Authorship Criteria

1. Introduction

The Journal of Applied Informatics and Computing (JAIC) is committed to maintaining high standards of publication ethics, research integrity, transparency, and accountability. Authorship must accurately reflect the intellectual and scholarly contributions of individuals involved in the research and preparation of a manuscript.

JAIC requires all listed authors to meet the authorship criteria described in this policy. Individuals who have contributed to the research but do not meet these criteria should be acknowledged appropriately rather than listed as authors. All authors share responsibility for ensuring that the manuscript is accurate, ethically prepared, and compliant with JAIC's publication policies.

2. Authorship Criteria

To qualify for authorship in JAIC, an individual must satisfy all four of the following criteria:

  1. Substantial contribution: Make a substantial intellectual contribution to the conception or design of the study; the development of methodology; software development or implementation; data acquisition, collection, or curation; data analysis or interpretation; or another significant aspect of the research.

  2. Writing or critical revision: Participate in drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content.

  3. Final approval: Review and approve the final version of the manuscript before submission or publication.

  4. Accountability: Agree to be accountable for their own contributions and to help ensure that questions concerning the accuracy, integrity, or ethical conduct of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Individuals who do not meet all four criteria must not be included as authors. Contributors who provide technical assistance, administrative support, funding alone, general supervision, or other limited contributions should be acknowledged where appropriate, with their permission.

3. Corresponding Author Responsibilities

The corresponding author serves as the primary contact between JAIC and the authors throughout submission, peer review, publication, and post-publication communication.

The corresponding author is responsible for:

  1. Ensuring that all listed authors meet the authorship criteria established by JAIC.

  2. Confirming that all authors have reviewed and approved the submitted manuscript and its final version.

  3. Ensuring that author names, affiliations, email addresses, author order, and contribution statements are accurate and complete.

  4. Communicating editorial decisions, reviewer comments, revision requirements, and publication-related information to all co-authors.

  5. Submitting the required declarations concerning originality, research ethics, funding, conflicts of interest, and the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI), where applicable.

  6. Ensuring that all co-authors are informed of significant changes to the manuscript during the editorial process.

  7. Coordinating responses to editorial queries and providing relevant documentation when authorship or research-integrity concerns arise.

The corresponding author must not assume sole responsibility for the integrity of the work. All authors remain collectively responsible for the publication and individually accountable for their respective contributions.

4. Authorship Order and Changes in Authorship

The order of authors must be agreed upon by all authors before manuscript submission. JAIC does not prescribe a universal author-ordering convention because practices may vary across research disciplines. Authors should determine the order transparently and according to their respective contributions and relevant disciplinary norms.

Any request to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission must:

  1. Include a clear written justification for the proposed change.

  2. Be submitted to the JAIC editorial office by the corresponding author.

  3. Include written confirmation from all affected authors and, where required by the editorial office, all co-authors.

  4. Receive editorial approval before the change is implemented.

Changes in authorship must not be made solely on the basis of academic position, seniority, institutional affiliation, financial support, or personal relationships. JAIC reserves the right to request supporting documentation or suspend manuscript processing while an authorship concern is being investigated.

5. Unethical Authorship Practices

JAIC prohibits the following practices:

  • Gift or honorary authorship: Including individuals who have not made the required intellectual and scholarly contributions.

  • Guest authorship: Adding a person to the author list to increase the manuscript's credibility, visibility, or likelihood of acceptance without a qualifying contribution.

  • Ghost authorship: Excluding an individual who made a qualifying contribution or concealing substantial writing or research assistance that should be transparently disclosed.

  • Misrepresentation of contributions: Providing inaccurate or misleading statements about the work performed by individual authors.

  • Unauthorized authorship changes: Adding, removing, or changing the order of authors without the required consent and editorial approval.

  • Authorship coercion: Pressuring individuals to include or exclude authors without a legitimate scholarly basis.

Contributors whose involvement does not meet the authorship criteria, such as those providing technical assistance, language editing, administrative support, funding, or general supervision, should be acknowledged appropriately. Their contributions must be described accurately, and their permission to be acknowledged should be obtained.

6. Author Contribution Statement and CRediT Taxonomy

JAIC encourages authors to provide a transparent Author Contribution Statement describing the specific roles and responsibilities of each author. Where appropriate, authors may use the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT) to describe their contributions.

