Allegations of Research Misconduct

AL-MAQĀṢID’s policy for managing allegations of research misconduct is grounded in the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), whose Core Practices and flowcharts govern how the journal investigates and responds to all reported concerns. All allegations are handled with sensitivity, confidentiality, and impartiality, regardless of whether they concern a manuscript under review or an article already published.

What Constitutes Research Misconduct

Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to: fabrication or falsification of data or results; plagiarism in any form (including self-plagiarism); duplicate or redundant publication without disclosure; undisclosed conflicts of interest; manipulation of authorship (guest authorship, ghost authorship, or coerced authorship); misrepresentation of research methods or findings; failure to obtain required ethical approval; peer review manipulation; and citation manipulation.

How to Submit an Allegation

Anyone — including authors, reviewers, readers, editors, or third parties — may report a suspected case of research misconduct to AL-MAQĀṢID. Allegations must be submitted in writing to the Managing Editor at the journal’s official email address. The allegation should include: the title and DOI of the article or submission in question; a clear description of the concern; and, where possible, supporting evidence. Anonymous reports will be considered at the discretion of the editorial board, though the ability to investigate may be limited without identifying information.

Investigation Procedure

Upon receipt of an allegation, the editorial office will acknowledge the report within five working days. All allegations are treated as strictly confidential throughout the investigation. The procedure follows COPE flowcharts and proceeds as follows:

  1. Initial assessment — The Editor-in-Chief conducts a preliminary review to determine whether the allegation is within scope and sufficiently substantiated to warrant investigation. Unfounded or vexatious complaints will be dismissed at this stage with written notification to the complainant.
  2. Author notification — If the allegation proceeds, the corresponding author is informed of the concern and given a reasonable opportunity to respond, typically within four weeks. The response is assessed by the editorial board.
  3. Editorial board review — The editorial board evaluates the allegation and the author’s response. Where specialist input is required, an independent expert may be consulted under conditions of confidentiality.
  4. Institution referral — Where the allegation is serious and the evidence is substantial, the matter may be referred to the relevant author’s institution or funding body, in accordance with COPE guidelines on cooperation between journals and research institutions (Version 2, March 2024).
  5. Decision and outcome — Possible outcomes include: dismissal of the allegation; a letter of correction or clarification; issuance of an Expression of Concern; retraction of the published article; or referral to the author’s institution. The decision and its rationale will be communicated to all parties.

Post-Publication Misconduct

Where misconduct is confirmed in a published article, AL-MAQĀṢID will take corrective action in accordance with its Retraction and Correction Policy. Retracted articles will remain visible on the journal website with a clearly marked retraction notice, and all relevant indexing databases will be notified.

Protecting Complainants and the Accused

AL-MAQĀṢID is committed to protecting complainants acting in good faith from retaliation. Equally, persons accused of misconduct are presumed innocent until an investigation is concluded, and their identity will not be disclosed beyond those directly involved in the investigation. Vexatious or bad-faith allegations may result in the complainant being barred from future submissions to the journal.

COPE Referral

Cases that cannot be resolved internally, or that involve the conduct of an editor, may be referred to COPE in anonymised format for guidance. AL-MAQĀṢID is committed to full cooperation with COPE in any such process.