Publication Ethics

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

The Editorial Committee of the journal ”Argumenta Oeconomica” makes every conceivable effort to ensure that each stage of the publishing process meets the highest ethical standards. The declarations and ethical principles concerning the publication of ”Argumenta Oeconomica” result from the attained experience and the elaborated good practices, as well as being based on the directives of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors.

Summary of Publication Policy

Originality and Scope: The Editorial Board accepts only original, previously unpublished research papers that fall strictly within the scope described in the Aims and Scope section.
Online Submission: All manuscripts must be submitted exclusively via the Open Journal Systems (OJS) editorial platform, following the instructions in the Submissions section.
Peer Review: Every submitted manuscript that passes initial editorial screening is subject to an independent double-blind peer review procedure conducted by at least two external reviewers, as detailed in the Reviews section.
Open Access Policy:

All accepted articles are published in full Open Access under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license (CC BY-SA 4.0). Full Open Access publication is entirely covered by the standard Article Processing Charge (APC), with no separate or hidden fees charged to authors for open access distribution. The open access policy has been noted in Open policy finder
Plagiarism Detection: The anti-plagiarism policy is applied as shown in the following flowchart. The submitted articles are verified using the iThenticate anti-plagiarism system. The manuscript is rejected if the similarity index exceeds 30%.
Integrity of Authorship: The journal enforces strict policies against academic misconduct, including ghostwriting, guest/gift authorship, paper mills, citation manipulation, and unauthorized text recycling, following the COPE Core Practices and Text Recycling Research Project (TRRP) guidelines.
Data Protection: The Publisher and Editorial Board comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)regarding the processing of personal data.

Duties and responsibilities of the Publisher

Integrity and Support: The Publisher (Wrocław University of Economics and Business) supports the Editorial Board of Argumenta Oeconomica in maintaining academic autonomy and upholding publishing ethics.
Editorial Independence: The Publisher respects editorial independence and ensures that commercial or financial factors do not influence editorial decisions.
Corrections and Retractions: In instances of proven or suspected scientific misconduct, data falsification, duplicate publication, or serious error, the Publisher and Editors will collaborate to publish errata, corrigenda, expressions of concern, or, when warranted, issue full article retractions in alignment with COPE Retraction Guidelines.
Archiving and Preservation: The Publisher ensures the long-term digital preservation and continuous availability of all published issues.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Editors

Publication Decisions and Objectivity: The Editor-in-Chief and Section Editors evaluate manuscripts solely on their intellectual, theoretical, and empirical merits, relevance to the journal's scope, and academic originality. Evaluations are conducted without regard to the authors' race, gender, nationality, ethnic origin, institutional affiliation, religious beliefs, or political orientation.
Confidentiality: The Editorial Board treats all submitted manuscripts as confidential materials. No details about a submission are disclosed to any third party other than the authors, invited reviewers, potential reviewers, and the Publisher.
Conflict of Interest: Editors recuse themselves from handling submissions in which they have a conflict of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other institutional/personal relationships with the authors. In such cases, an independent handling editor is assigned.
Use of Submitted Material: Unpublished materials disclosed in a submission must not be used in an Editor's own research or projects without the express written consent of the author.
Handling Misconduct: Editors take prompt, rigorous steps whenever ethical concerns, alleged misconduct, or disputes are raised regarding a submitted or published paper, following the relevant COPE flowcharts.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Reviewers

Contribution to Editorial Decisions: Reviewers provide rigorous, balanced, and constructive evaluations to assist the Editorial Board in making informed decisions and to help authors improve their work.
Double-Blind Integrity: Reviewers must maintain strict anonymity and confidentiality throughout the evaluation process. They may not share or copy manuscripts, discuss their contents, or contact authors directly without editorial authorization.
Timeliness and Competence: Invited reviewers who do not possess the necessary expertise to evaluate a specific manuscript, or who cannot complete the evaluation within the stipulated timeframe, must decline promptly so that alternative referees can be appointed.
Standards of Objectivity: Reviews must be conducted objectively and constructively. Personal criticism, derogatory remarks, or unprofessional observations aimed at the authors are inadmissible. Judgments must be supported by sound academic reasoning.
Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest: Reviewers must decline assignments if they identify a financial, institutional, or personal conflict of interest with the authors or the work under review.
Vigilance Regarding Ethical Infringements: Reviewers should bring to the Editors' attention any substantial similarities between the manuscript under review and any previously published work, as well as any suspicions of data manipulation, fabricated evidence, or improper citation practices (including coercive self-citation requests).

Duties and Responsibilities of the Authors

Originality and Attribution: Authors must warrant that their submitted work is entirely original. When the work, methodologies, or text of others have been used, they must be meticulously cited and referenced. Plagiarism in all forms, including self-plagiarism (text recycling of substantial portions of earlier publications without proper attribution), is unacceptable.
Single Submission: Authors may not submit a manuscript that describes essentially the same research to more than one journal simultaneously. Multiple or parallel submissions constitute severe publishing misconduct.
Authorship Criteria: In accordance with ICMJE and COPE recommendations, authorship must be restricted to individuals who:
1. Made a substantial contribution to the concept, design, acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data;
2. Drafted the manuscript or critically revised it for important intellectual content;
3. Approved the final version to be published;
4. Agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part are properly investigated and resolved.
5. Contributors who do not meet all four criteria should be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools: In line with COPE and international publishing policies, AI generative tools (such as LLMs, chatbots, or image generators) cannot be listed as authors or co-authors. Authors who utilize AI tools in writing, translation, data analysis, or graphic design must explicitly disclose this in the manuscript (e.g., in the Methods or Acknowledgements section), specifying the tool used and the nature of its contribution. Authors retain full, personal responsibility for the accuracy, novelty, and factual integrity of the entire text.
Changes in Authorship: Any modification to authorship (adding, deleting, or reordering author names, or altering contribution statements) after submission requires written, explicit consent from all authors, submitted to the Editorial Office ([email protected]). Authorship disputes that cannot be settled amicably among authors must be referred to their home institutions.
Data Integrity and Reproducibility: Authors should provide accurate underlying data and sufficient methodological detail to permit replication by other scholars. The intentional presentation of manipulated, fabricated, or deceptive data is treated as major scientific misconduct.
Funding and Conflict of Interest: Authors must disclose all financial backing, research grants, corporate sponsorships, and any personal or institutional conflicts of interest that could be construed as influencing the research findings.
Fundamental Errors in Published Work: If an author identifies a significant error or inaccuracy in their published paper, they are obligated to notify the Editor-in-Chief promptly and collaborate in issuing an erratum or, if necessary, retracting the paper.
Confidentiality in Editorial Communication:

Editorial correspondence, review reports, and administrative decisions are confidential communications between the Editorial Office and the authors and must not be published or disseminated publicly without prior written authorization from the journal.