equal treatment of all submissions.
  • Timely communication with authors and reviewers.

Confidentiality

Editors must maintain confidentiality regarding:

  • Submitted manuscripts.
  • Reviewer identities.
  • Editorial deliberations.

Information shall only be disclosed to individuals directly involved in the publication process.

Conflict of Interest Management

Editors shall recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where conflicts of interest exist.

Alternative editorial oversight will be assigned when necessary.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Publisher

The Publisher supports the Editorial Board in maintaining ethical publishing standards by:

  • Protecting editorial independence.
  • Supporting investigations of ethical misconduct.
  • Ensuring transparency in publication processes.
  • Facilitating corrections, retractions, and clarifications where required.

The Publisher shall not interfere with editorial decisions.

Publication Malpractice

The following practices constitute publication malpractice:

Plagiarism

Presenting another person's ideas, data, text, or work as one's own without proper attribution.

Self-Plagiarism

Reusing substantial portions of one's previously published work without proper disclosure or citation.

Data Fabrication

Inventing data or research results that never existed.

Data Falsification

Manipulating research materials, equipment, processes, or data to misrepresent findings.

Citation Manipulation

Excessively citing specific sources solely to increase citation counts rather than improve scholarly quality.

Authorship Manipulation

Including individuals who did not contribute significantly to the research (gift authorship) or excluding contributors who deserve authorship (ghost authorship).

Peer Review Manipulation

Attempting to influence or compromise the peer review process through fraudulent reviewer identities or inappropriate reviewer recommendations.

Complaints and Appeals

Authors may appeal editorial decisions by submitting a written justification to the Editor-in-Chief.

Appeals should include:

  • Detailed explanation of concerns.
  • Supporting evidence.
  • Responses to reviewer comments where applicable.

All appeals will be reviewed objectively by the Editorial Board.

Corrections, Retractions, and Withdrawals

Corrections

Minor errors that do not affect the integrity of the work may be corrected through published corrigenda or errata.

Retractions

The journal may retract published articles in cases involving:

  • Proven plagiarism.
  • Data fabrication or falsification.
  • Ethical violations.
  • Duplicate publication.
  • Significant scientific errors.

Retraction notices will remain permanently linked to the original publication.

Article Withdrawal

Withdrawal requests submitted before publication will be evaluated by the Editorial Office.

Unethical withdrawal practices after acceptance may result in sanctions.

Post-Publication Discussions

The journal encourages responsible scholarly discussion and welcomes:

  • Comments on published articles.
  • Requests for clarification.
  • Notifications regarding possible errors or ethical concerns.

All concerns will be investigated fairly and transparently.

Commitment to Ethical Publishing

MET Manthan is committed to fostering a culture of integrity, transparency, and excellence in scholarly communication. Authors, reviewers, editors, and publishers share responsibility for maintaining the credibility and trustworthiness of the scientific record.

Any breach of these ethical standards may result in rejection, correction, retraction, notification of affiliated institutions, or other appropriate actions as determined by the Editorial Board.