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ACI Avances en Ciencias e Ingenierías

Code of Ethics and Publication

The journal ACI Avances en Ciencias e Ingenierías seeks maximum national and international excellence. This section is based on the Code of Honor and Coexistence of the Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ and also takes into account the policies of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), for editors, reviewers, and authors.

Authors' Commitment

  • ACI Avances en Ciencias e Ingenierías adheres to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) code of conduct and its best practice guidelines. Authors are expected to comply with this code of conduct regarding authorship, plagiarism, and image manipulation.
  • Originality and data fidelity: Authors confirm that the submitted manuscripts are original and unpublished and do not contain parts from other authors or previously published works. They also confirm the accuracy of the data presented when verifying the hypotheses.
  • Multiple and/or repetitive publications: Authors should not submit manuscripts with the same analysis to more than one scientific journal or any other academic or scientific publication.
  • Attributions, citations, and references: Authors must be careful with sources and properly cite contributions mentioned in the manuscript.
  • Authorship: It is important to prioritize the order of appearance of co-authors according to their level of responsibility and involvement. Authors ensure the inclusion of collaborators and/or co-authors who have contributed scientifically and intellectually to the conceptualization, planning, work, interpretation, and analysis of research results, as well as the writing of the article. Authors' contributions should be detailed in the "Author Contributions" section.
  • Conflict of interests: Authors must declare any potential conflict of interest and indicate any funding from agencies and/or projects whose outcome is the submitted manuscript.
  • Errata: In case authors identify a significant error or inaccuracy in the published article, they must immediately inform the editor-in-chief and provide all necessary information to publish the corresponding erratum.
  • Responsibility: Authors are responsible for the contents of the published articles. Therefore, they commit to carrying out a review of the most current and relevant literature on the topic.

Reviewers' Commitment

  • Contribution to editorial decision-making: Peer review is an important procedure that helps editors make informed decisions about submitted manuscripts and also allows authors to improve the quality of texts for publication. Reviewers commit to conducting a critical, objective, honest, and constructive and unbiased review, both regarding scientific quality and the quality of the literature in the area of their expertise.
  • Respect for review times: Reviewers who do not feel competent in the subject matter when reviewing the manuscript or cannot finish the review within the scheduled time must immediately notify the editor. Reviewers commit to evaluating the works as quickly as possible to respect delivery deadlines, publication periodicity, and manuscript custody limits, out of respect for authors and their work.
  • Confidentiality: Reviewers must maintain confidentiality; therefore, these texts should not be discussed with other people without the express consent of the authors.
  • Objectivity: Reviewers must be objective when conducting the evaluation process.
  • Published works: Reviewers commit to accurately indicating the bibliographic references of fundamental works possibly overlooked by the authors. The reviewer should also inform the editors about any manuscript similarity with other published works.

Editors' Commitment

  • Publication decision: Editors must ensure the selection of the most qualified and specialized reviewers to provide a critical and expert assessment of manuscripts.
  • Honesty and non-discrimination: Editors evaluate submitted manuscripts for publication primarily based on the scientific merit of the content, without discrimination based on gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, nationality, or political opinion of the authors. The integrity of published content is essential to respect the academic and scientific editorial process. Therefore, editors ensure that published articles comply with the ethical principles of the journal.
  • Confidentiality: Editors commit not to disclose relevant information about manuscripts submitted for publication to other individuals who are not reviewers or editors. The journal team undertakes to maintain confidentiality of manuscripts, authors, and reviewers, as it is essential to preserve anonymity and intellectual integrity of the editorial processes.
  • Conflicts of interest: Editors commit to notifying the editor-in-chief about a potential conflict of interest regarding the authors or reviewers of a manuscript.
  • Respect for deadlines: Editors are responsible for ensuring a timely review and potential publication of manuscripts. However, if there are manuscripts that do not meet deadlines, editors commit to follow up on these cases to determine their phase and continuity in the editorial process.

Anti-plagiarism

All manuscripts submitted for peer review in the journal ACI Avances en Ciencias e Ingenierías are inspected by anti-plagiarism programs, based on the Code of Honor and Coexistence of the Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ and COPE policies, which ensure the originality of academic and scientific works. Therefore, programs such as Turnitin or Similarity Check are used to analyze similarity or matches with other works. The editor-in-chief is responsible for reviewing the similarity reports before assigning the handling editor. This process ensures that the works are unpublished and, in turn, ensures compliance with the journal's ethical standards regarding the endorsement of scientific production.

Authors may use Artificial Intelligence, when necessary, as a support tool to improve their writing or correct errors. However, AI cannot replace the functions of the researcher in aspects such as literature review and critical thinking.

Overlap or multiple publication: It is important to avoid duplicate publications, which involves submitting the same article to more than one journal, as well as simultaneously submitting the same document to multiple journals for review. This practice also applies to publications in different languages, as scientific content is identical in both contributions.

