Ethical Statement

The Journal of Development and Social Sciences (JDSS) is committed to honest, responsible, and transparent academic publishing. The journal expects authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher to act with integrity and to protect the quality and reliability of published research.

JDSS follows recognized principles of good publication practice and takes appropriate action when ethical concerns are identified.

1. Editorial Responsibility

JDSS makes editorial decisions on the basis of the quality, originality, relevance, and academic value of a manuscript.

Editors Prime Role:

Treat all submissions fairly and without discrimination.
Keep submitted manuscripts confidential.
Avoid personal, financial, institutional, or other influences that could affect editorial decisions.
Declare and manage any conflict of interest.
Ensure that manuscripts receive appropriate academic evaluation.

The publisher does not interfere with the academic decision to accept or reject a manuscript.

2. Peer Review

JDSS uses a double-blind peer-review system.

Manuscripts are normally evaluated by independent reviewers with relevant expertise.
The identities of authors and reviewers are kept confidential during the review process.
Reviewers are expected to provide fair, respectful, and useful comments.
Reviewers should not use information from an unpublished manuscript for their own benefit.
A reviewer must decline an assignment when a conflict of interest may affect impartiality.
The final editorial decision remains the responsibility of the journal's editor.

3. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for the accuracy and originality of their work. They must:

Submit original research.
Present their findings honestly.
Give proper credit to the work of other researchers.
Provide accurate references.
Obtain the required ethical approval where applicable.
Disclose relevant funding and conflicts of interest.
Obtain approval from all listed authors before submission.
Inform the journal if a significant error is discovered after publication.

Authors must not submit the same manuscript to more than one journal at the same time.

4. Authorship

Only people who have made a meaningful contribution to the research and manuscript should be listed as authors.

An author should have contributed to one or more of the following:

Developing the research idea or design.
Collecting, analyzing, or interpreting data.
Writing or substantially revising the manuscript.
Approving the final version for publication.
Accepting responsibility for the integrity of the work.

People who provide only general supervision, administrative assistance, funding, language correction, or other limited support must be acknowledged rather than listed as authors.

The corresponding author is responsible for communication with JDSS and should ensure that all authors agree with the submission.

5. Research Misconduct

JDSS does not accept dishonest or misleading research practices. These include:

Fabrication of data or results.
Falsification or manipulation of research.
Plagiarism over the limit.
Significant and undisclosed reuse of previously published material.
Manipulation of images or figures in a way that misrepresents the findings.
Fabricated references or citations.
Any other serious practice that compromises research integrity.

When a concern is raised, JDSS may request an explanation or supporting information from the authors and may contact the relevant institution when necessary.

If misconduct is confirmed, the journal may reject the manuscript or, in serious cases involving a published article, issue a correction, expression of concern, or retraction.

6. Plagiarism

JDSS considers plagiarism a serious violation of academic integrity.

Plagiarism includes using another person's words, ideas, data, images, or other intellectual work without appropriate acknowledgement. Authors must also properly identify substantial use of their own previously published material.

Submitted manuscripts may be checked using plagiarism or similarity-detection software.

A manuscript containing serious plagiarism may be rejected. If plagiarism is discovered after publication, JDSS will assess the case and take appropriate action to protect the integrity of the published record.

7. Duplicate and Redundant Publication

Authors should not submit or publish substantially the same research in more than one journal.

JDSS does not support:

Duplicate publication.
Re-publication of the same findings without proper disclosure.
Unnecessary division of one research project into several papers.
Submission of a manuscript that is already under review by another journal.

Any earlier related publication or conference version should be disclosed to the editor when it may overlap with the submitted manuscript.

8. Research Involving Human Participants

Research involving human participants must follow appropriate ethical standards.

Where applicable, authors should:

Obtain approval from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review body before conducting the research.
Obtain informed consent from participants.
Protect participants' privacy and personal information.
Take appropriate measures to protect participants from harm.
Clearly report relevant ethical approval and consent information in the manuscript.

The journal may request evidence of ethical approval when necessary.

9. Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest may arise when a personal, financial, professional, or institutional relationship could affect a person's judgment.

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose relevant conflicts.

Authors should include a conflict-of-interest statement in their manuscript. If there is no conflict, authors may state:

“The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.”

If an undisclosed conflict is discovered after publication, JDSS may publish a correction or take another appropriate action depending on the circumstances as per COPE policy.

