PUBLICATION ETHICS | KHARISMA Tech

1. Journal Overview and Ethical Principles

KHARISMA Tech is a peer-reviewed scientific journal managed by the Center for Research and Community Service (Pusat Penelitian dan Pengabdian kepada Masyarakat, P3M) of STMIK Kharisma Makassar, Indonesia. The journal welcomes submissions from researchers, academics, practitioners, and students affiliated with universities, research institutions, industry, and other organizations.

Manuscripts are evaluated based on their scientific quality, originality, methodological rigor, relevance to the journal's focus and scope, and contribution to the advancement of knowledge, regardless of the authors' institutional affiliations.

This Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement establishes the ethical principles and responsibilities of all parties involved in the publication process, including the journal management, editors, peer reviewers, and authors.

KHARISMA Tech is committed to maintaining the integrity, transparency, fairness, and accountability of scholarly publishing. All parties are expected to uphold the following fundamental principles:

Neutrality and impartiality: Editorial and publication decisions must be free from personal, institutional, financial, or other competing interests.
Fairness and appropriate authorship: Authorship credit must be assigned fairly to individuals who have made legitimate scholarly contributions to the research.
Honesty and research integrity: All parties must prevent and address plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, data falsification, and other forms of research and publication misconduct.
Confidentiality: Unpublished manuscripts, review reports, and editorial communications must be protected from unauthorized disclosure.
Accountability: All parties are responsible for fulfilling their respective ethical obligations throughout the publication process.

These principles are informed by established scholarly publishing ethics guidance, including Elsevier's publishing ethics policies and relevant research integrity standards. They are intended to guide the journal's editorial practices and the conduct of all participants in the publication process.

2. Duties and Responsibilities of the Journal Management

The journal management is responsible for establishing and maintaining the policies, resources, and procedures necessary to ensure ethical and sustainable journal publication.

The journal management shall:

Establish and maintain the journal's identity, academic scope, publication frequency, and publication policies.
Appoint qualified editorial board members with appropriate academic expertise and research experience.
Define the responsibilities and working relationships among the publisher, editors, peer reviewers, authors, and other relevant parties.
Ensure that the journal's policies on publication ethics, peer review, authorship, copyright, conflicts of interest, and research integrity are publicly accessible.
Protect the confidentiality of authors, editors, reviewers, and other participants in the editorial process.
Respect intellectual property rights and comply with applicable copyright and licensing requirements.
Provide clear guidelines for editors and peer reviewers concerning their duties, ethical obligations, and professional conduct.
Maintain a consistent publication schedule and publish articles only after the required editorial and review procedures have been completed.
Ensure the availability of adequate financial, technical, and administrative resources to support the journal's sustainability.
Maintain the journal's website, submission system, article metadata, digital identifiers, and publication archives accurately and reliably.
Develop professional networks and collaborations that support the journal's scientific development and visibility.
Ensure compliance with applicable legal requirements, research ethics standards, and publication regulations.
Establish procedures for receiving and investigating complaints concerning editorial decisions, research misconduct, or publication ethics.
Ensure that editorial decisions are based on scientific merit and are not improperly influenced by commercial interests, institutional relationships, personal affiliations, or publication targets.
Support the correction or retraction of published articles when substantial errors or ethical violations are established.

3. Duties and Responsibilities of Editors

Editors are responsible for managing the editorial process fairly, independently, and transparently. Editorial decisions must be based on the scientific quality, originality, relevance, and methodological soundness of submitted manuscripts.

Editors shall:

