Ethical Publication Policy and Procedures
As a publisher of peer-reviewed journals, the Asia Marketing Journal requires all journal submissions to adhere to the highest of ethical standards and best practices in publishing. All writing and research submitted to AMJ is expected to present accurate information and to properly cite all content referenced from other materials.
1. Regarding Plagiarism
To plagiarize is “to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own,” “use (another’s production) without crediting the source,” or to “present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plagiarize Accessed March 29, 2012). AMJ do not accept any forms of plagiarism including “self-plagiarism,” in which an author borrows from his or her own previously published work without the proper citation. It is also unacceptable to submit manuscripts to AMJ that have previously been published anywhere in any language. It is the authors’ responsibility to inform or notify the Editor upon submission if there is any doubt whether a manuscript may violate any of these terms.
2. Regarding Overlap
AMJ does not accept any articles with substantial overlap. This overlap can result from the use of the same data or analyses or when providing parallel substantive or theoretical results. It is the authors’ responsibility to notify and alert the editor. The Editor will make a binding decision whether a manuscript submitted to our journal is too similar to an article already published there or elsewhere. When writing a paper, it is important for authors to define its incremental contribution by referencing relevant work on which the paper builds. Authors are expected to search for and reference the related work of others. Authors are especially responsible for informing the Editor about their own work, whether it is published, in working paper form, or under review. When questions arise about related work, the Editor will provide guidance to the authors. Submitting a paper that is substantially the same as a previously published paper is considered a serious breach of professional ethics and may warrant the Editor contacting officials at the authors’ institutions of this breach. In the event that the author(s) is not affiliated with an institution, alternative steps may be taken, including a ban from submitting to AMJ.
3. Detection, Investigation, and Penalty
In any instance of suspected misconduct, AMJ pledges to carry out the process of detection, investigation, and penalty with fairness and confidentiality during the internal investigation. The process for detection, investigation, and penalty for suspected plagiarism is as follows:
Detection
Each respective journal Editor, along with the Editorial Board and non–Editorial Board reviewers, will serve to detect instances of plagiarism. When an Editor suspects plagiarism (or is informed by a reviewer who suspects plagiarism), he/she will make a judgment whether the claim has any merit. If the Editor determines that there has been potential misconduct, he/she will inform both the Vice President of Publications and Managing Editor and provide a detailed account of the possible violation or misconduct.
Investigation
When informed by the journal Editor, the Vice President of Publications will determine whether further investigation is required. The Vice President of Publications may choose to assemble a review committee of scholars to determine the exact nature and extent of the suspected misconduct. Each individual investigation may warrant the assembly of a new ad hoc committee. Any committee member who is perceived to have a conflict of interest must recuse him-/herself from the process. The Editor of the journal in question will not serve on the committee. If it is determined that an act of plagiarism has been committed, the Vice President of Publications will inform the author(s), in writing, with a detailed description of the alleged offense. The Vice President of Publications will offer the author(s) an opportunity to respond to the allegation. In events in which more than one author is involved, the authors may collaborate on their response or respond individually. If the committee concludes that no offense has been committed, no further action will be taken, and the Vice President of Publications will inform the authors. If the committee determines that there has been misconduct, the process will move into a penalty phase.
Penalty
In the event that an author (or authors) has been found to have engaged in some form of misconduct, he/she is to be subjected to a penalty. The nature and extent of the penalty will be determined by the Vice President of Publications with the advice and counsel of the committee members. The penalty will be dictated by the nature of the offense and will likely include a ban on submitting to any journal published by AMJ for a period of time. All sitting Editors of AMJ will be informed. The committee is empowered to customize penalties for each individual in instances in which multiple authors are involved. In extreme circumstances, the committee reserves the right to inform an author’s institution, depending on the seriousness of the offense.
5. Falsification of Data/Misreporting of Data
AMJ expects all submissions to include data that are honestly and accurately reported according to the accepted best practices of scholarly publishing. In instances in which falsified or grossly misreported data are suspected, the process outlined above (see Plagiarism) will be activated.
6. Conflicts of Interest
Conflicts of interest may arise in a variety of situations, and therefore the author is required to inform the editor of such conflict. A conflict of interest may exist when a manuscript under review puts forth a position contrary to the reviewer's published work or when a manuscript author or reviewer has a substantial direct or indirect financial interest in the subject matter of the manuscript. Because it is AMJ policy to engage in a double-blind review process, a conflict of interest may also exist when a reviewer knows the author of a manuscript. The reviewer should consult the journal editor in such situations to decide whether to review the manuscript. A conflict of interest does not exist when an author disagrees with a reviewer's assessment that a problem is unimportant or disagrees with an editorial outcome.
7. Protecting Intellectual Property
Protecting intellectual property is a primary responsibility of the reviewer and the editor. Reviewers, therefore, will not use ideas from or show another person the manuscript they have been asked to review without the explicit permission of the manuscript's author, obtained through the journal editor. Advice regarding specific, limited aspects of the manuscript may be sought from colleagues with specific expertise, provided the author’s identity and intellectual property remain secure.
8. Sharing of Reviewing Responsibilities
Sharing of reviewing responsibilities is inappropriate. The review is the sole responsibility of the person to whom it was assigned by the journal editor. Students and colleagues should not be asked to prepare reviews unless the journal editor has given explicit prior approval. Each person contributing to a review should receive formal recognition.