Publication Ethics

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

The Early Childhood Education Indonesian Journal (ECEIJ) is committed to maintaining high standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. The journal follows ethical principles designed to ensure transparency, fairness, accountability, and the responsible dissemination of scholarly work in early childhood education.

This publication ethics statement applies to authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher. All parties involved in the publication process are expected to uphold ethical standards and prevent publication malpractice.

1. Ethical Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to ECEIJ are expected to:

Ensure that submitted manuscripts are original works that have not been published previously and are not under consideration for publication elsewhere.
Accurately report research findings and ensure that data, analyses, and conclusions are presented honestly.
Provide appropriate citations and references for all sources used and avoid plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, and other forms of research misconduct.
Ensure that all individuals listed as authors have made substantial scholarly contributions to the research and manuscript.
Obtain appropriate permissions for the use of copyrighted materials, instruments, images, and other third-party content when required.
Disclose financial support, institutional affiliations, and any potential conflicts of interest that could influence the research or its interpretation.
Comply with applicable research ethics requirements, particularly for studies involving young children, teachers, families, and other human participants.
Cooperate with editorial requests for clarification, corrections, additional information, or supporting research data when reasonably necessary.

Authors are responsible for the accuracy and integrity of their submitted work.

2. Ethical Responsibilities of Editors

Editors of ECEIJ are responsible for ensuring that editorial decisions are made fairly, objectively, and independently. Their responsibilities include:

Evaluating manuscripts based on academic merit, originality, relevance, methodological quality, and alignment with the journal's focus and scope.
Ensuring that manuscripts are assessed without discrimination based on the authors' nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, personal beliefs, or other irrelevant characteristics.
Maintaining the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and associated editorial communications.
Selecting qualified and independent reviewers whose expertise is relevant to the manuscript.
Managing potential conflicts of interest and ensuring that such conflicts do not compromise editorial decisions.
Taking appropriate action when allegations of plagiarism, data manipulation, duplicate publication, or other ethical violations arise.
Providing clear communication to authors regarding editorial decisions and revision requirements.

The final publication decision rests with the editor or the authorized editorial representative, based on the review process and the journal's publication standards.

3. Ethical Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers play an essential role in maintaining the scholarly quality of ECEIJ. Reviewers are expected to:

Provide objective, constructive, and evidence-based evaluations of submitted manuscripts.
Assess manuscripts within their areas of expertise and inform the editor if they are unable to complete a review appropriately.
Maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts and refrain from sharing or using unpublished material without authorization.
Identify relevant published works that have not been appropriately cited by the authors.
Inform the editor of any suspected plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification, or other ethical concerns.
Disclose potential conflicts of interest and decline reviews when such conflicts could affect their impartiality.
Complete reviews within the agreed timeframe and communicate any delays to the editor.

Reviewers must not allow personal relationships, competition, or other interests to influence their assessments.

4. Research Involving Human Participants and Young Children

Because ECEIJ focuses on early childhood education, special attention is given to research involving young children and other potentially vulnerable participants.

Authors must ensure that:

Research involving human participants complies with applicable ethical standards and institutional or national requirements.
Ethical approval is obtained from an appropriate research ethics committee when required.
Informed consent is obtained from parents or legal guardians for research involving young children, where applicable.
Children's assent is sought in a developmentally appropriate manner when appropriate to their age, understanding, and the research context.
Participants' privacy, confidentiality, dignity, safety, and welfare are protected throughout the research process.
Personal information, photographs, videos, and other identifying materials are used only with appropriate authorization and safeguards.
Research activities minimize potential harm and respect the rights and best interests of children.

Authors must clearly describe relevant ethical approval and consent procedures in their manuscripts. Where formal ethical approval is not required, authors should explain the applicable basis in accordance with relevant institutional requirements and ethical standards.

