Editorial Responsibilities

Editors of the Journal of Pulmonology and Respiratory Research (JPRR) hold significant responsibilities to ensure the integrity, quality, and fairness of the journal’s content. Editorial responsibilities are guided by principles established by COPE, ICMJE, and WAME.

Decision-Making Authority

  • Editors must evaluate manuscripts based solely on scholarly merit, originality, and relevance to the journal’s scope.
  • Decisions must remain unbiased, uninfluenced by personal, financial, or institutional considerations.
  • Editorial independence must be preserved, ensuring decisions are free from commercial interests or external pressures.

Fair and Transparent Review

Editors must ensure manuscripts undergo a fair peer review process:

  • Select qualified, unbiased reviewers with subject expertise.
  • Maintain reviewer confidentiality and uphold double-blind or single-blind review policies.
  • Provide clear guidance to reviewers regarding evaluation criteria and ethics.

Maintaining Confidentiality

  • Editors must treat all manuscripts as confidential documents.
  • Information must not be shared beyond those directly involved in the review and editorial process.
  • Editors must not use unpublished data for personal research or gain.

Handling Conflicts of Interest

Editors must disclose potential conflicts and recuse themselves when:

  • They have personal or professional ties with the authors.
  • They have financial interests in the research outcomes.
  • They cannot remain impartial due to competitive or collaborative relationships.

Ethical Oversight

Editors must:

  • Investigate suspected cases of plagiarism, fabrication, or duplicate publication.
  • Follow COPE flowcharts for handling ethical misconduct.
  • Ensure articles comply with ethical standards for human and animal research.

Corrections and Retractions

Editors must safeguard the integrity of the scholarly record by:

  • Issuing corrections for honest errors identified post-publication.
  • Publishing retractions when data is unreliable due to misconduct or error.
  • Publishing expressions of concern while investigations are ongoing.

Promoting Scholarly Integrity

Editors must encourage adherence to reporting standards such as CONSORT, PRISMA, and STROBE for clinical and systematic research submissions.

Supporting Diversity and Inclusion

  • Editors must promote diversity among authors, reviewers, and editorial board members.
  • Submissions must be judged on quality alone, free from discrimination based on race, gender, religion, or nationality.

Communication with Stakeholders

  • Editors must maintain respectful and transparent communication with authors, reviewers, and readers.
  • Authors should be informed promptly about decisions and revisions.
  • Reviewer contributions should be acknowledged.

Editorial Accountability

Editors are accountable for all content published in JPRR. They must ensure accuracy, maintain transparency, and continuously improve editorial policies in alignment with best practices.

FAQs

Can editors delegate their responsibilities?

Yes, but delegation must be to qualified associate editors or board members, ensuring accountability is maintained.

How should editors handle author appeals?

Appeals must be considered fairly, with manuscripts re-evaluated by independent editors if necessary.

What happens if an editor fails to disclose a conflict of interest?

Such cases will be investigated, and corrective measures will be taken, which may include reassignment of responsibilities.

Conclusion

The editorial responsibilities outlined here reinforce JPRR’s commitment to fairness, integrity, and excellence in publishing. By adhering to these standards, editors uphold the trust of the scientific community and readers worldwide.