Evaluate submitted manuscripts according to their scientific merit, originality, relevance to the journal's scope, methodological rigor, and potential contribution to the field.
Ensure that manuscripts undergo an appropriate initial editorial assessment and, when suitable, independent peer review.
Select qualified peer reviewers whose expertise matches the subject matter of each manuscript.
Ensure that editorial decisions are made objectively and without discrimination based on the authors' institutional affiliations, academic status, nationality, gender, or personal relationships.
Maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts, review reports, editorial correspondence, and unpublished research.
Avoid using unpublished information obtained through the editorial process for personal research or professional advantage without the author's explicit written permission.
Declare relevant conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from handling manuscripts when their impartiality could reasonably be questioned.
Ensure that authors receive clear, constructive, and professional feedback regarding editorial decisions and required revisions.
Monitor the quality, timeliness, and integrity of the peer review process.
Encourage authors to improve their manuscripts when revisions can address deficiencies in scientific quality or presentation.
Issue corrections, clarifications, expressions of concern, or retractions when warranted by the available evidence and applicable editorial policies.
Investigate credible allegations of plagiarism, data fabrication, data falsification, duplicate publication, authorship disputes, or other forms of research misconduct.
Seek clarification or additional evidence from authors, reviewers, research institutions, or other relevant parties when necessary to investigate suspected misconduct.
Remain open to new evidence and differing scholarly perspectives and avoid allowing personal opinions to influence editorial decisions.
Ensure that editorial decisions are not improperly influenced by advertising, sponsorship, institutional interests, or pressure to increase publication volume or citation counts.
Provide authors with clear explanations of editorial decisions when appropriate.
Encourage compliance with research ethics requirements, including approval by a relevant research ethics committee and informed consent where applicable.
Maintain accurate editorial records and protect the integrity of the scholarly publication record.

Editors must not use generative AI tools to evaluate confidential manuscripts or make editorial judgments where such use would compromise confidentiality, research integrity, or the journal's applicable AI policy. Editorial responsibility and final decisions must remain with qualified human editors.

4. Duties and Responsibilities of Peer Reviewers

Peer reviewers play an essential role in assessing the scientific quality, originality, validity, and relevance of submitted manuscripts.

Peer reviewers shall:

Accept review assignments only when they possess sufficient expertise to evaluate the subject matter of the manuscript.
Notify the editor promptly if they are unable to complete the review within the agreed timeframe.
Declare any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest before accepting or continuing a review assignment.
Decline assignments when personal, professional, institutional, financial, or collaborative relationships could compromise their impartiality.
Treat submitted manuscripts and all related communications as confidential documents.
Not share, distribute, reproduce, or disclose manuscript content or review reports to unauthorized individuals.
Provide objective, constructive, evidence-based, and respectful comments focused on the scientific quality of the manuscript.
Evaluate the originality, relevance, methodology, data analysis, validity of findings, interpretation, limitations, and conclusions of the research.
Identify relevant published work that has not been appropriately cited and inform the editor of suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, data irregularities, or other ethical concerns.
Avoid personal criticism, discriminatory language, unsupported accusations, and recommendations intended to advance personal interests.
Refrain from using unpublished information, data, methods, or ideas obtained through peer review for personal research or professional advantage without the author's explicit written permission.
Review revised manuscripts when requested by the editor and assess whether the authors have adequately addressed the previous comments.
Submit review reports within the agreed timeframe and communicate any concerns about the integrity of the review process to the editor.

Peer reviewers must not upload confidential manuscripts, review reports, or related editorial correspondence to external generative AI tools without explicit authorization under a journal-approved policy that adequately protects confidentiality, intellectual property, and data privacy. Reviewers remain fully responsible for the content and accuracy of their assessments.

5. Duties and Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for the originality, accuracy, integrity, and ethical conduct of the research reported in their manuscripts.

Authors shall:

Submit original work that has not been published previously and is not simultaneously under consideration by another journal, except where the journal has explicitly authorized a permitted exception.
Ensure that all individuals listed as authors meet the journal's authorship criteria and have made substantial scholarly contributions to the research.
Ensure that all listed authors have reviewed and approved the final manuscript and agreed to its submission for publication.
Accept appropriate collective responsibility for the article and ensure that the accuracy and integrity of all parts of the work can be explained and verified.
Present research methods, data, analyses, calculations, and results accurately and transparently.
Avoid fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, inappropriate image manipulation, selective reporting, and other practices that could misrepresent research findings.
Cite relevant sources accurately and acknowledge the contributions of other researchers, institutions, and collaborators.
Disclose research funding, financial support, institutional assistance, and other relevant sources of support.
Declare actual or potential conflicts of interest that could influence the research, its interpretation, or its publication.
Obtain and report relevant research ethics approval, informed consent, permissions, or other authorizations where required by the nature of the research.
Explain the limitations of the study and avoid conclusions that exceed the evidence provided by the results.
Respond to editorial and peer review comments professionally, accurately, and within the specified timeframe.
Provide additional information, supporting documentation, or access to research data when reasonably requested and ethically and legally permissible.
Notify the editor promptly if a significant error is discovered in a submitted or published article.
Inform the editor if they intend to withdraw a manuscript and provide an appropriate explanation.
Ensure that the manuscript does not infringe copyright, intellectual property rights, privacy rights, or other applicable legal protections.
Disclose the use of generative AI and AI-assisted tools in accordance with the journal's AI policy.
Refrain from manipulating citations, engaging in coercive citation practices, or adding irrelevant references to artificially increase citation counts.