10. Funding

Authors must disclose financial support received for their research or publication.

The funding statement should identify the supporting organization and, where applicable, the grant or project number.

If the research received no external financial support, authors should clearly state this.

11. Data and Research Transparency

JDSS encourages authors to provide sufficient information about their research methods, evidence, data, and analytical procedures so that readers can understand and, where possible, assess the research.

Authors must provide a Data Availability Statement when relevant.

Where research data can be shared safely and legally, authors are encouraged to make them available through a suitable repository.

When data cannot be shared because of privacy, confidentiality, legal, contractual, or ethical restrictions, the authors should briefly explain the reason.

Authors must not make false claims about the availability of research data.

12. Corrections and Retractions

JDSS aims to keep the published record accurate and reliable.

If an error is identified after publication, the journal will assess its importance and take appropriate action as per COPE policy.

Correction

A correction may be published when an error needs to be fixed but does not invalidate the main findings of the article.

Retraction

An article may be retracted when serious problems make its findings unreliable or when major ethical or publication violations are confirmed the issue is resolved as per the policy of COPE.

Expression of Concern

JDSS may publish an expression of concern when there is a serious question about a published article but the matter has not yet been fully resolved.

Where possible, notices will be linked clearly to the affected article.

13. Copyright and Licensing

JDSS supports the responsible sharing of scholarly research.

Articles are published under the journal's stated Creative Commons license. Readers may share and reuse published material according to the conditions of that license and must give proper credit to the original authors and source.

Authors should ensure that they have the necessary rights or permissions for material obtained from third parties.

The exact licensing terms applicable to published articles are displayed on the journal website.

14. Advertising and Commercial Activities

JDSS does not allow advertising or commercial activities to influence editorial decisions.

If advertising or other promotional material is used on the journal website, it is clearly separated from scholarly content.

Editorial decisions must remain independent of commercial considerations.

15. Complaints

Authors, reviewers, readers, and other interested persons may raise concerns about the journal's editorial or publication practices.

Complaints may relate to:

Editorial decisions
Peer review
Publication ethics
Authorship
Plagiarism
Conflicts of interest
Published articles
Other matters affecting the integrity of the journal

Complaints should be sent to:

Email: editor@jdss.org.pk

The journal will review complaints fairly and, where necessary, seek additional information before reaching a decision.

16. Appeals

An author may request reconsideration of an editorial decision when there is a reasonable basis, such as a significant factual error, a serious procedural problem, or a relevant conflict of interest.

An appeal should clearly explain the reason for reconsideration and provide supporting information where available.

An appeal does not guarantee a change in the original decision.

17. Confidentiality

Manuscripts submitted to JDSS are treated as confidential documents.

Editors, reviewers, and other individuals involved in the editorial process is not disclose or share unpublished manuscript content without permission.

Confidential information obtained through peer review must not be used for personal, professional, or commercial benefit.

18. Use of Artificial Intelligence

JDSS recognizes that authors may use AI tools for limited research and writing support.

Authors remain fully responsible for the content of their manuscripts, including accuracy, originality, references, data, analysis, and conclusions.

AI tools must not be used to fabricate data, results, references, quotations, or other scholarly information.

Where significant AI assistance has been used in preparing a manuscript, authors should disclose its use according to the journal's Artificial Intelligence Policy.

AI tools cannot be listed as authors.

19. Editorial and Reviewer Conflicts

Editors and reviewers should not participate in the evaluation of a manuscript when they have a relationship or interest that could affect their impartiality.

When a conflict is identified, the manuscript should, where possible, be assigned to another suitable editor or reviewer.

20. Ethical Framework

JDSS aims to maintain internationally recognized standards of responsible scholarly publishing. The journal may consider guidance from established organizations and publishing standards when developing or reviewing its policies.

Following such guidance means that JDSS seeks to maintain good publishing practices; it does not mean that JDSS is endorsed, approved, indexed, or accredited by any particular organization unless separately confirmed by that organization.

21. Commitment to Research Integrity

JDSS is committed to maintaining a trustworthy academic record. The journal expects everyone involved in publishing to act honestly, respect the work of others, protect research participants, and report research responsibly.

When ethical concerns arise, JDSS will review them carefully and take reasonable action according to the circumstances.

JDSS believes that strong publication ethics are essential for maintaining the confidence of authors, reviewers, readers, and the wider academic community.