Publication Ethics

The Journal of Contemporary Tourism & Hospitality Research (JoCTH), published by IIUM Press, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. The journal's publication ethics and malpractice statement are adapted from the principles and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and apply to the Editor-in-Chief, editorial board members, reviewers, and authors.

JoCTH is committed to ensuring that all manuscripts are handled with fairness, transparency, confidentiality, and integrity throughout the submission, peer-review, and publication processes.

DUTIES OF AUTHORS

Authors submitting manuscripts to JoCTH are expected to:

Ensure that the submitted work is original and has not been previously published elsewhere.
Ensure that the manuscript is not under review or consideration by another journal at the time of submission to JoCTH.
Not submit the same manuscript, or substantially similar work, to more than one journal simultaneously.
Withdraw a manuscript from consideration only with the formal approval of the Editor-in-Chief. Authors may submit the manuscript elsewhere only after receiving a formal rejection from JoCTH or after their withdrawal request has been officially approved.
Provide accurate, complete, and reliable information and data in their manuscript.
Promptly inform the Editor-in-Chief or the publisher if they discover any significant error or inaccuracy in their published work and cooperate in correcting or retracting the article, where necessary.
Ensure that all individuals listed as authors have made significant contributions to the research and manuscript and are accountable for the integrity and content of the work.
Obtain approval from all co-authors of the final version of the manuscript before submission and publication.
Properly acknowledge the contributions of individuals who have contributed to the research but do not qualify for authorship.
Ensure that all sources, ideas, data, quotations, and materials derived from other works are appropriately cited and acknowledged.

DUTIES OF REVIEWERS

Reviewers play an important role in maintaining the academic quality and integrity of JoCTH. Reviewers are expected to:

Disclose any potential conflict of interest before accepting an invitation to review a manuscript.
Decline to review a manuscript if they have a conflict of interest, insufficient expertise, or any other circumstance that may affect their ability to provide an impartial assessment.
Evaluate manuscripts objectively, fairly, constructively, and professionally.
Assess manuscripts based on their academic quality, originality, relevance, methodology, clarity, and contribution to the field of tourism and hospitality research.
Immediately notify the Editor-in-Chief if they identify any potential ethical concerns, plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, falsification, or other forms of academic misconduct.
Maintain the confidentiality of all information contained in the manuscript and not disclose, copy, use, or distribute any part of the manuscript without permission.
Not use information, ideas, data, or findings obtained through the peer-review process for personal or professional advantage.
Provide clear, constructive, and evidence-based comments to assist authors in improving their manuscripts.
Complete the review within the time allocated by the journal. Requests for an extension may be considered at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief.

DUTIES OF EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS

Editorial board members are expected to:

Contribute actively to the academic development, quality, and reputation of JoCTH.
Support the journal in maintaining high standards of scholarly publishing and publication ethics.
Serve as ambassadors for the journal and promote its academic visibility and dissemination.
Assist the editorial team in identifying suitable reviewers and potential contributors where appropriate.
Review manuscripts assigned to them objectively and within the stipulated timeframe.
Declare any potential conflict of interest relating to manuscripts or authors.
Maintain the confidentiality of all editorial and manuscript-related information.
Provide constructive recommendations to enhance the quality, relevance, and visibility of the journal.

DUTIES OF THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for ensuring the integrity, fairness, and quality of the journal's editorial and publication processes. The Editor-in-Chief shall:

Evaluate manuscripts fairly and objectively based on their academic and intellectual merit, without discrimination based on the author's nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, race, religion, or other personal characteristics.
Ensure the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and disclose manuscript-related information only to individuals directly involved in the editorial and publication process.
Make decisions regarding the acceptance, revision, or rejection of manuscripts based on scholarly quality, relevance, originality, and the recommendations of reviewers and editors.
Ensure that appropriate and qualified reviewers are selected for the peer-review process.
Ensure that the journal's peer-review process is conducted fairly, transparently, and consistently.
Address allegations of plagiarism, research misconduct, conflicts of interest, and other ethical concerns appropriately and in accordance with established publication-ethics principles.
Provide clear information and instructions to authors regarding the submission, peer-review, revision, and publication processes.
Seek feedback and recommendations from editorial board members, reviewers, authors, and other relevant stakeholders to improve the quality, reputation, and visibility of JoCTH.
Ensure that editorial decisions are not influenced by commercial interests, personal relationships, or other inappropriate considerations.

