Journal of Mountain Research

1. Publication Ethics Statement

2. General Duties and Responsibilities of Editors

Editors of the Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) shall:

• Uphold the highest standards of publication ethics and editorial integrity.
• Ensure a fair, unbiased, and timely peer-review process.
• Evaluate manuscripts solely on academic merit, originality, scientific quality, and relevance to the journal.
• Maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and all communications.
• Safeguard the integrity and reliability of the scholarly record.
• Protect editorial independence from commercial or personal influences.
• Promote transparency throughout the editorial and publication process.
• Address allegations of research or publication misconduct according to COPE guidelines.
• Publish corrections, corrigenda, expressions of concern, retractions, or apologies whenever necessary.
• Encourage ethical research and responsible scholarly communication.
• Continuously improve the journal's editorial policies and publication standards.
• Seek feedback from authors, reviewers, readers, and Editorial Board members to enhance journal quality.

3. Relations with Authors

Editors shall:

• Make editorial decisions based solely on the originality, scientific quality, validity, clarity, and significance of the submitted work.
• Treat all authors fairly and without discrimination.
• Provide clear and updated Instructions for Authors and publication policies.
• Ensure transparency in manuscript handling and peer-review procedures.
• Select qualified reviewers with appropriate subject expertise.
• Maintain confidentiality throughout the editorial process.
• Communicate editorial decisions promptly and professionally.
• Request revisions where necessary to improve scientific quality.
• Avoid reversing acceptance decisions unless serious ethical or scientific concerns are identified.
• Follow COPE recommendations when handling authorship disputes, plagiarism, duplicate submissions, or other ethical issues.
• Publish manuscript submission, acceptance, and publication dates whenever applicable.
• Encourage authors to comply with international standards of research and publication ethics.

4. Relations with Reviewers

Editors shall:

• Provide reviewers with clear guidance regarding their responsibilities and ethical obligations.
• Require reviewers to maintain strict confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts.
• Request reviewers to disclose any conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment.
• Select reviewers with suitable expertise relevant to the manuscript.
• Protect reviewer anonymity under the journal's double-blind peer-review system.
• Encourage reviewers to provide objective, constructive, and evidence-based evaluations.
• Request reviewers to identify possible plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, image manipulation, or other research misconduct.
• Forward reviewer comments to authors after removing inappropriate or offensive language, if necessary.
• Monitor the quality, consistency, and timeliness of reviewer reports.
• Maintain and regularly update a qualified reviewer database.
• Recognize the valuable contribution of reviewers to the journal.
• Discontinue the use of reviewers who repeatedly submit poor-quality, biased, or delayed reviews.
• Handle reviewer misconduct according to COPE recommendations.

5. Publication Ethics and Best Practices for Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to the Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) shall:

• Read and comply with the journal's Author Guidelines before submission.
• Submit only original, unpublished work that is not under consideration elsewhere.
• Ensure that all listed authors have made substantial scientific contributions.
• Obtain approval from all co-authors before manuscript submission.
• Designate one corresponding author responsible for communication with the journal.
• Present research findings honestly, accurately, and without fabrication, falsification, or manipulation.
• Properly acknowledge all sources through appropriate citation.
• Avoid plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, and redundant submission.
• Obtain permission for the use of copyrighted materials where required.
• Disclose all financial support, funding sources, and potential conflicts of interest.
• Obtain approval from the appropriate ethics committee for studies involving humans or animals.
• Obtain informed consent from human participants wherever applicable.
• Retain original research data and provide it if requested during editorial review.
• Promptly notify the journal if a significant error is identified after publication.
• Cooperate with editors in issuing corrections or retractions whenever necessary.
• Respect the confidentiality of the peer-review process.
• Disclose any use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in manuscript preparation, while accepting full responsibility for the content.
• Adhere to the ethical principles and recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) throughout the publication process.

6. Authorship

Authors submitting manuscripts to the Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) shall:

• Ensure that all listed authors have made substantial intellectual contributions to the conception, design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, or manuscript preparation.
• Include only individuals who meet the accepted criteria for authorship.
• Obtain the consent and approval of all co-authors before manuscript submission.
• Designate one corresponding author to communicate with the journal during submission, peer review, and publication.
• Ensure that the names, affiliations, email addresses, and ORCID iD (for the corresponding author) are accurate and up to date.
• Accept responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of the submitted work.
• Acknowledge individuals who contributed to the work but do not qualify for authorship in the Acknowledgements section.
• Disclose the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in manuscript preparation, if applicable. AI tools cannot be listed as authors.

7. Duplicate Publication

Authors shall:

• Submit only original manuscripts that have not been published previously.
• Ensure that the manuscript is not simultaneously under consideration by another journal.
• Disclose any previous dissemination of the work, including conference abstracts, preprints, theses, or institutional reports.
• Properly reference any overlapping or closely related publications.
• Avoid redundant or duplicate publication of substantially similar research without appropriate disclosure and justification.
• Inform the Editor if the manuscript is part of a larger research project with related publications.

8. Plagiarism

The Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) has a zero-tolerance policy towards plagiarism and research misconduct.

Authors shall:

• Submit only original work prepared in their own words.
• Properly acknowledge all published and unpublished sources of information.
• Cite all quotations, ideas, figures, tables, and datasets obtained from other authors.
• Avoid plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, and inappropriate text recycling.
• Ensure that permission has been obtained where copyrighted material is reproduced.
• Understand that all submitted manuscripts are screened using plagiarism-detection software before peer review.
• Cooperate with editorial investigations if allegations of plagiarism arise after publication.

The following practices are considered unethical:

• Presenting another person's work as one's own.
• Copying text, figures, or ideas without appropriate citation.
• Reusing substantial portions of previously published work without disclosure.
• Manipulating citations to misrepresent originality.
• Using unpublished data without permission or acknowledgement.

