Editorial Policies

Editorial Policies

The 9th International Conference on Business, Economics, Social Sciences, and Humanities (ICOBEST)

1. Introduction

The Editorial Policies of The 9th International Conference on Business, Economics, Social Sciences, and Humanities (ICOBEST) are established to ensure the integrity, transparency, and academic excellence of the editorial and publication processes. These policies provide a comprehensive framework for editors in managing manuscripts in accordance with internationally recognized standards of scholarly publishing and publication ethics.

2. Principles of Editorial Governance

2.1 Editorial Independence

Editors shall exercise full independence in editorial decision-making. All editorial decisions must be based solely on academic merit, originality, relevance, and methodological rigor, without any influence from conference organizers, sponsors, institutions, or external parties.

2.2 Professional Responsibility and Accountability

Editors are required to perform their duties with professionalism, objectivity, and accountability, ensuring that all editorial processes adhere to established ethical and academic standards.

3. Roles and Responsibilities of Editors

3.1 Initial Manuscript Assessment

Editors are responsible for conducting an initial screening of submitted manuscripts to evaluate:

  • Alignment with the scope and themes of ICOBEST;
  • Academic quality and originality;
  • Compliance with submission guidelines and formatting requirements;
  • Adherence to ethical standards and research integrity.

3.2 Peer-Review Management

Editors shall:

  • Appoint qualified, independent, and competent reviewers;
  • Ensure the confidentiality and anonymity of the peer-review process;
  • Monitor the quality and timeliness of reviewers’ evaluations;
  • Facilitate constructive communication between reviewers and authors.

3.3 Editorial Decision-Making

Based on peer-review results, editors shall make one of the following decisions:

  • Accept;
  • Accept with minor revisions;
  • Accept with major revisions;
  • Reject.

All editorial decisions must be supported by clear academic justification and properly documented.

4. Peer-Review Policy

4.1 Single-Blind Review Process

ICOBEST implements a single-blind review process to ensure objectivity and academic rigor in manuscript evaluation. In this process, the identities of the reviewers are concealed from the authors, while the reviewers have access to the authors’ identities.

This single-blind review process is applied to maintain transparency in scholarly assessment while minimizing potential bias and ensuring the quality and credibility of accepted papers.

4.2 Evaluation Criteria

Manuscripts are evaluated based on:

  • Originality and novelty;
  • Theoretical and practical contributions;
  • Methodological rigor;
  • Clarity of presentation and argumentation;
  • Relevance to the conference themes.

4.3 Reviewer Ethics

Reviewers are required to:

  • Conduct evaluations objectively, fairly, and constructively;
  • Maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts and review reports;
  • Declare any potential conflicts of interest prior to accepting review assignments.

5. Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

5.1 Plagiarism and Similarity Check

All manuscripts must undergo plagiarism screening using appropriate similarity detection tools. Manuscripts with unacceptable similarity levels shall be rejected or returned to authors for revision.

5.2 Research Integrity

Editors shall ensure that submitted manuscripts:

  • Do not involve data fabrication, falsification, or manipulation;
  • Comply with ethical standards in research involving human participants or animals;
  • Present accurate, transparent, and verifiable data.

5.3 Authorship and Contribution

Editors shall ensure that authorship is properly attributed and that all listed authors have made significant contributions to the research.

5.4 Conflict of Interest

Editors must disclose any conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where such conflicts exist.

6. Fairness and Non-Discrimination

Editors shall guarantee a fair editorial process without discrimination based on nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, religion, or other personal characteristics. All manuscripts shall be evaluated solely on academic merit.

7. Confidentiality and Data Protection

Editors must maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and personal data in accordance with applicable data protection regulations.

8. Handling Complaints and Appeals

ICOBEST provides a formal mechanism for handling complaints and appeals related to editorial decisions. Editors shall review appeals objectively and transparently in accordance with established procedures.

9. Corrections, Retractions, and Withdrawals

Editors are authorized to:

  • Issue corrections for minor errors;
  • Retract published papers in cases of serious ethical violations;
  • Withdraw manuscripts prior to publication when necessary.

10. Copyright and Intellectual Property

Copyright and intellectual property rights are governed by the policies of ICOBEST and the designated publisher. Editors shall ensure compliance with relevant copyright regulations.

11. Archiving and Indexing

Editors shall ensure that conference proceedings are properly archived and prepared to meet the standards of national and international indexing services.

12. Continuous Quality Improvement

Editors shall periodically review and refine editorial policies to enhance the quality, credibility, and international reputation of ICOBEST.