Publication Ethics

The Editorial Board of the journal "Physical Rehabilitation and Recreational Health Technologies" is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics. Our ethical framework is strictly based on the guidelines and best practices developed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), and the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA).
 
DUTIES OF EDITORS
The editors are responsible for deciding which of the manuscripts submitted to the journal will be published, guided by COPE Core Practices.
  • Editorial Independence: In accordance with WAME recommendations, the Editor-in-Chief has full authority over the editorial content and the timing of its publication.
  • Fair Play and DORA Compliance: In line with DORA principles, editors evaluate manuscripts for their intellectual content regardless of the authors' race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, or citizenship.
  • Confidentiality: Editors and editorial staff must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author and reviewers.
  • Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Editors will recuse themselves from considering manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships with any of the authors or institutions.
 
DUTIES OF REVIEWERS
The peer-review process follows the COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers.
  • Double-Blind Review: To ensure objectivity, both reviewer and author identities are concealed.
  • Confidentiality: Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents.
  • Standards of Objectivity: Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate.
  • Acknowledgment of Sources: Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any instance of plagiarism must be reported to the Editor immediately.
 
DUTIES OF AUTHORS
Authors must adhere to the ICMJE authorship criteria and COPE standards.
  • Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must ensure that they have written entirely original works. The journal uses iThenticate/Turnitin to screen for plagiarism.
  • Multiple Submissions: Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently is unacceptable.
  • Authorship: Authorship is limited to those who made a significant contribution. All authors must approve the final version.
  • Medical Ethics: Studies involving human participants must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki. Authors must provide an Ethical Approval number and confirm that Informed Consent was obtained (WAME compliance).
  • AI Disclosure: Authors must transparently disclose the use of generative AI in the writing process.
 
HANDLING MISCONDUCT AND APPEALS
The journal follows COPE Flowcharts for handling cases of suspected misconduct.
  • Corrections and Retractions: If significant errors are found after publication, the journal will issue a Correction or a Retraction in accordance with the COPE Retraction Guidelines.
  • Complaints and Appeals: The journal has a transparent process for handling complaints. Appeals against editorial decisions should be sent to the official editorial email.