Publication Ethics for Authors

                                                                                                                                         Last revised: 31 January 2026

RPESH is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics in accordance with the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Authors submitting manuscripts to RPESH must comply with the following ethical requirements:

  1. Ethical Expectations

Authors must ensure that their work adheres to recognized standards of academic integrity, responsible research conduct, and accurate scholarly communication. Ethical misconduct will lead to manuscript rejection, editorial investigation, and possible notification of institutional authorities.

  1. Ethical Approval and Consent
  • Studies involving human subjects require formal ethical approval and informed consent.
  • Research involving animals must follow internationally accepted principles for animal welfare.
  • Use of proprietary datasets, copyrighted materials, or sensitive information must be legally and ethically justified.
  1. Conflicts of Interest

Authors must clearly disclose any financial, personal, institutional, or professional conflicts of interest that may influence the research or its interpretation. When no conflict exists, authors should explicitly state: “The authors declare no conflict of interest.”

  1. Reporting Standards and Transparency
  • Manuscripts must provide a truthful, complete, and transparent account of the research.
  • All methods, data, and findings must be reported accurately and without omission of relevant results.
  • Fabrication, falsification, or selective reporting is strictly prohibited.
  1. Plagiarism and Duplicate Submission

All submissions are screened using similarity detection software.
Manuscripts containing plagiarism, self-plagiarism, or uncredited use of others’ work will be rejected.
Manuscripts must not be under consideration by another journal at the time of submission.

  1. Data Availability and Reproducibility
  • Authors must include a Data Availability Statement indicating whether the data supporting the findings are publicly available, available upon request, or included within the article.
  • Use of public datasets must include proper citation and documentation.
  1. Corrections and Retractions

If substantial errors or ethical issues are identified after publication, the journal will issue:

  • a Correction (for honest errors),
  • a Retraction (for confirmed misconduct),
  • an Expression of Concern (when investigations are ongoing),
    in accordance with COPE Retraction Guidelines.
  1. Sanctions for Misconduct

Depending on severity, the journal may apply:

  • manuscript rejection,
  • prohibition from future submissions,
  • notification of the author’s institution,
  • retraction of published work,
  • reporting to COPE, funders, or regulatory bodies.