Editorial Policy
(In compliance with Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement of Sustainable Multilingualism)
Privacy Statement
The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.
Author Responsibilities
Reporting standards
Authors reporting results of original research should present an accurate account of the work performed as well as an objective discussion of its significance. Underlying data should be represented accurately in the manuscript. A paper should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work. Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.
Originality and Plagiarism
The authors should ensure that they have written entirely original works, and if the authors haveused the work and/or words of others that this has been appropriately cited or quoted.
Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication
An author should not in general publish manuscripts describing essentially the same research in more than one journal or primary publication. Parallel submission of the same manuscript to more than one journal constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.
Acknowledgement of sources
Proper acknowledgment of the work of others must always be given. Authors should also cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work.
Authorship of a manuscript
Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. Where there are others who have participated in certain substantive aspects of the research project, they should be named in an Acknowledgement section.
The corresponding author should ensure that all appropriate co-authors (according to the above definition) and no inappropriate co-authors are included in the author list of the manuscript, and that all co-authors have seen and approved the final version of the paper and have agreed to its submission for publication.
Hazards and human or animal subjects
If the work involves chemicals, procedures or equipment that have any unusual hazards inherent in their use, the authors must clearly identify these in the manuscript.
Disclosure and conflicts of interest
All authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflict of interest that might be construed to influence the results or their interpretation in the manuscript. All sources of financial support for the project should be disclosed.
Fundamental errors in published works
When an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in his/her own published work, it is the author’s obligation to promptly notify the journal’s editor or publisher and cooperate with them to either retract the paper or to publish an appropriate erratum.
Editor Responsibilities
Accountability
The editor of a peer-reviewed journal is responsible for deciding which articles submitted to the journal should be published, and, moreover, is accountable for everything published in the journal. In making these decisions, the editor may be guided by the policies of the journal’s editorial board as well as by legal requirements regarding libel, copyright infringement and plagiarism. The editor may confer with other editors or reviewers when making publication decisions. The editor should maintain the integrity of the academic record, preclude business needs from compromising intellectual and ethical standards, and always be willing to publish corrections, clarifications, retractions and apologies when needed.
Fairness
The editor should evaluate manuscripts for intellectual content without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy of the author(s). The editor will not disclose any information about a manuscript under consideration to anyone other than the author(s), reviewers and potential reviewers, and in some instances the editorial board members, as appropriate.
Confidentiality
The editor and any editorial staff must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.
Disclosure, conflicts of interest, and other issues
The editor will be guided by COPE’s Guidelines for Retracting Articles when considering retracting, issuing expressions of concern about, and issuing corrections pertaining to articles that have been published in the Sustainable Multilingualism journal:
https://publicationethics.org/guidance/guideline/retraction-guidelines
Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted manuscript must not be used in an editor’s own research without the express written consent of the author. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. The editor is committed to ensuring that advertising, reprint or other commercial revenue has no impact or influence on editorial decisions.
The editor should seek to ensure a fair and appropriate peer review process. Editors should recuse themselves (i.e. should ask a co-editor, associate editor or other member of the editorial board instead to review and consider) from considering manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or (possibly) institutions connected to the papers. Editors should require all contributors to disclose relevant competing interests and publish corrections if competing interests are revealed after publication. If needed, other appropriate action should be taken, such as the publication of a retraction or expression of concern.
Involvement and cooperation in investigations
Editors should guard the integrity of the published record by issuing corrections and retractions when needed and pursuing suspected or alleged research and publication misconduct. Editors should pursue reviewer and editorial misconduct. An editor should take reasonably responsive measures when ethical complaints have been presented concerning a submitted manuscript or published paper.
Peer-Reviewer Responsibilities
Contribution to editorial decisions
Peer review assists the editor in making editorial decisions and, through the editorial communication with the author, may also assist the author in improving the manuscript.
Promptness
Any invited referee who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or knows that its timely review will be impossible should immediately notify the editor so that alternative reviewers can be contacted.
Confidentiality
Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to or discussed with others except if authorized by the editor.
Standards of objectivity
Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is unacceptable. Referees should express their views clearly with appropriate supporting arguments.
Acknowledgement of sources
Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation. A reviewer should also call to the editor's attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published data of which they have personal knowledge.
Disclosure and conflict of interest
Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should not consider evaluating manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the submission.
Publisher’s Confirmation
In cases of alleged or proven scientific misconduct, fraudulent publication or plagiarism the publisher, in close collaboration with the editors, will take all appropriate measures to clarify the situation and to amend the article in question. This includes the prompt publication of an erratum or, in the most severe cases, the complete retraction of the affected work.
Publication Ethics and Related Editorial Policies
The following editorial policies describe how Sustainable Multilingualism implements the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices in its editorial and publishing procedures.
Journal policy for authorship and contributorship
Sustainable Multilingualism requires that authorship be limited to individuals who have made substantial scholarly contributions to the conception or design of the study, the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data, or the drafting and critical revision of the manuscript. All authors must approve the final version of the manuscript prior to submission and accept responsibility and accountability for the accuracy and integrity of the published work.
Individuals who contributed to the research but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately with their permission.
Authors who use AI tools in the writing of a manuscript, the production of images or graphical elements, or the collection and analysis of data must clearly disclose how and where the AI tool was used, identifying the specific tool in the Materials and Methods section (or equivalent). Authors remain fully responsible for the content of their manuscript, including any parts generated with the assistance of AI tools, and are accountable for compliance with publication ethics.
