Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

The Journal of Statistics and Applications (JOSTA) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of scholarly publishing. The journal strictly adheres to the principles and best practices set out by the
👉 Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Editorial Responsibilities

Editors are responsible for ensuring that all content published in JOSTA meets high standards of quality, originality, and academic merit.
Decisions are made without discrimination on the basis of race, gender, institutional affiliation, or beliefs.
Manuscripts are treated confidentially at all stages of the editorial process.
Editors will not handle manuscripts where conflicts of interest exist.
Allegations of misconduct are investigated thoroughly in line with COPE procedures.

Peer Review Process

JOSTA follows a double-blind peer review policy.
All manuscripts are evaluated by at least two independent experts with relevant expertise.
Reviewers must provide constructive, evidence-based, and unbiased evaluations.
Confidentiality must be maintained throughout the review process.
Reviewers must disclose conflicts of interest and decline reviews where bias may occur.

Author Responsibilities

Authors must submit only original works and ensure proper acknowledgment of all sources.
Submissions should not be under consideration by other journals (no duplicate submission).
Authorship is limited to those who made substantial contributions to the research or writing.
Contributions not meeting authorship criteria should be acknowledged separately.
All authors must approve the final version of the manuscript.
Authors must disclose all funding sources and any potential conflicts of interest.

Plagiarism and Research Misconduct

All manuscripts are checked using plagiarism-detection tools.
Plagiarism, self-plagiarism, falsification, fabrication, and image manipulation are strictly prohibited.
Proven cases of misconduct will result in rejection or retraction, following COPE flowcharts.

Conflicts of Interest

Authors, reviewers, and editors must declare any personal, professional, or financial conflicts of interest.
Funding sources and their role in the research must be clearly disclosed.

Data Integrity and Transparency

Authors must maintain accurate records of data and be prepared to share them when requested.
A Data Availability Statement is encouraged to promote transparency and reproducibility.
Figures, images, and graphs must not be manipulated in a way that misrepresents results.

Ethical Standards for Research

Research involving humans must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki and be approved by an Institutional Ethics Committee (IEC).
Informed consent must be obtained when applicable.
Animal studies must follow international standards of humane treatment and welfare.
Manuscripts must clearly state the ethical approval reference and committee name.

Post-Publication Responsibilities

Authors must promptly inform the editorial office of errors or inaccuracies in published work.
The journal will publish corrections, corrigenda, or retractions when required, following COPE guidelines.
Retractions will remain permanently accessible and linked to the original article.

Complaints and Appeals

Authors and readers may raise complaints regarding editorial decisions or ethical concerns by contacting the Editor-in-Chief at:
📧 editor@jostapubs.com
Appeals are handled transparently and may involve independent members of the editorial board.

Publisher’s Commitment

The publisher supports the editorial board in maintaining ethical integrity at all levels.
JOSTA ensures permanent open access and digital preservation of all published content.

📌 By submitting a manuscript to JOSTA, authors agree to comply with the ethical principles outlined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).