PLAGIARISM AND ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT

Authors must submit only original work that has not been plagiarised, published previously, or submitted for consideration elsewhere.

JoCTH may use appropriate plagiarism or similarity-detection software to assess submitted manuscripts for potential plagiarism, excessive similarity, duplicate publication, or other forms of academic misconduct. Authors are responsible for ensuring that all ideas, words, data, figures, tables, and other materials obtained from other sources are appropriately cited, referenced, or acknowledged.

Fabrication, falsification, manipulation of data, misrepresentation of findings, plagiarism, and knowingly submitting inaccurate or misleading information constitute serious violations of publication ethics and may result in rejection, retraction, or other appropriate editorial action.

RESEARCH REPORTING AND DATA INTEGRITY

Authors are required to report their research findings accurately, clearly, and honestly. Manuscripts must not contain fabricated, falsified, or inappropriately manipulated data.

Authors should provide sufficient information regarding the research methodology, procedures, data collection, and analysis to enable other researchers to understand, evaluate, and, where appropriate, reproduce the research.

Any limitations, methodological constraints, or relevant issues affecting the interpretation of the findings should be appropriately disclosed.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

Authors must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest that may influence the research, interpretation of findings, or publication of the manuscript.

All sources of financial support, funding, sponsorship, or other forms of assistance received for the research should be disclosed where applicable.

Editors and reviewers must also declare any conflict of interest and should not participate in the review or editorial decision-making process where such a conflict exists.

AUTHORSHIP AND COLLABORATION

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial and meaningful contributions to the conception, design, conduct, analysis, interpretation, or writing of the research.

Individuals who have contributed to specific aspects of the research but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be appropriately acknowledged.

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that:

All individuals who qualify for authorship are included as co-authors.
No individual who has not made a significant contribution is listed as an author.
All co-authors have reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript.
All co-authors agree to the submission of the manuscript to JoCTH.
Any changes to authorship during the review or publication process are communicated to and approved by all relevant authors and the Editor-in-Chief.

All authors share responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of the work.

MULTIPLE, DUPLICATE, OR REDUNDANT PUBLICATION

Authors must not submit or publish manuscripts reporting substantially the same research findings in more than one journal or primary publication.

A manuscript that is substantially similar to a manuscript already published or under consideration elsewhere should not be submitted to JoCTH. Simultaneous submission of the same or substantially similar manuscript to multiple journals constitutes unethical publishing behaviour and is not acceptable.

Where substantial overlap with previously published or submitted work exists, authors must disclose this to the Editor-in-Chief and appropriately cite the related publication.

CORRECTIONS, RETRACTIONS, AND POST-PUBLICATION ISSUES

JoCTH is committed to maintaining the accuracy and integrity of its published content. Where significant errors, inaccuracies, or ethical concerns are identified after publication, the journal may issue a correction, clarification, expression of concern, or retraction, as appropriate.

Authors are expected to cooperate fully with the journal in investigating and resolving any concerns relating to their published work.

The Editor-in-Chief reserves the right to take appropriate action when evidence of serious academic or publication misconduct is established.

THE USE OF AI AND AI-ASSISTED TECHNOLOGIES

JoCTH recognises that artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies may be used as tools to support certain aspects of research and manuscript preparation. However, their use must be transparent and must not compromise academic integrity.

Authors who use AI or AI-assisted technologies in the preparation of a manuscript, production of images or graphical elements, data collection, data analysis, or other substantive aspects of the research must appropriately disclose how the technology was used and identify the relevant AI tool, where applicable.

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and ethical standards of their manuscript, including any content generated or assisted by AI tools. AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors.

Authors must verify all AI-assisted content, references, data, quotations, and factual statements before submission. The use of AI does not exempt authors from responsibility for plagiarism, fabricated information, copyright infringement, inaccurate citations, confidentiality breaches, or any other violation of publication ethics.

JoCTH's policy on AI and AI-assisted technologies is guided by the principles and recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and may be updated as AI technologies and publication-ethics standards evolve.