5. Plagiarism and Research Misconduct

ECEIJ does not tolerate plagiarism, self-plagiarism that constitutes inappropriate duplicate use, data fabrication, data falsification, citation manipulation, or duplicate publication.

All submitted manuscripts may undergo similarity screening using appropriate plagiarism-detection tools. Similarity reports are considered alongside editorial judgment and the context of the material; no single similarity percentage automatically determines whether a manuscript is acceptable.

If potential misconduct is identified, the editorial team will investigate the matter fairly and may request an explanation or supporting evidence from the authors. Depending on the findings, actions may include requesting corrections, rejecting the manuscript, retracting a published article, or notifying relevant institutions when appropriate.

6. Authorship and Contributorship

Authorship must reflect substantial scholarly contributions to the research and manuscript. Individuals who meet the applicable authorship criteria should be listed as authors, while contributions that do not qualify for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately.

All listed authors must approve the final version of the manuscript and agree to its submission to ECEIJ. Changes to authorship after submission require a justified explanation and the agreement of all affected authors, subject to editorial approval.

Honorary, gift, ghost, and other inappropriate forms of authorship are not permitted.

7. Conflicts of Interest

Authors, editors, and reviewers must disclose financial, professional, institutional, personal, or other relationships that could reasonably be perceived to influence their judgment.

Authors should include a conflict-of-interest statement in their manuscripts. If no relevant conflict exists, they should explicitly declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Editors will take appropriate measures to manage disclosed conflicts, including assigning independent editors or reviewers when necessary.

8. Duplicate Submission and Redundant Publication

Manuscripts submitted to ECEIJ must not be under simultaneous consideration by another journal. Authors must disclose any related publications, previous dissemination, or overlapping manuscripts that could affect the originality of the submission.

If substantial overlap or duplicate publication is identified, the editorial team will assess the circumstances and take appropriate action in accordance with publication ethics principles.

9. Corrections, Retractions, and Editorial Actions

ECEIJ is committed to correcting the scholarly record when errors or ethical problems are identified after publication.

Corrections may be issued when published articles contain errors that affect the accuracy or interpretation of the work. Retractions may be considered when there is reliable evidence of serious misconduct, unreliable findings, major ethical violations, or other circumstances that undermine the integrity of a published article.

Editorial actions will be proportionate to the issue, supported by an appropriate investigation, and communicated transparently to readers.

10. Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools

Authors who use artificial intelligence (AI) tools in preparing manuscripts must ensure that the submitted work is accurate, original, and ethically produced.

AI tools cannot be listed as authors because they cannot take responsibility for the accuracy, integrity, and accountability of scholarly work. Authors remain fully responsible for verifying AI-generated content, references, data interpretations, and other material included in their manuscripts.

Where AI tools have been used in ways that materially contribute to manuscript preparation, analysis, or content generation, authors should disclose their use in accordance with the journal's submission requirements. AI tools must not be used to fabricate research data, generate false references, misrepresent findings, or compromise participant confidentiality.

11. Copyright and Publication Rights

Authors must ensure that submitted materials do not infringe the intellectual property rights of others. Permissions must be obtained for copyrighted content where necessary.

Copyright ownership, licensing terms, and any applicable open-access conditions are governed by the policies stated on the ECEIJ website and the publication agreement applicable to each manuscript.

12. Handling Ethical Complaints

ECEIJ takes concerns about publication ethics seriously. Complaints or allegations involving authors, reviewers, editors, or published articles should be submitted to the editorial team with relevant supporting information.

The journal will review complaints impartially, maintain confidentiality as appropriate, provide concerned parties with a fair opportunity to respond, and take action based on the available evidence and applicable ethical standards.

ECEIJ aims to follow recognized publication ethics principles, including relevant guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), where applicable.

Commitment to Publication Integrity

ECEIJ expects all participants in the publication process to act with honesty, fairness, transparency, and accountability. By upholding these principles, the journal seeks to maintain public trust, protect research participants, and support the responsible advancement of knowledge in early childhood education.