9. Copyright

Authors shall:

• Ensure that submitted work does not infringe the copyright or intellectual property rights of others.
• Obtain written permission for the reproduction of copyrighted figures, tables, photographs, maps, or other materials where required.
• Provide appropriate acknowledgement for all third-party content.
• Accept responsibility for any copyright-related issues arising from their submission.
• Comply with the journal's copyright and licensing policies upon acceptance of the manuscript.

10. Confidentiality

Authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial staff shall:

• Maintain the confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts during the review process.
• Not disclose reviewer reports or editorial correspondence without permission from the journal.
• Treat unpublished manuscripts and associated data as confidential documents.
• Use information obtained through peer review solely for editorial purposes.
• Respect the anonymity maintained under the journal's double-blind peer-review system.

11. Objectivity and Fair Play

The Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) is committed to an impartial and transparent editorial process.

Editors and reviewers shall:

• Evaluate manuscripts solely on their scientific quality, originality, significance, and relevance to the journal.
• Make decisions without discrimination based on nationality, ethnicity, gender, religion, institutional affiliation, age, or political beliefs.
• Provide constructive, objective, and evidence-based comments.
• Avoid personal criticism of authors.
• Declare any conflicts of interest that could influence editorial or review decisions.
• Promote fairness, integrity, and professionalism throughout the publication process.

12. Conflict of Interest

Authors, reviewers, and editors shall:

• Disclose any financial, professional, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence the research or editorial process.
• Declare all sources of funding and financial support received for the research.
• Identify any affiliations or competing interests that may affect the interpretation of the findings.
• Include a Conflict of Interest Statement in the manuscript, even if there are no competing interests.
• Inform the Editor immediately if any conflict arises after submission or publication.

13. Animal Ethics and Human Participants

Authors conducting research involving humans or animals shall:

• Obtain approval from the appropriate Institutional Ethics Committee or Institutional Animal Ethics Committee before commencing the study.
• Conduct research in accordance with applicable national and international ethical guidelines.
• Obtain informed consent from all human participants prior to their participation in the study.
• Protect the privacy, confidentiality, and dignity of research participants.
• Ensure humane treatment of experimental animals throughout the study.
• Obtain all necessary permits for research involving protected, endangered, or regulated species.
• Include the name of the approving ethics committee and approval number in the manuscript, where applicable.
• Be prepared to provide supporting ethical approval documents upon request during the editorial process.

14. Supplementary Information

The Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) encourages authors to submit supplementary materials that enhance the transparency, reproducibility, and scientific value of their research. Supplementary files should provide additional information that supports, but is not essential to, the main manuscript.

Authors are requested to follow these guidelines when submitting supplementary materials:

• Supplementary files should be submitted as a .zip archive and may include datasets, tables, figures, photographs, multimedia files, computer code, methodological details, or any other supporting material relevant to the study.
• The total size of the supplementary material should not exceed 10 MB. For larger datasets or files, authors are encouraged to deposit the material in a recognized public repository (e.g., Figshare, Zenodo, or an appropriate subject-specific repository) and provide the corresponding link or DOI in the manuscript.
• All supplementary files should be clearly organized, appropriately named, and accompanied by descriptive captions or labels to facilitate easy access and interpretation by readers.
• Every supplementary file must be cited at the appropriate location within the main manuscript and listed consistently with the journal's referencing style.
• Authors are solely responsible for the accuracy, completeness, functionality, and integrity of all supplementary materials submitted with their manuscript.
• Any questions regarding supplementary files after publication should be addressed to the corresponding author.
• Accepted supplementary materials will be made available online alongside the published article and will not appear in the printed version of the journal.

15. Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) recognizes the increasing use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in academic research and scholarly publishing and supports their responsible, transparent, and ethical use.

• Authors may use AI tools for limited purposes, such as improving language quality, grammar, readability, formatting, and assisting with research-related activities.
• Authors must ensure that the use of AI tools does not replace their own intellectual contribution, critical analysis, scientific interpretation, or decision-making.
• Authors remain fully responsible for the originality, accuracy, reliability, and ethical integrity of all content submitted to JMR.
• AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors of submitted manuscripts. Authorship requires human accountability, intellectual contribution, and responsibility for the published work.
• Authors must disclose the use of AI tools when such tools have contributed significantly to manuscript preparation, data analysis, image generation, or content development.
• Any AI-assisted content must be carefully reviewed, verified, and validated by the authors before submission to ensure accuracy and avoid errors, bias, fabricated information, or inappropriate citations.
• The use of AI tools for generating fabricated data, manipulating results, creating false references, plagiarism, or misleading scientific information is strictly prohibited.
• Editors and reviewers must maintain confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and must not upload unpublished manuscripts, review reports, or confidential information to external AI platforms.
• Any misuse of AI technologies may be considered a violation of publication ethics and may result in rejection, correction, retraction, or other appropriate action according to the journal’s Publishing Malpractice Policy.
• JMR follows internationally recognized publication ethics standards, including Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines, for the responsible use of Artificial Intelligence in scholarly publishing.

16. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to the Journal of Mountain Research (JMR) are expected to:

• Submit original, accurate, and unpublished work.
• Ensure that the manuscript is not under consideration by another journal.
• Provide an honest and transparent account of the research conducted.
• Properly acknowledge the work of others through appropriate citations.
• Avoid plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, and data falsification.
• Obtain approval from all co-authors before submission.
• Disclose all sources of funding and any potential conflicts of interest.
• Obtain approval from the relevant ethics committee for research involving humans or animals, where applicable.
• Retain original research data and provide it upon reasonable request by the editors.
• Promptly notify the journal if a significant error is identified after publication and cooperate in issuing corrections or retractions when necessary.