Research Misconduct Policy

Journal of Green Science and Technology (JGST) is committed to maintaining the integrity, reliability, and credibility of the scholarly record.

Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to:

  • fabrication of data or results;
  • falsification or inappropriate manipulation of data, images, or research records;
  • plagiarism and substantial unattributed copying;
  • duplicate or redundant publication;
  • inappropriate authorship;
  • unethical research practices;
  • manipulation of citations or peer review; and
  • other serious departures from accepted standards of scholarly conduct.

Reporting Allegations

Concerns or allegations of research misconduct may be submitted by authors, reviewers, readers, institutions, or other parties through the journal's official editorial contact.

Allegations should provide sufficient information or supporting evidence to allow an initial assessment.

All allegations will be handled as confidentially and fairly as reasonably possible.

Preliminary Assessment

When an allegation is received, the Editor-in-Chief will conduct an initial assessment to determine whether the concern falls within the journal's responsibilities and whether further investigation is warranted.

The journal may request clarification, original data, supporting documents, ethics approvals, research records, or other relevant information from the author or other parties.

Further Investigation

Where appropriate, JGST may seek information from the author's institution, ethics committee, research organization, or another competent authority.

The journal will distinguish between:

  • an allegation;
  • an unresolved concern; and
  • an established finding of misconduct.

JGST will avoid presenting an allegation as a confirmed finding before the available evidence has been appropriately assessed.

Editorial Action

If serious misconduct is established, JGST may take appropriate action, including:

  • rejection of the manuscript;
  • suspension of editorial processing;
  • publication of a correction;
  • publication of an Expression of Concern;
  • retraction of a published article;
  • notification of the relevant institution or authority; or
  • other actions necessary to protect the integrity of the scholarly record.

Authors and other relevant parties will normally be given an opportunity to respond before a final editorial action is taken.

Post-publication actions will be handled in accordance with the JGST Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions Policy.