Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

The Journal of Central Asian Studies is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics, in alignment with the guidelines and ethical frameworks established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and Elsevier’s Publishing Ethics Resource Kit (PERK). We are dedicated to ensuring the integrity of the academic record by rigorously maintaining transparency, accountability, and fairness throughout the publication process. Under the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing (Version 4.0; September 15, 2022), we continuously update our website and editorial policies to reflect the latest best practices in scholarly publishing. 

 

Authorship and Contributorship

The manuscript's authorship belongs to those researchers who participated directly in its creation, idea formation, article writing, and interpretation and significantly contributed to obtaining scientific results. When submitting a manuscript, authors are required to identify all co-authors and any other contributors. All authors must also approve the final version of the manuscript before publication. After the manuscript has been submitted, changes to authorship cannot be made unless there is a valid reason to add, remove, or rearrange authors.  

Copyright, sharing, and licensing  

The authors retain the rights to their manuscripts while allowing everyone to freely download, reuse, reprint, change, distribute, or copy them, with the obligatory acknowledgment of the authorship of this work and a reference to a unique publication in this journal. Permission from the authors or publisher is not required for all these actions when specifying a link to the journal.

The authors reserve the right to distribute their article in other sources (for instance, in the institutional archive, repository, social networks, etc.) with the obligatory reference to its original publication in this journal.

All articles are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Plagiarism 

Manuscripts submitted for publication in the Journal of Central Asian Studies must not have been previously published by the author(s) in any language, nor accepted for publication or currently under consideration elsewhere.

Funding

In the manuscript, all authors are required to disclose any financial contributions or other support from non-authors as well as any conflicts of interest that may directly or indirectly affect the assessment and interpretation of the manuscript.

The use of AI

Authors are responsible for the content of their work. The AI tools cannot be listed as an author or co-author of a manuscript since they cannot meet the requirements for authorship and take responsibility for the manuscript. The manuscripts generated by AI tools are not accepted for consideration.

Data Fabrication and Falsification

Authors must not engage in data fabrication or falsification. All data, facts, citations, names, initials and other details presented must be accurate and verifiable. Authors are liable for the accuracy of the information provided in the manuscript.  

Conflicts of Interest

Authors submitting to the journal shall inform the editorial team of any potential conflicts of interest that could compromise the objectivity or integrity of the publication. A conflict of interest is any situation that may be perceived as influencing the review process or publication of a manuscript. Both authors and reviewers should notify the editorial office if they suspect there is an undisclosed conflict of interest whether it is financial, professional, contractual, personal, or otherwise.

Research Ethics 

Research involving human subjects or animals must receive ethical approval, and authors should provide evidence of this during the submission process. The journal reserves the right to reject a manuscript based on unethical conduct in either human or animal studies.

Any complaints or appeals regarding research ethics, the journal’s staff, editorial board, or publisher should be submitted electronically to ca_journal@kisi.kz, or in writing to the following address: Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Beibitshilik 4, Astana, 010000. Complaints should include detailed information about the issue along with supporting documents. The publisher’s ethical committee will review the matter after notifying all concerned parties. The administrative procedure initiated based on the application will take up to 15 working days from the date of receipt. This timeframe may be extended by a reasoned decision from the head of the publisher, up to a maximum of 30 working days.

In instances of misconduct related to improper behavior or ethical violations by the author, the editorial team will convene to take appropriate measures following the guidelines set by the Committee on Publication Ethics. 

Journal management 

This journal utilizes Open Journal Systems 3.4.0.5, an open-source journal management and publishing software developed, supported, and freely distributed by the Public Knowledge Project under the GNU General Public License. For more information about the software, please visit PKP’s website. Direct any questions regarding the journal or submissions to the journal.

Each author guarantees exclusive rights to the materials submitted for publication. Authors must obtain the necessary consent and permissions from individuals or entities involved in the research to ensure compliance with relevant laws and regulations.

The editorial team regularly participates in workshops, seminars, and conferences organized by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as training sessions from Wiley, Web of Science, and Scopus for editors and reviewers.

Responsibilities of Reviewers: 

  • A reviewer must keep any information from authors or editors confidential, not discuss unpublished material with third parties, and not use the information for personal gain.
  • A reviewer agrees to voluntarily review only those manuscripts that fall within their field of scientific and professional interests within the timeframe set by the editor.
  • The reviewer plays a crucial role in the decision-making process and helps improve the quality of the manuscript by providing an objective and timely review of the manuscript. They should refrain from making hostile, inflammatory, defamatory, or derogatory comments.
  • The reviews should be expressed clearly and constructively, supported by well-reasoned arguments and, if necessary, appropriate references.
  • A reviewer must disclose any potential conflicts of interest.
  • If a reviewer identifies any errors in the manuscript, instances of plagiarism, or any unethical behavior by the author, they must promptly inform the editorial team.

Responsibilities of Editors:

  • Editors must ensure that manuscripts are evaluated fairly and without discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, or nationality.
  • Editors must maintain the confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts throughout the editorial process and protect the anonymity of both authors and reviewers.
  • Editors are responsible for effectively selecting reviewers to assess the manuscripts.
  • Editors make decisions about accepting or rejecting manuscripts solely based on their quality, originality, clarity, significance, adherence to editorial policy, and alignment with the journal’s aims and scope.
  • Editors will ensure that commercial interests or policies do not influence their publishing decisions.
  • Editors are responsible for maintaining the timeliness and frequency of the journal’s publications.
  • Editors should disclose potential conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from decision-making when needed.  

Post Publication Policies 

Regarding post-publication issues involving serious ethical or integrity concerns, the Journal of Central Asian Studies adheres to the guidelines established by COPE. The Journal of Central Asian Studies issues post-publication editorial decisions—such as corrections, expressions of concern, and retractions—only after thorough consideration of the raised issues.

In accordance with COPE guidelines, we aim to discuss post publication concerns with the corresponding author of the article before making any editorial decisions. 

Procedure for Retraction or Correction

The editorial team values the integrity and completeness of research data, recognizing its importance to the scientific community. We adhere to high standards to ensure the credibility of the journal’s electronic archive.

If any errors or inaccuracies are detected, the author or any other individual should promptly notify the editorial team to retract or amend the publication. The amendments will be published on the journal webpage, replacing the electronic version of the manuscript and indicating the corrections made.

The editorial team may consider retracting an article in the following cases:

  • There is evidence of the unreliability of published information, either due to deliberate actions (such as data falsification) or errors in calculations or experiments.
  • The conclusions were previously published elsewhere without proper reference, permission, or justification for re-publication (i.e., cases of duplicate publication).
  • There are violations of copyright or instances of plagiarism.
  • The manuscript contains classified materials without permission for their use.
  • The manuscript was published through a compromised or altered review process.
  • The author failed to disclose a conflict of interest that could influence the interpretation of the paper or the reviewers’ recommendations.

A «retracted» watermark will be added to the electronic version of any retracted manuscript, along with an explanation of the reasons for retraction. A manuscript may be removed from the journal’s webpage in exceptional cases where the retraction is due to a violation of intellectual property rights, privacy rights, disclosure of classified materials, or a court or governmental decision. The details of the retraction will be forwarded to the databases in which the journal is indexed.

The journal will only consider appeals against retraction or correction decisions if new information or data that directly address the underlying issues is provided. Appeals are reviewed by the publisher’s ethics committee. All decisions regarding appeals are final, and no further appeals will be considered.

 

Last updated 2025-02-13