Code of Ethics

Code of Ethics and Best Practice Statement

The Code of Ethics of Prospherus Scientific Journal is based on the rigorous principles and international guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). This document mandatorily governs the duties, commitments, and standards of conduct for authors, external reviewers, and the Editorial Committee, with the fundamental purpose of safeguarding scientific integrity, methodological transparency, and the rigor of every published work.

General Principles

  • Scientific Integrity: Submitted research must be grounded in empirical veracity, methodological soundness, and absolute transparency in obtaining and processing its results.
  • Impartial Evaluation: The peer review process is carried out under strict criteria of scientific objectivity and neutrality, ensuring a decision free from ideological, gender, institutional, or commercial bias.
  • Transparency and Interests: The explicit disclosure of any conflict of interest, institutional funding, or affiliation that could compromise the objectivity of the study is an inexcusable obligation.
  • Consent and Methodological Rigor: Experimental or field study designs must certify formal acquisition of the corresponding informed consent, anonymity of data samples, and institutional ethical approval.

Commitments of Editorial Stakeholders

1. Author Responsibilities

Fully guarantee the original and unpublished nature of the manuscript. Plagiarism, self-plagiarism, data manipulation or falsification, and simultaneous submission constitute serious breaches of scientific integrity that lead to immediate rejection or retraction of the work. Authors must thoroughly cite all sources used and ensure accurate attribution of co-authorship.

2. Reviewer Responsibilities

Assess assigned manuscripts with strict technical rigor, absolute confidentiality, and within the timeframes stipulated by the editorial coordination. Reviewers have an ethical duty to immediately notify the editors of any suspected scientific fraud, unsupported textual redundancy, similarity to already published research, or potential conflict of interest.

3. Editor Responsibilities

Preserve the scientific quality of the editorial catalog and oversee review workflows under principles of technical fairness. The Editorial Committee will act with absolute transparency and, upon identification or justified suspicion of scientific misconduct, will activate the COPE flowcharts to process retractions, errata, or necessary institutional clarifications.

Safeguarding Knowledge

This code of ethics is systematically audited to organically incorporate emerging international Open Science standards. Strict adherence to these ethical guidelines represents an imperative collective commitment to strengthen the public value of research, the traceability of findings, and the academic reputation of the Prospherus scientific community.