Publishing Ethics and Malpractice Statement

The journal Stredoeurópske pohľady is committed to the principles of responsible scholarly publishing and to maintaining academic integrity throughout the entire publication process. The publication of scholarly research is based on the principles of honesty, transparency, objectivity, respect for intellectual property rights, and accountability of all parties involved in the publication process.

In addressing ethical issues, the Editorial Office follows, in particular, the Core Practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, and other internationally recognised standards of scholarly publishing.

All parties involved in the publication process – authors, reviewers, members of the Editorial Office and the Editorial Board, and the Publisher – are required to adhere to the principles set out in this policy.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for the scholarly and ethical standards of the manuscripts they submit. By submitting a manuscript, the author(s) confirm that:

  • the manuscript represents an original contribution based on their own scholarly or professional work;
  • all sources used have been properly acknowledged and cited;
  • the data and information presented in the manuscript are truthful and accurate and have not been intentionally falsified or manipulated;
  • the manuscript has not been previously published and is not under consideration by another journal or publisher at the same time (duplicate or simultaneous submission);
  • all co-authors have approved the final version of the manuscript and have agreed to its submission.

Authors must not intentionally withhold any information that could affect the credibility of the research or the interpretation of its findings. Throughout the publication process, authors are required to cooperate with the Editorial Office, respond appropriately to reviewers’ comments, and promptly notify the Editorial Office of any significant error identified in their manuscript after submission or publication.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

Peer review is a fundamental mechanism for ensuring the scholarly quality of the journal. Reviewers are expected to conduct their assessments independently, objectively, and impartially within a Double-Blind Peer Review Process.

Reviewers are required to:

  • accept a review assignment only if they have the appropriate expertise to assess the manuscript;
  • promptly disclose to the Editorial Office any circumstances that could give rise to a conflict of interest;
  • maintain strict confidentiality regarding the content of the manuscript under review;
  • refrain from sharing the manuscript with any third party without prior permission from the Editorial Office;
  • prepare their review reports in a professional, objective, constructive, and respectful manner and submit them within the specified deadline.

If a reviewer suspects plagiarism, duplicate publication, or any other form of publication misconduct, they must promptly inform the Editorial Office.

Responsibilities of the Editorial Office and Editorial Board

The Editorial Office is responsible for ensuring that the publication process is transparent, fair, and conducted in accordance with appropriate scholarly standards. Editorial decisions concerning submitted manuscripts are made independently and impartially. Each manuscript is assessed solely on the basis of its scholarly merit, originality, methodological rigour, and significance to the advancement of the relevant field, without regard to the authors’ race, gender, religious beliefs, ethnic origin, or political views.

The Editorial Office is responsible for ensuring:

  • the protection of anonymity throughout the peer-review process;
  • the protection of the personal data of authors and reviewers;
  • the confidentiality of all information obtained during the editorial process;
  • the investigation and handling of suspected publication misconduct in accordance with COPE guidelines;
  • the implementation of appropriate measures to safeguard the integrity of the scholarly record.

Members of the Editorial Office or Editorial Board must not participate in decisions concerning manuscripts in relation to which they have a conflict of interest. If a manuscript is submitted by a member of the Editorial Office, the Editor-in-Chief, or a member of the Editorial Board, the entire evaluation and peer-review process is conducted independently and anonymously, and editorial responsibility for the manuscript is assigned to an independent editor. The individual concerned takes no part in the evaluation, peer-review process, or editorial decision.

Responsibilities of the Editor-in-Chief

The Editor-in-Chief bears overall scholarly responsibility for the journal’s publication activities. In particular, the Editor-in-Chief:

  • makes decisions on the acceptance or rejection of manuscripts on the basis of the outcomes of the peer-review process;
  • oversees the transparency and integrity of the double-anonymous peer-review process;
  • ensures fair and equitable treatment of all authors;
  • makes decisions on the handling of ethical concerns and allegations of publication misconduct;
  • cooperates with the Publisher in safeguarding the scholarly integrity of the journal.

In carrying out these responsibilities, the Editor-in-Chief acts independently of any commercial, political, or personal interests.

Responsibilities of the Publisher

The Publisher respects the editorial and scholarly independence of the journal and does not interfere with decisions concerning the acceptance or rejection of manuscripts. The Publisher provides the organisational, technical, and administrative support necessary for the publication of the journal and promotes compliance with internationally recognised standards of scholarly publishing.

Conflicts of Interest

A conflict of interest arises when personal, professional, financial, or other relationships could influence, or could reasonably be perceived as influencing, the objectivity of any party involved in the publication process. The obligation to disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest applies to authors, reviewers, and members of the Editorial Office.

If a conflict of interest arises or becomes apparent during the peer-review or editorial process, the individual concerned must promptly inform the Editorial Office and withdraw from any further evaluation of or decision-making concerning the manuscript in question. Authors are required to disclose in the submitted manuscript all sources of financial support and research funding, including grants and projects.

Plagiarism and Other Forms of Publication Misconduct

The journal does not tolerate any form of academic or publication misconduct. The following practices, in particular, are considered unacceptable:

  • plagiarism and self-plagiarism;
  • duplicate publication or unauthorised simultaneous publication;
  • inappropriate authorship practices, including ghost authorship and gift authorship, as well as the omission of individuals who meet the criteria for authorship;
  • fabrication, falsification, or manipulation of research data;
  • intentional misrepresentation of research findings;
  • failure to disclose a conflict of interest;
  • manipulation of the peer-review process.

