Publication Ethics

NeuroImage is committed to maintaining high standards of integrity, transparency, and ethical conduct in scholarly publishing. We expect authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial staff to uphold internationally recognized principles of responsible research and publication.

The Journal follows internationally accepted guidance issued by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and considers relevant recommendations from the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) when addressing ethical and publication-related issues.

1. Editorial Assessment and Peer Review

Every submitted manuscript undergoes an initial editorial assessment to determine whether it falls within the Journal's scope and satisfies basic scientific, ethical, and technical requirements. Suitable manuscripts proceed to independent peer review by qualified experts in the relevant field.

Editorial decisions are based exclusively on:

• Scientific quality.
• Originality.
• Methodological rigor.
• Relevance to neuroscience and related disciplines.
• Ethical compliance.
• Contribution to scientific and clinical knowledge.

Editors may seek additional expert advice when manuscripts involve complex ethical, legal, biosafety, data integrity, or research integrity concerns.

2. Research Integrity

Authors are expected to conduct and report research honestly, accurately, and transparently. Research must not involve:

• Fabrication of data.
• Falsification of results.
• Selective reporting that materially misrepresents findings.
• Image manipulation that alters scientific interpretation.
• Misrepresentation of research findings or methodology.

Authors should retain original research data and be prepared to provide supporting information if requested during editorial review or post-publication investigations.

3. Plagiarism

The Journal does not tolerate plagiarism. Authors must appropriately acknowledge the work, ideas, figures, tables, data, and text of others through proper citation and attribution.

Submitted manuscripts may be screened using plagiarism detection software before peer review and, where necessary, after publication. Manuscripts containing substantial plagiarism or unattributed copied material may be rejected. If plagiarism is identified after publication, appropriate editorial action, including correction or retraction, may be taken.

4. Duplicate Submission and Redundant Publication

Manuscripts submitted to NeuroImage must be original and must not be simultaneously under consideration by another journal. Authors should not submit substantially similar manuscripts to multiple journals at the same time.

Previous dissemination through recognized preprint servers, institutional repositories, or academic theses may be acceptable where appropriately disclosed. Authors must clearly identify any overlap with previously published or submitted work and appropriately reference related publications.

5. Data Fabrication and Falsification

The fabrication, falsification, or deliberate manipulation of research data represents serious scientific misconduct.

Where credible evidence of misconduct exists, the Journal may:

• Reject the manuscript.
• Suspend editorial processing.
• Request original datasets or supporting documentation.
• Notify relevant institutions where appropriate.
• Retract published articles when necessary.

6. Authorship

Authorship should accurately reflect each individual's contribution to the research. All listed authors should have:

• Made substantial scholarly contributions.
• Participated in drafting or critically revising the manuscript.
• Approved the final version.
• Accepted responsibility for the integrity of the work.

Individuals who contributed to the research but do not satisfy authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately with their permission.

Requests to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission require written agreement from all authors and approval by the Editorial Office.

7. Acknowledgements

Individuals, institutions, technical assistants, medical writers, funding agencies, or organizations that contributed to the research without meeting authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately.

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission from individuals named in the acknowledgements where appropriate.

8. Conflicts of Interest

Transparency regarding competing interests is essential for maintaining confidence in published research. Authors, reviewers, and editors should disclose any financial, professional, institutional, personal, or other relationships that could reasonably be perceived as influencing their judgment.

Examples include:

• Research funding.
• Employment or consultancy.
• Stock ownership.
• Patents or intellectual property.
• Honoraria.
• Advisory positions.
• Personal or academic relationships.
• Institutional affiliations relevant to the research.

If no competing interests exist, authors should include an appropriate statement confirming that no conflicts of interest are present.

9. Funding Disclosure

Authors must disclose all sources of financial support for their research. Funding statements should identify:

• Funding organizations.
• Grant numbers, where applicable.
• The role of the funding body in study design, data collection, analysis, manuscript preparation, or publication decisions.

If no external funding was received, authors should state this clearly.

10. Human and Animal Research

Research involving human participants must have received approval from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board where required.

Where applicable, authors should confirm that:

• Informed consent was obtained.
• Research complied with recognized ethical standards.
• Participant privacy and confidentiality have been protected.
• Identifiable information and medical images have been appropriately managed.

Research involving animals should comply with applicable institutional, national, and international guidelines governing animal welfare and ethical research practices.

11. Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers are expected to:

• Maintain strict confidentiality.
• Provide objective, constructive, and timely evaluations.
• Declare any conflicts of interest.
• Avoid using unpublished information for personal or professional benefit.
• Report suspected ethical concerns to the editors.
• Evaluate manuscripts fairly and independently.

Reviewers should decline invitations where a conflict of interest could prevent an impartial assessment.

12. Editorial Responsibilities

Editors are responsible for:

• Making fair and unbiased editorial decisions.
• Preserving reviewer and author confidentiality.
• Managing conflicts of interest.
• Maintaining editorial independence.
• Investigating allegations of misconduct.
• Protecting the integrity of the scholarly record.

Editorial decisions are based on scientific and ethical considerations and are not influenced by commercial or financial interests.

13. Citation Integrity

Authors should cite literature that is directly relevant to their work and should accurately represent the contribution of cited sources.

Citation practices intended primarily to manipulate citation metrics, artificially inflate citation counts, or provide unwarranted citation advantages are considered inappropriate. Editors and reviewers should not request unnecessary citations for personal or journal benefit.

14. Ethical Misconduct

The Journal may investigate allegations involving:

• Plagiarism.
• Duplicate publication.
• Data fabrication or falsification.
• Image manipulation.
• Authorship disputes.
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest.
• Citation manipulation.
• Ethical approval deficiencies.
• Patient or participant confidentiality breaches.
• Other violations of accepted publication ethics.

Investigations are conducted fairly, confidentially, and in accordance with internationally recognized editorial practices.

15. Editorial Actions

Where ethical concerns are confirmed, the Journal may take one or more of the following actions:

• Request clarification or additional documentation.
• Reject the manuscript.
• Suspend editorial processing.
• Publish a correction, erratum, or corrigendum.
• Issue an editorial expression of concern.
• Retract a published article.
• Notify the authors' institution or funding organization where appropriate.
• Restrict future submissions in cases of serious or repeated misconduct.

The action taken will be proportionate to the nature and severity of the ethical issue.

16. Corrections and Retractions

The Journal is committed to maintaining an accurate and reliable scientific record.

Where appropriate, published articles may be amended through:

• Errata.
• Corrigenda.
• Editorial Notes.
• Expressions of Concern.
• Retractions.

Retractions are issued when necessary to preserve the integrity of the scientific literature and are handled in accordance with internationally recognized editorial guidance.

17. Reporting Ethical Concerns

Authors, reviewers, readers, and institutions who become aware of potential publication misconduct are encouraged to notify the Editorial Office.

All credible concerns will be investigated confidentially and impartially. The Journal will make reasonable efforts to ensure that investigations are conducted fairly while respecting the rights and confidentiality of all parties involved.