Plagiarism Policy

1. Commitment to Originality

A‑JMRHS maintains the highest standards of academic integrity and originality. Plagiarism in any form—including verbatim copying, close paraphrasing without attribution, data fabrication, self-plagiarism, or unacknowledged use of AI-generated content—is unacceptable and constitutes a serious ethical violation.

2. Definition of Plagiarism

Plagiarism includes but is not limited to:

  • Direct reproduction of text, data, figures, or ideas from others without quotation marks and proper citation.
  • Paraphrasing others' work without appropriate acknowledgment.
  • Reusing substantial portions of one's own previously published work (self-plagiarism) without citation.
  • Claiming others' research results, methods, or conclusions as one's own.
  • Failure to credit generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT) used in writing, where human oversight is required for attribution.

3. Screening Process

  • All submitted manuscripts undergo automated plagiarism screening using industry-standard software (e.g., iThenticate or Turnitin) immediately upon receipt, prior to editorial assignment or peer review.
  • A similarity index is calculated against published literature, preprints, and online sources.
  • Manual review follows automated checks to distinguish legitimate overlap (e.g., standard methods, common phrases) from unethical duplication.

4. Thresholds and Actions

Similarity Level

Action Taken

<10% (minor, properly cited)

Manuscript proceeds to review.

10-20%

Authors notified; must revise, cite sources, and resubmit within 7 days. Failure to address leads to rejection.

>20%

Manuscript rejected. Authors barred from resubmission for 12 months; case reported to institutions if severe.

Post-publication detection

Correction notice, retraction, or expression of concern published per COPE guidelines; institutions notified.

5. Author Responsibilities

  • Authors must affirm originality via a submission checklist and warranty statement.
  • All sources must be cited per ICMJE/APA/Vancouver style as specified in author guidelines.
  • AI tools may assist drafting but require disclosure in methods/acknowledgments; authors remain accountable for accuracy and ethics.

6. Handling Suspected Plagiarism

  • Editors/reviewers flag concerns during review.
  • Investigation involves author response, raw data requests, and third-party verification if needed.
  • Confirmed cases follow COPE flowcharts: rejection/retraction, blacklisting, and institutional reporting.

7. Retraction Policy

Retracted articles remain accessible with prominent notices explaining reasons (e.g., plagiarism). Metadata updated in indexes; DOIs preserved for citation traceability.

8. Prevention and Education

A‑JMRHS provides author guidelines, webinars, and checklists to promote ethical writing.

For queries: editorajmrhs@gmail.com