The journal follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices regarding authorship and contributorship:
https://publicationethics.org/core-practices
Journal policy for handling complaints and appeals
Sustainable Multilingualism is committed to a fair, transparent, and timely process for handling complaints and appeals concerning editorial decisions, peer review, publication ethics, or the conduct of editors, reviewers, authors, or editorial staff. Complaints and appeals will be assessed objectively and confidentially, and all parties will be given an opportunity to respond where appropriate.
When necessary, the Editorial Office will follow the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidance and may take additional measures, including:
- promptly correcting the scholarly record and, where appropriate, requesting authors’ institutions or funding bodies to investigate confirmed misconduct;
- providing a transparent process for appeals against editorial decisions;
- investigating allegations of misconduct involving editors, reviewers, or editorial staff, including undeclared conflicts of interest;
- seeking independent expert or legal advice where appropriate.
The journal follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidance: https://publicationethics.org/
Journal policy for dealing with allegations of research misconduct
Sustainable Multilingualism takes all allegations of research misconduct seriously. Allegations may concern, but are not limited to, fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, duplicate publication, image manipulation, unethical research practices, inappropriate authorship, citation manipulation, or undisclosed conflicts of interest, as well as peer-review misconduct. Allegations may be raised before or after publication by authors, reviewers, editors, readers, or third parties.
The Editorial Office will assess each case fairly, confidentially, and without undue delay. Where appropriate, authors will be invited to respond to the allegations and supporting evidence. If necessary, the journal may request clarification from the authors’ institutions or funding bodies and seek independent expert advice.
Where misconduct is confirmed, the journal will take appropriate action in accordance with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices and relevant COPE flowcharts. Such actions may include rejection of the manuscript, publication of a correction or retraction, notification of the authors’ institutions, or other measures necessary to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record.
For further guidance, the journal follows the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE): https://publicationethics.org/
Journal policies on conflicts of interest
Sustainable Multilingualism defines a conflict of interest as any situation that has the potential to bias professional judgement. Authors, reviewers, and editors are required to disclose any financial, professional, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the preparation, review, or publication of a manuscript.
Authors must declare all relevant conflicts of interest and sources of funding in their manuscript. Reviewers who identify a potential conflict of interest must decline the invitation to review if impartiality cannot be maintained. Editors will recuse themselves from editorial decisions whenever a conflict of interest exists, and another editor will oversee the review process.
The Editorial Office ensures independence from any commercial or institutional pressures. The journal follows the COPE Core Practices on competing interests and aims to ensure transparency throughout the editorial and publication process.
Journal policies on data sharing and reproducibility
Sustainable Multilingualism encourages authors to make the data, materials, software, and other research resources underlying their publications available whenever this is ethically, legally, and practically possible.
Authors should describe the availability of research data and indicate where supporting materials can be accessed or explain any restrictions on access due to legal, ethical, or confidentiality considerations. Where datasets cannot be shared, authors should provide a clear justification.
The journal supports transparency and reproducibility by encouraging sufficient methodological detail to allow other researchers to understand, verify, and, where appropriate, replicate the reported research.
Journal policy on ethical oversight
Research submitted to Sustainable Multilingualism must comply with applicable ethical and legal standards. Where research involves human participants, personal data, or other activities requiring ethical approval, authors must confirm that the study received approval from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board, where required, and that informed consent was obtained where applicable.
Editors may request additional documentation regarding ethical approval or participant consent during the review process. Manuscripts failing to meet accepted ethical standards may be rejected or subject to further investigation in accordance with COPE guidance.
Journal policy on intellectual property
Authors retain responsibility for ensuring that their submissions do not infringe the intellectual property rights of others. All copyrighted materials, including figures, tables, illustrations, and extended quotations, must be used with appropriate permission where required and properly acknowledged.
Submitted manuscripts must represent original work that has not been published elsewhere and is not simultaneously under consideration by another publication. Plagiarism and other forms of inappropriate reuse of published material are considered serious breaches of publication ethics.
Articles published in Sustainable Multilingualism are made available under the journal’s Open Access policy and the applicable publishing licence signed by the authors upon acceptance.
Journal’s options for post-publication discussions
The journal welcomes constructive scholarly discussion of published articles. Readers who identify possible errors, ethical concerns, or issues affecting the interpretation of published work are encouraged to contact the Editorial Office.
Editors will evaluate all substantiated concerns in accordance with COPE guidance. Where appropriate, the journal may publish corrections, expressions of concern, retractions, or other editorial notices to ensure the integrity and transparency of the scholarly record.
Journal policies on corrections and retractions
When errors or ethical concerns affecting a published article are identified, Sustainable Multilingualism will take appropriate action to preserve the accuracy of the scholarly record.
Minor errors that do not affect the validity of the findings may be corrected through a published correction (erratum or corrigendum). Where major errors, research misconduct, unreliable findings, plagiarism, duplicate publication, or unethical research practices are confirmed, the journal may publish an expression of concern or retract the article, following the COPE Retraction Guidelines.
Retraction notices will remain permanently linked to the original article, clearly stating the reason for the retraction while preserving the integrity and transparency of the publication record.
The journal follows the COPE Retraction Guidelines: https://publicationethics.org/guidance/guideline/retraction-guidelines