5.1. Authorship Criteria and Changes in Authorship

Authorship must reflect substantial scholarly contributions to the conception or design of the study, the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data, or other significant intellectual work associated with the research.

All authors must participate in drafting or critically revising the manuscript, approve the final version, and agree to be accountable for the integrity of the work.

Individuals who have provided assistance without meeting the authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately rather than listed as authors.

The corresponding author is responsible for communicating with the journal and ensuring that all co-authors have approved the submission and the final manuscript.

Any addition, removal, or rearrangement of authors after submission must be justified and approved by all affected authors and the editor before the change is implemented. The journal may request written confirmation from all authors.

Generative AI tools and other non-human systems cannot be listed as authors or co-authors because they cannot assume the responsibilities and accountability required of authors.

6. Plagiarism, Duplicate Publication, and Research Misconduct

KHARISMA Tech does not tolerate plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, data falsification, or other forms of research and publication misconduct.

The following practices are considered unacceptable:

Plagiarism: Presenting another person's words, ideas, data, figures, or intellectual contributions as one's own without appropriate acknowledgment.
Self-plagiarism and redundant publication: Reusing previously published material or substantial portions of one's own work without appropriate disclosure, citation, permission where required, and a clear justification.
Duplicate submission: Submitting the same or substantially overlapping manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously without the relevant journals' explicit authorization.
Data fabrication: Inventing research data, observations, experiments, or results that were never obtained.
Data falsification: Manipulating research materials, processes, data, images, or results in a manner that misrepresents the research findings.
Citation manipulation: Adding irrelevant citations, coercing authors to cite particular works, or manipulating references to artificially increase citation metrics.
Improper authorship: Including individuals who do not qualify as authors or excluding individuals who have made qualifying scholarly contributions.
Misrepresentation of research: Making unsupported claims, concealing material limitations, or reporting results in a misleading manner.

KHARISMA Tech may use plagiarism detection software and other appropriate screening procedures during the initial assessment or editorial process. Similarity scores are indicators for editorial assessment and do not, by themselves, establish whether plagiarism has occurred.

When suspected misconduct is identified, the editor will assess the available evidence, seek explanations where appropriate, and determine suitable action. Depending on the circumstances, actions may include rejection, a request for clarification or correction, notification of the relevant institution, publication of a correction, or retraction of an already published article.

7. Conflicts of Interest

All authors, editors, and peer reviewers must disclose actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that could affect the impartiality or credibility of the research or publication process.

Conflicts of interest may arise from financial relationships, employment, consultancy, personal relationships, academic competition, institutional affiliations, intellectual property interests, or other circumstances that could reasonably influence professional judgment.

Authors must disclose relevant competing interests in their manuscripts or in the journal's designated disclosure form.

Editors must not handle manuscripts when they have a conflict of interest, including manuscripts authored by themselves, close collaborators, family members, or individuals with whom they have relationships that could compromise impartiality. Such manuscripts must be assigned to an independent editor.

Peer reviewers must declare relevant conflicts before accepting a review assignment. The editor will determine whether the reviewer may proceed or should be replaced.

If no relevant competing interests exist, authors should provide an explicit declaration stating that they have no competing interests to disclose.

Failure to disclose a material conflict of interest may result in editorial action, including rejection, correction, or retraction when warranted.

8. Research Ethics and Informed Consent

Research involving human participants, personal data, animals, or other ethically sensitive materials must comply with applicable laws, institutional requirements, and recognized ethical standards.

