Plagiarism Ethics

Plagiarism, Self-Plagiarism, and AI-Generated Content Policy

The International Journal of Combinatorial Optimization Problems and Informatics (IJCOPI) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity and ethical publishing practices. All submitted manuscripts must be original and free from plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and unethical use of artificial intelligence tools.

1. Plagiarism

Plagiarism is defined as the use of others’ work without proper acknowledgment. The journal considers the following as serious ethical violations:

  • Literal plagiarism: direct copying of text without appropriate citation.
  • Paraphrasing plagiarism: rewriting content while retaining the original meaning without proper attribution.
  • Translation plagiarism: translating content from another language without citing the original source.
  • Idea plagiarism: using ideas, methods, results, or conclusions without proper acknowledgment.

2. Self-Plagiarism

Self-plagiarism occurs when authors reuse substantial portions of their previously published work without proper citation or justification. This includes duplicate or redundant publication, as well as the reuse of data, figures, or results without appropriate citation.

Limited overlap may be acceptable in review articles or extended studies, provided prior work is properly cited and its relationship to the new manuscript is clearly explained.

3. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy

The use of artificial intelligence tools (e.g., ChatGPT or similar systems) must be disclosed in the manuscript whenever such tools have been used for drafting, editing, summarization, translation, or analytical support.

  • AI tools cannot be listed as authors.
  • AI-generated content must not be presented as original intellectual work.
  • Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the manuscript.

Failure to disclose relevant AI use may result in rejection or retraction.

4. Detection and Screening Process

All submitted manuscripts are subject to similarity screening using specialized tools such as iThenticate, Turnitin, or equivalent systems. Similarity reports are evaluated by the editorial team, which determines whether any overlap is acceptable according to academic and editorial standards.

5. Ethical Actions and Sanctions

In cases of confirmed misconduct, the journal may take one or more of the following actions:

  • Rejection of the manuscript during editorial evaluation or peer review.
  • Request for correction or clarification from the authors.
  • Retraction of a published article when misconduct is identified after publication.
  • Temporary or permanent restriction on future submissions in severe or repeated cases.

The journal reserves the right to notify affiliated institutions when necessary.

6. Alignment with Ethical Standards

The journal follows internationally recognized ethical principles in scholarly publishing and takes as reference the guidelines promoted by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), particularly regarding plagiarism, authorship responsibility, conflicts of interest, retractions, and editorial integrity.

7. Encouragement of Best Practices

Authors are expected to:

  • Properly cite all sources, including ideas, methods, and previous findings.
  • Provide transparent disclosure of any relevant use of artificial intelligence tools in the manuscript.
  • Ensure ethical compliance with internationally recognized principles of research integrity.

 

Editorial Conflict of Interest Policy

Manuscripts submitted by the Editor-in-Chief, Associate Editors, Editorial Board members, Editorial Staff, guest editors, or persons with a close institutional, personal, academic, or professional relationship with them are handled under an independent editorial procedure.

In such cases, the involved editor is fully recused from the editorial process and has no access to reviewer identities, reviewer reports, internal deliberations, or editorial decisions.

The manuscript is assigned to an independent Associate Editor or Guest Editor with no conflict of interest. At least two independent external reviewers are invited. The final decision is made by the independent handling editor according to the journal’s peer-review criteria.

The recusal and independent handling process are recorded internally to preserve editorial integrity and transparency.