The journal ACI Avances en Ciencias e Ingenierías has an automatic rejection policy for manuscripts that have been previously published in other journals, except in special cases, such as an invitation to publish a canonical article or when honoring a researcher and their career.

Retractions

ACI Avances en Ciencias e Ingenierías will consider the need to retract publications in cases where errors that invalidate the conclusions of an article are detected or misconduct in the research or publication process is evidenced. Reasons for retraction are:

  • Errors affecting the core of the article's findings, such as experimental or calculation errors, or data falsification.
  • Previous publication of findings without proper attribution, such as duplication or redundancy.
  • Fraudulent authorship. Fraudulent authorship refers to the practice of attributing the creation or production of a scientific work to a person who does not merit authorship. This may involve forging signatures, identity theft, or presenting works as one's own when they were actually created by another person. It is a form of deception that seeks recognition, benefits, or undue advantages at the expense of the legitimate author.
  • Unauthorized use of information.
  • Unethical research conduct or violation of the USFQ Code of Honor and Coexistence. This means that the author did not obtain the required permissions, approvals, and/or exceptions from the research ethics committee of their institution.
  • Manipulation or compromise in peer review. Manipulation in peer review involves influencing the process to favor certain results or authors, thus compromising its integrity and objectivity.
  • Conflict of interest that may have unduly influenced research results.

The retraction announcement process will include:

  • Editing the article to include a watermark indicating "retracted article." Adding the phrase "retracted article" in front of the title. The editor will send a note attached to the article, along with comments from the author, if any.
  • Immediate publication of the retraction. This process will take at least 10 business days for the editorial team to update the website and make the necessary amendments.

Complaints and Appeals Policy

The journal is committed to addressing all complaints and appeals in a timely and constructive manner. Depending on the nature and complexity of the complaint, the case will be evaluated by the USFQ PRESS editorial team, taking into account the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

All communications will be resolved within a maximum of thirty (30) business days during the academic year and sixty (60) business days during the summer, considering the travel and exchanges of the journal team. In case of greater complexity, the complainant will be informed about the possibility of extending the investigation period.

It is important that complaints or appeals are clear, specific, and supported by sufficient evidence suggesting a possible violation of the journal's ethical principles.

Complaints that are outside the scope of the journal's competence, such as those related to personal disputes between authors, editors, reviewers, or members of the editorial team, will receive a response explaining why the journal cannot intervene in the matter. Additionally, the journal will not investigate complaints or appeals presented in an offensive, threatening, or defamatory manner.

What types of complaints and appeals are considered valid?

Complaints and appeals may arise due to editorial issues, such as excessive delays, or serious errors of judgment, such as the incorrect application of a retraction notice. Additionally, they may be related to inappropriate conduct by authors or reviewers. All individuals, including authors, reviewers, and readers, have the opportunity to submit complaints and appeals.

It is important that all complaints and appeals fall within the scope of the USFQ PRESS editorial office, that is, they are related to the content, policies, or processes of the journal. Complaints or appeals in which the complainant simply disagrees with an editorial decision will not be considered.

How to submit a complaint or appeal?

To file a complaint or appeal, please send an email to avances@usfq.edu.ec. Provide as much detail as possible and attach supporting information when appropriate, such as copies of email correspondence. If your complaint or appeal is related to a specific article, be sure to include the title and DOI if already published, or the manuscript identification number if not yet published.

Bioethics

Before conducting experiments on living organisms, it is essential to obtain the corresponding permits and authorizations in accordance with the current legislation in the country and the institution where the study is conducted. This includes environmental permits, approvals from institutional ethics committees, and copies of consent forms from test subjects, among others. All these permits and authorizations must be detailed thoroughly in the manuscript submitted for publication, including the registration number, permit, or corresponding approval. If necessary, editors may request authors to provide evidence that these permits have been obtained.

Consent to participate in research: If the research involves the participation of human beings, it is imperative to include a statement about explicit informed consent to participate in the study in the document. In most cases, this consent must be in writing. In situations where research involves vulnerable groups or doubts arise about the researchers' ethics in obtaining informed consent, editors may request to see the consent form. Additionally, the journal ACI Avances en Ciencias e Ingenierías takes into account the guidelines of the USFQ Research Ethics Committee in Human Beings (CEISH-USFQ) for the aforementioned processes and also operates under the guidance of the USFQ Committee on Ethics in Research and Teaching with Animals (CEIDA-USFQ). It is important to consider the principle of the three Rs, under which this committee operates:

  • Replace (use substitutes for animals whenever possible).
  • Reduce (use methods that allow obtaining information with the least number of animals or maximize the information obtained from the animals used).
  • Refine (use methods that minimize pain, suffering, or distress and increase the welfare of the animals used).