Where applicable, authors must provide information concerning:

Approval from the relevant research ethics committee or institutional review board.
Informed consent obtained from participants or their legally authorized representatives.
Measures taken to protect privacy, confidentiality, and personal data.
Permissions for the use of copyrighted materials, datasets, images, or other third-party content.
Relevant institutional, legal, or regulatory authorizations.

Authors must not claim that ethical approval has been obtained when it has not. Where formal ethical approval is not required, authors should provide an explanation when requested by the editor.

The editor may request supporting documentation if necessary to assess compliance with research ethics requirements.

9. Use of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies

KHARISMA Tech recognizes that generative artificial intelligence and AI-assisted tools may support certain aspects of research and manuscript preparation. Their use must remain transparent, responsible, and subject to human oversight.

9.1. Use of AI by Authors

Authors may use AI-assisted tools for appropriate purposes, such as improving language, organizing content, assisting with coding, or supporting data analysis, provided that their use complies with applicable ethical and legal requirements.

Authors must:

Remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and final content of their manuscripts.
Verify AI-generated information, references, calculations, and interpretations before submission.
Disclose substantive use of generative AI in manuscript preparation, including the name of the tool and the purpose of its use.
Describe the use of AI in research methods when it forms part of the research design, data processing, analysis, or other methodological procedures.
Ensure that AI-assisted content does not infringe intellectual property rights, disclose confidential information, or misrepresent research findings.
Avoid using AI-generated references or unsupported claims without independently verifying the original sources.

Routine spelling, grammar, and punctuation checks generally do not require disclosure unless the journal specifies otherwise.

Authors must not list AI tools as authors or co-authors. AI tools cannot assume responsibility for research integrity or publication accountability.

9.2. Use of AI by Editors and Peer Reviewers

Editors and peer reviewers must protect the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and related communications.

They must not upload confidential manuscript content or review materials to external AI systems in ways that expose unpublished research, personal data, intellectual property, or confidential editorial information.

AI tools must not replace the independent scholarly judgment of editors or reviewers. Editorial decisions and peer review assessments remain the responsibility of the designated human professionals.

9.3. AI-Generated Images and Research Data

Authors must not use AI-generated or AI-manipulated images to fabricate, falsify, or misrepresent research evidence.

When AI tools are used as part of the actual research method, including for image generation, image analysis, or data processing, the use must be transparently described in the methodology and supported by appropriate documentation.

All figures, images, datasets, and other research materials must accurately represent the underlying evidence and comply with applicable copyright and ethical requirements.

10. Open Peer Review Policy and Editorial Decisions

KHARISMA Tech applies an open peer review policy to promote transparency, accountability, fairness, and scientific integrity throughout the manuscript evaluation process.

Under this policy, the identities of authors and peer reviewers are disclosed to each other during the peer review process. Reviewers are expected to provide objective, constructive, evidence-based, and professional assessments of submitted manuscripts. Authors are expected to respond to reviewers' comments professionally and address the recommendations appropriately.

Each submitted manuscript undergoes an initial editorial assessment to determine its relevance to the journal's focus and scope, compliance with submission requirements, and suitability for peer review.

Manuscripts that pass the initial assessment are evaluated by qualified and independent peer reviewers with expertise relevant to the subject matter. KHARISMA Tech aims to obtain at least two independent review reports for each manuscript, subject to the journal's editorial procedures.

Reviewers assess the manuscript's originality, research objectives, methodological rigor, validity of findings, quality of analysis, relevance of references, and contribution to the field.

The editor considers the reviewers' recommendations, the authors' responses, and the scientific merit of the manuscript before making the final editorial decision. Possible decisions include acceptance, minor revision, major revision, or rejection.

Open peer review does not eliminate the need for confidentiality, professional conduct, or conflict-of-interest management. Authors and reviewers must not misuse information obtained through the review process, and reviewers must disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest.

The journal maintains appropriate records of reviewer assignments, review reports, author responses, revisions, and editorial decisions.

Where the journal adopts public disclosure of peer review reports, the relevant reports and associated editorial correspondence will be made available in accordance with the journal's publication policy and applicable confidentiality requirements. The journal will clearly inform authors and reviewers about which review materials and identities will be made public before the review process begins.

