Code of Ethics

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement (Code of Ethics)

The Editorial Board of Annales Universitatis Paedagogicae Cracoviensis. Studia ad Didacticam Scientiarum Socialium Pertinentia is committed to the principles of research integrity, transparency in the publishing process, and academic honesty. The journal’s publication ethics policy is based on the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and internationally recognized standards of research ethics and good scientific practice.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to the journal are expected to:

  • submit only original research that has been conducted and reported in accordance with the principles of research integrity;
  • ensure that the submitted manuscript has not been published previously and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere;
  • appropriately acknowledge and cite all sources used, respecting copyright and intellectual property rights;
  • identify all individuals who have made a substantial scholarly contribution to the work and prevent unethical practices such as ghostwriting and guest authorship;
  • disclose all sources of research funding and any potential conflicts of interest;
  • promptly notify the Editorial Board of any significant errors or inaccuracies discovered after publication that may affect the interpretation of the research findings.

Responsibilities of the Editorial Board

The Editorial Board undertakes to:

  • make publication decisions solely on the basis of the manuscript’s scientific merit, originality, and relevance to the journal’s scope;
  • ensure an impartial, confidential, and fair peer-review process;
  • prevent all forms of research misconduct, including plagiarism, self-plagiarism, data fabrication, and data falsification;
  • maintain the confidentiality of all information obtained during the editorial and peer-review process;
  • publish corrections, clarifications, retractions, or other editorial notices whenever breaches of publication ethics are identified.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers are expected to:

  • provide objective, constructive, and evidence-based evaluations of submitted manuscripts;
  • treat all manuscripts and related information as confidential;
  • inform the Editorial Board of any suspected plagiarism, self-plagiarism, copyright infringement, or other forms of research misconduct;
  • decline to review manuscripts in cases where a conflict of interest exists.

Conflict of Interest

Authors, reviewers, and members of the Editorial Board are required to disclose any personal, professional, financial, or institutional relationships that could influence the objectivity of the editorial or peer-review process. Where a conflict of interest is identified, the Editorial Board shall take appropriate measures to ensure the independence and integrity of editorial decisions.

Prevention of Research Misconduct

The Editorial Board does not tolerate practices that violate the principles of publication ethics, including:

  • plagiarism;
  • self-plagiarism;
  • fabrication or falsification of research data;
  • manipulation or misrepresentation of research findings;
  • ghostwriting;
  • guest authorship;
  • citation manipulation.

Where there is reasonable suspicion of unethical conduct, the Editorial Board will undertake an appropriate investigation. Depending on the nature and severity of the breach, the journal may reject the manuscript, retract the published article, publish a correction or editorial notice, or notify the relevant research institution or other appropriate authorities.

Ethical Statement

All participants in the publication process—including authors, reviewers, members of the Editorial Board, and members of the Scientific Board—are required to comply with these ethical standards and with the principles of good scientific practice recognized by the national and international academic community.