Relevant CRediT roles include:

  • Conceptualization

  • Methodology

  • Software

  • Validation

  • Formal Analysis

  • Investigation

  • Resources

  • Data Curation

  • Writing – Original Draft

  • Writing – Review & Editing

  • Visualization

  • Supervision

  • Project Administration

  • Funding Acquisition

Authors should select only the roles that accurately represent their actual contributions. The contribution statement should be agreed upon by all authors and submitted in accordance with JAIC's manuscript requirements.

CRediT is a contribution-reporting taxonomy, not an independent test of authorship eligibility. Assignment of one or more CRediT roles does not automatically qualify an individual for authorship. Every listed author must still satisfy all four criteria in Section 2. Individuals who contributed to the work but do not meet all authorship criteria should be acknowledged where appropriate.

7. Research Integrity and Ethical Responsibilities

All authors are responsible for ensuring that the manuscript meets JAIC's publication ethics and research-integrity requirements. Authors must:

  1. Submit original work that has not been plagiarized, fabricated, falsified, or otherwise misrepresented.

  2. Ensure that the manuscript is not under consideration for publication by another journal while being evaluated by JAIC.

  3. Cite relevant sources accurately and acknowledge the work of other researchers appropriately.

  4. Report research methods, data, results, limitations, and conclusions honestly and transparently.

  5. Obtain and disclose relevant ethics approval, informed consent, permissions, or other safeguards when required by the nature of the research.

  6. Disclose funding sources and any actual or potential conflicts of interest.

  7. Ensure that all authors have reviewed and approved the manuscript and consented to its submission.

  8. Comply with JAIC's Generative AI Policy, including applicable disclosure requirements for the use of AI tools in research and manuscript preparation.

  9. Ensure that AI-generated or AI-assisted content, code, references, data, analyses, and other research outputs are checked for accuracy, originality, appropriate attribution, and compliance with applicable ethical and legal requirements.

Generative AI tools cannot be listed as authors or assume responsibility for a scholarly publication. Human authors remain responsible for the content of the manuscript, including material produced or assisted by AI tools. Any use of generative AI must be disclosed in accordance with JAIC's Generative AI Policy, where disclosure is required.

8. Authorship Disputes and Editorial Actions

JAIC expects authorship disagreements to be addressed transparently and in good faith. When a dispute arises, the editorial office may request written explanations, contribution statements, author confirmations, correspondence, or other relevant evidence from the parties involved.

JAIC will assess the information available fairly and impartially. However, the journal does not act as an institutional investigative authority and may refer unresolved disputes concerning individual contributions, employment relationships, or research conduct to the relevant institution or organization for investigation.

Depending on the circumstances, JAIC may:

  1. Request clarification or supporting documentation from the authors.

  2. Suspend the review or publication process while the matter is being resolved.

  3. Require corrections to authorship information or contribution statements, subject to appropriate consent and editorial approval.

  4. Reject a manuscript when serious authorship or research-integrity violations are established or cannot be adequately resolved.

  5. Consider an appropriate post-publication correction, expression of concern, or retraction when warranted by the evidence and applicable publication-ethics standards.

Editorial actions will be proportionate to the nature and seriousness of the concern and consistent with JAIC's publication policies and applicable ethical guidance.

9. Declaration of Authorship

Upon submission, the corresponding author must confirm on behalf of all authors that:

  1. Every listed author meets all four authorship criteria specified in this policy.

  2. All authors have reviewed and approved the submitted manuscript and agreed to its submission to JAIC.

  3. The author list, author order, affiliations, and contribution statements are accurate and have been agreed upon by all authors.

  4. No individual who meets the authorship criteria has been improperly excluded, and no individual who does not meet the criteria has been improperly included.

  5. All authors accept accountability for their respective contributions and agree to cooperate in resolving questions concerning the integrity of the work.

  6. Any relevant funding, conflicts of interest, ethical approvals, and generative AI use have been disclosed in accordance with JAIC policies.

  7. Any subsequent changes in authorship will be reported to and approved by the journal before implementation.

JAIC may request confirmation directly from individual authors when necessary to verify compliance with this policy.

10. Policy Implementation and Review

This policy applies to all manuscripts submitted to the Journal of Applied Informatics and Computing (JAIC), including original research articles, review articles, and other scholarly contributions where authorship is applicable.

The JAIC Editorial Board is responsible for implementing, interpreting, and periodically reviewing this policy. The journal may update the policy to reflect developments in publication ethics, authorship practices, and relevant international guidance.

This policy should be read together with JAIC's Generative AI Policy, Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement, and other applicable editorial policies.

 

References and Guidance