All final editorial decisions remain the responsibility of the journal's designated editor and are based on scientific quality, originality, methodological soundness, relevance, and compliance with publication ethics.

Authors who wish to appeal an editorial decision may submit a reasoned written appeal supported by relevant evidence. Appeals will be assessed fairly by the editor or an independent editor, as appropriate.

11. Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern

KHARISMA Tech is committed to preserving the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record.

11.1. Corrections

A correction may be published when a material error in a published article requires clarification or amendment but does not invalidate the main findings or conclusions.

11.2. Retractions

A retraction may be issued when reliable evidence establishes that an article contains serious errors or research misconduct that invalidates its findings, or when other substantial ethical violations warrant removal of the article's scientific credibility.

Retracted articles will remain identifiable in the publication record, with a clear retraction notice explaining the reason for the action. The journal will not silently replace or alter the scholarly record to conceal a retraction.

11.3. Expressions of Concern

An expression of concern may be issued when credible allegations arise but an investigation is incomplete or the available evidence is insufficient to reach a final conclusion.

All decisions concerning corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern must be made by the editor based on the available evidence, the seriousness of the issue, and the applicable publication ethics principles.

12. Complaints and Allegations of Misconduct

KHARISMA Tech welcomes good-faith reports concerning potential violations of publication ethics, research integrity, or editorial procedures.

Complaints should include sufficient information to identify the relevant manuscript or publication, describe the concern, and provide supporting evidence where available.

The editor or designated journal representative will assess the complaint fairly and confidentially. Relevant parties may be asked to provide explanations or additional documentation.

Where necessary, the journal may consult independent experts or contact the relevant institution to investigate suspected misconduct. The journal will avoid making unsupported public accusations and will take appropriate measures to protect the confidentiality of the investigation.

Complaints concerning an editor's own conduct must be referred to an independent editor or the journal management to avoid conflicts of interest.

The journal will document the investigation and take proportionate action based on the evidence and applicable policies.

13. Copyright, Permissions, and Intellectual Property

Authors are responsible for ensuring that submitted manuscripts and supporting materials comply with applicable copyright and intellectual property requirements.

Authors must obtain permission when required to reproduce copyrighted text, figures, images, tables, datasets, or other third-party materials.

The journal's copyright, licensing, and reuse arrangements must be stated clearly in its author guidelines and publication policies. Authors and readers are expected to comply with those terms.

Publication in KHARISMA Tech does not exempt authors from their responsibility to respect third-party rights or accurately acknowledge the origin of reused material.

14. Funding and Acknowledgments

Authors must disclose funding and other material support that contributed to the research.

Funding declarations should identify the relevant funding organization and grant information where applicable. Authors should also disclose any role played by funders in the research design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, or decision to submit the work for publication.

Contributions that do not meet the authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately, with the consent of the individuals concerned where appropriate.

15. Publication Independence and Citation Integrity

Editorial decisions must be based on the scientific quality and suitability of manuscripts rather than commercial, institutional, or personal considerations.

The journal does not permit coercive citation practices, artificial citation inflation, or the addition of irrelevant references for the purpose of improving journal or author metrics.

Editors and reviewers must not require authors to cite particular articles unless the references are genuinely relevant and the recommendation is scientifically justified.

Publication fees, sponsorship, advertising, or institutional affiliations must not improperly influence peer review or editorial decisions.

16. Policy Review and Implementation

This Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement applies to the journal management, editors, peer reviewers, authors, and other relevant participants in the publication process.

KHARISMA Tech reserves the right to review and update these policies to reflect developments in scholarly publishing, research integrity, applicable regulations, and recognized ethical standards.

The journal management is responsible for communicating policy updates and ensuring that the relevant procedures are implemented consistently.

By submitting a manuscript to KHARISMA Tech, authors acknowledge their responsibility to comply with the journal's publication ethics and editorial policies.

The journal is committed to addressing ethical concerns fairly, transparently, and consistently in order to protect the integrity of scholarly communication.

Journal: KHARISMA Tech
Publisher/Managing Institution: STMIK Kharisma Makassar
Managing Unit: Center for Research and Community Service (P3M)
Policy: Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement