Allegation of Research Misconducts

Research misconduct includes fabrication, falsification, citation manipulation, or plagiarism in producing, performing, or reviewing research and in writing it up, or in the reporting of research results. When authors are found to have engaged in such misconduct or other serious irregularities concerning published articles, journal editors are responsible for taking appropriate action to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the scientific records.

In cases of suspected misconduct, the editors and editorial board will follow COPE’s best practice guidelines to assist them in resolving any complaint and addressing the misconduct fairly. This will include an investigation of the allegation by the editors. Submitted manuscripts found to involve misconduct will be rejected. If misconduct is confirmed in a published article, a retraction notice will be issued and linked to the original article.

The first step in such a process involves determining the validity of the allegation and assessing whether it is consistent with the definition of research misconduct. This initial assessment also considers any relevant conflicts of interest involving those who raised the allegation. 

If research misconduct or other substantial irregularities are suspected, the allegations will be communicated to the corresponding author, who will be asked to provide a detailed response on behalf of all co-authors. After the response is received and evaluated, additional reviews and involvement of experts (such as statistical reviewers) may be needed. When misconduct is considered unlikely, the concerns may be adequately addressed through clarifications, additional analyses, or both, published as letters to the editor and, where appropriate, accompanied by a correction notice and amendments to the original article.

Institutions are expected to conduct an appropriate and thorough investigation of allegations of scientific misconduct. Ultimately, authors, journals, and institutions have an important obligation to ensure the accuracy of scientific records. By responding appropriately to concerns about scientific misconduct, and taking necessary actions based on evaluation of such concerns, such as corrections, retractions with replacement, or retractions. Jurnal Pendidikan Administrasi Perkantoran (JPAP) fulfills this responsibility by carefully evaluating concerns and taking appropriate action, including issuing concerns, retractions with replacement, or retractions, as warranted by the findings.