Conflict of Interest Policy

At Ceniiac Journal — ISSN 3105-6237 — transparency and scientific integrity are fundamental at all stages of the editorial process. To ensure credibility, authors, reviewers, and editors must declare any potential conflict of interest that could influence the evaluation and publication of manuscripts.

1. Definition of a Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest arises when the objectivity of an individual involved in the editorial process (author, reviewer, or editor) may be affected by personal, financial, institutional, or academic interests. This includes, but is not limited to:

Financial conflicts: Research funding from entities with vested interests.
Personal/professional conflicts: Prior co-authorship, competition, or disputes.
Institutional conflicts: Affiliation with the same institution as authors/reviewers.
Political/ideological conflicts: Factors that may influence impartiality.

2. Requirements for Authors

Authors must include a conflict of interest statement in their manuscript, either before the references or in the acknowledgments.

Example Statements:
"The author declares no conflict of interest."
"The author received funding from [institution name], but this did not influence the results."

If no statement is provided, Ceniiac Journal will assume none exist.

Additional references:

COPE guide (view here).
ICMJE recommendations (view here).

3. Requirements for Reviewers

Reviewers must decline to review if they:

Have a personal/professional relationship with any author.
Belong to the same institution as the author(s).
Collaborated with the authors in the last three years.
Could benefit from the acceptance/rejection of the manuscript.

Example Statement:
"I declare no conflict of interest affecting my evaluation of this manuscript."

If a reviewer detects a conflict after accepting, they must notify the editorial team at journal@ceniiac.com.

Guide: COPE ethical guidelines for peer reviewers.

4. Requirements for Editors

Editors of Ceniiac Journal must:

Reassign manuscripts if they have a conflict of interest.
Avoid favoritism or discrimination based on relationships.
Refrain from decisions on manuscripts where conflicts exist.

If a conflict is detected, the manuscript will be reassigned. Reference: COPE guidelines for editors.

5. Detection and Management

Initial evaluation: Manuscripts checked for conflict declarations.
During peer review: Reviewers must disclose conflicts and may decline.
Post-publication: Undisclosed conflicts may result in correction, retraction, or sanctions.

Reference: COPE flowcharts.