Conflict of Interest Policy

JP (Jurnal Penelitian), published by the Institute for Research and Community Service (LPPM) at the University of Merdeka Malang, requires all authors, peer reviewers, and editors to declare any potential conflicts of interest that could influence, or be perceived to influence, the objectivity, integrity, or outcome of the research and editorial process.

To maintain transparency and trust in scholarly publishing, JP (Jurnal Penelitian) strictly adheres to the standards established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) regarding conflicts of interest.

What is a Conflict of Interest?

A conflict of interest (also known as a competing interest) exists when financial, personal, professional, political, or academic relationships inappropriately bias or compromise an individual's judgment, research, or editorial decisions.

Conflicts of interest can be financial or non-financial:

  • Financial Interests: Funding, grants, employment, honoraria, consultancies, stock ownership, patent applications/registrations, or royalties received from organizations that stand to gain or lose financially from the publication.

  • Non-Financial Interests: Personal or family relationships, professional rivalries, academic competition, institutional affiliations, or strong ideological beliefs that might bias an individual's evaluation or reporting.

Guidelines for Authors

All submitted manuscripts must include a clear disclosure of any potential conflicts of interest.

1. Disclosure Requirement

  • Authors must declare all relevant financial and non-financial competing interests at the time of manuscript submission.

  • If no conflicts of interest exist, authors must explicitly state:

    "The author(s) declare(s) no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article."

  • This declaration must be included in a dedicated section entitled Declaration of Competing Interests or Conflict of Interest Statement before the reference list in the final manuscript.

2. Funding and Sponsorship

Authors must disclose all sources of financial support for the conduct of the research and/or preparation of the article. The role of the sponsor/funding agency (e.g., in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, or writing) must be clearly described in the Funding Statement.

Guidelines for Peer Reviewers

Peer review must be conducted impartially and objectively.

  • Mandatory Recusal: Reviewers must decline to review a manuscript if they have a known conflict of interest involving the authors or institutions associated with the paper (e.g., recent co-authorship, collaborative research, personal relationships, direct academic competition, or financial ties).

  • Disclosure: If a reviewer is uncertain whether a relationship constitutes a conflict of interest, they must consult the Editor-in-Chief prior to accepting the review invitation.

  • Confidentiality: Reviewers must not use unpublished information or insights gained from reviewing manuscripts for their own research or personal gain.

Guidelines for Editors and Editorial Board

Editors hold the final responsibility for decisions regarding publication and must remain completely unbiased.

  • Editorial Recusal: Editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts submitted by themselves, close colleagues, family members, or researchers from their immediate department/institution if a conflict exists.

  • Independent Review Handling: In cases where an editor or editorial board member submits a manuscript to JP (Jurnal Penelitian), the manuscript will be handled by an independent section editor or guest editor. The submitting editor will have no access to the review file or decision process.

  • Commercially/Institutionally Unbiased Decisions: Editorial decisions must be based solely on the scientific quality, originality, clarity, and relevance of the manuscript to the journal’s scope.

Handling Undisclosed Conflicts of Interest

If an undisclosed conflict of interest is discovered pre- or post-publication:

  1. Investigation: The Editorial Board will investigate the matter in accordance with COPE guidelines and flowcharts.

  2. Author/Reviewer Inquiry: The concerned parties will be contacted and given an opportunity to clarify or provide additional details.

  3. Corrective Action:

    • If an undisclosed conflict is confirmed prior to publication, the manuscript may be rejected or held until proper disclosures are provided.

    • If discovered post-publication, JP (Jurnal Penelitian) may publish a formal Corrigendum, an Expression of Concern, or, in severe cases of willful omission that invalidates objectivity, execute an Article Retraction.

Contact Information

For questions regarding conflicts of interest or to report potential undisclosed competing interests, please contact:

  • Managing Editor: JP (Jurnal Penelitian)

  • Publisher: Institute for Research and Community Service (LPPM), University of Merdeka Malang

  • Email: [email protected]