Any allegation or concern regarding suspected publication misconduct is assessed by the Editorial Office on a case-by-case basis, confidentially and impartially. In investigating and addressing suspected breaches of publication ethics, the Editorial Office follows the relevant COPE Flowcharts and recommendations. The individual concerned is given an opportunity to respond to all relevant allegations and information before a final decision is made.

If a breach of publication ethics is established, the Editorial Office will take appropriate action, depending on the nature and severity of the misconduct. Such action may include:

  • rejection of the manuscript;
  • suspension of the publication process;
  • publication of a correction;
  • retraction of the published article;
  • notification of the author’s affiliated institution or funding body in cases of serious misconduct.

All individuals involved in the publication process are required to maintain the confidentiality of information obtained in the course of that process. Manuscripts, peer-review reports, and other related documents must not be disclosed to third parties without the prior permission of the Editorial Office or used for personal advantage.

Journal Policies

Open Access Policy

Stredoeurópske pohľady is a fully open-access journal operating under the Diamond Open Access model. All published content is freely and immediately available in full upon publication, without any embargo period. Users may read, download, save, cite, distribute, or link to published articles in accordance with the terms of the applicable licence.

Copyright and Licensing

  • Authors retain copyright in their contributions without restriction.
  • By submitting a manuscript, authors grant the Publisher a non-exclusive licence to first publish the work and to make it available and distribute it in both print and electronic formats.
  • Published contributions are made available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.
  • Authors are responsible for ensuring that the use of any text, images, or other third-party material does not infringe the copyright or other intellectual property rights of third parties and that all necessary permissions for reproduction have been obtained.

Article Processing Charges (APCs)

Stredoeurópske pohľady does not charge authors any fees for manuscript submission (Submission Fees), peer review, or publication (Article Processing Charges – APCs). Publication in the journal is entirely free of charge for authors.

Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI Policy)

  • Authors may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools in the preparation of manuscripts solely as assistive tools for language, stylistic, or technical editing.
  • AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors of a contribution.
  • Authors are required to disclose the use of AI tools in the manuscript, specifying the name of the tool and the extent and purpose of its use. Authors remain fully responsible for the content, accuracy, originality, and integrity of their manuscripts.
  • Reviewers must not upload manuscripts, either in whole or in part, to publicly accessible AI systems, in order to protect the confidentiality of the peer-review process and the intellectual property rights of authors.

Personal Data Protection Policy

Personal data relating to authors, reviewers, and other users, including names, institutional affiliations, and e-mail addresses, are processed solely for purposes related to the operation and publication activities of the journal, in accordance with the applicable laws of the Slovak Republic and Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council (General Data Protection Regulation – GDPR). Personal data will not be disclosed to third parties or used for commercial purposes.

Archiving and Digital Identification

The journal ensures the long-term preservation of published content in order to maintain its permanent accessibility and integrity. Electronic versions of published articles are archived on the journal’s website and in the institutional repository of Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra.

  • Each published contribution is assigned a persistent Digital Object Identifier (DOI).
  • Authors are required to provide their ORCID ID.

Integrity of the Scholarly Record (Corrections, Retractions, and Removal)

If, following publication, an error or other issue is identified that affects the accuracy or reliability of an article or its findings, the Editorial Office takes appropriate and transparent action in accordance with COPE guidelines.

  1. Corrigendum (Author Correction): If an error is identified or caused by the author and does not affect the main scholarly conclusions of the article, the Editorial Office publishes a formal Corrigendum linked to the original article.
  2. Erratum (Publisher Correction): If an error is introduced during the editorial, production, or publication process and does not affect the main scholarly conclusions of the article, the Editorial Office publishes a formal Erratum linked to the original article.
  3. Retraction: An article may be retracted in cases of serious publication misconduct or other fundamental problems that undermine the reliability of its findings, including plagiarism, fabrication or falsification of data, duplicate publication, or major errors that invalidate or seriously call into question the article’s findings. The retraction notice clearly states the reason(s) for the retraction and is linked to the original article. The original article remains part of the scholarly record and is retained in the journal’s archive, clearly marked with the watermark “RETRACTED”.
  4. Article Removal: Removal of a published article is reserved for exceptional circumstances, particularly where continued availability of the article would violate applicable law, privacy rights, or the copyright or other intellectual property rights of third parties. In such cases, the article’s metadata and a notice explaining the reason for its removal remain publicly available.

Complaints, Appeals, and Dispute Resolution

Stredoeurópske pohľady handles all complaints, concerns, and appeals against editorial decisions in a transparent, impartial, and timely manner. Complaints and appeals may be submitted to the Editorial Office by e-mail.

Each complaint, concern, or appeal is reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief and the Editorial Board or, where appropriate, by an independent member of the Editorial Office who has not been involved in the matter under consideration. Any individual with a conflict of interest in relation to the matter is excluded from its assessment and resolution.

Authors and other complainants are informed of the outcome in writing. Complaints and appeals concerning publication ethics or editorial procedures are handled in accordance with the relevant guidelines and recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Final Provisions and Reference to Standards

The editorial policies of Stredoeurópske pohľady are based on internationally recognised principles and standards of scholarly publishing and are aligned with the following:

  • Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) – Core Practices;
  • Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing (COPE, DOAJ, OASPA, and WAME);
  • Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0);
  • Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation – GDPR) and Act No. 185/2015 Coll. on Copyright and Related Rights (Copyright Act) of the Slovak Republic.