Author Responsibilities

                                                                                                                                        Last revised: 24 January 2026


Authors submitting manuscripts to Research in Physical Education, Sport and Health (RPESH) are required to adhere to the highest standards of research integrity, transparency, and ethical conduct. By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm and accept the following responsibilities:

  1. Originality and Research Integrity
  • All submitted work must be entirely original.
  • The manuscript must not have been previously published, nor be under consideration by another journal.
  • Any use of the work or ideas of others must be acknowledged through accurate citation and referencing.
  • Data must be accurate, complete, honestly collected, and reported without fabrication, falsification, or inappropriate manipulation.
  1. Authorship Criteria
  • Only individuals who have made a substantial scholarly contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the research may be listed as authors.
  • All authors must approve the final version of the manuscript and agree to its submission.
  • Ghost authorship, guest authorship, and purchased authorship are strictly prohibited.
  • The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors meet authorship criteria.
  1. Ethical Compliance
  • Research involving human participants, animals, biological samples, or sensitive data must include an explicit statement confirming ethical approval from a recognized institutional review board or ethics committee.
  • Authors must comply with international ethical standards (e.g., Declaration of Helsinki, institutional ethical rules).
  • Authors must obtain informed consent when required and ensure confidentiality and anonymity of participants.
  1. Avoidance of Misconduct

The following practices constitute unethical behavior and are grounds for rejection or retraction:

  • Plagiarism (including self-plagiarism)
  • Data fabrication or falsification
  • Manipulated images or figures
  • Redundant or duplicate publication
  • Unreported conflicts of interest
  • Improper authorship attribution
  • Citation manipulation
  1. Transparency and Disclosure
  • Authors must disclose all funding sources, institutional support, and any financial or personal relationships that may represent a conflict of interest.
  • Authors must include a Data Availability Statement indicating whether research data are publicly available, available upon request, or included within the article.
  1. Corrections, Retractions, and Post-Publication Responsibilities
  • Authors are responsible for informing the editorial office immediately if they discover a major error or inaccuracy in their published or submitted manuscript.
  • Upon notification, the journal will issue a correction, retraction, or expression of concern, following COPE guidelines.
  • Authors may be asked to provide raw data or documentation to verify research integrity.
  1. Adherence to Journal Policies
  • Authors are encouraged to provide their ORCID iD to support accurate attribution of their work.

Authors must follow all journal-specific policies, including formatting, reporting standards, and submission requirements as detailed in the Instructions for Authors.