Conflict of Interest

1. Purpose and Scope

JISPAR (Jurnal Ilmu Sosial, Politik dan Pemerintahan) is committed to maintaining transparency, objectivity, and integrity throughout the scholarly publishing process. This Conflict of Interest Policy establishes the principles and procedures for identifying, disclosing, and managing potential or actual conflicts of interest involving authors, editors, reviewers, and other parties involved in the publication process.

A conflict of interest may arise when personal, professional, financial, institutional, or other relationships could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the objectivity, judgment, or decisions associated with the preparation, evaluation, or publication of a manuscript.

2. Types of Conflicts of Interest

Conflicts of interest may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Financial interests: Employment, consultancy, research funding, honoraria, grants, ownership interests, or other financial relationships that may be affected by the publication of a manuscript.

• Personal relationships: Family relationships, close personal relationships, personal disputes, or other circumstances that may compromise impartial judgment.

• Professional and academic relationships: Current or recent collaboration, supervisory relationships, academic competition, or other professional connections between authors, editors, and reviewers.

• Institutional interests: Affiliations or responsibilities that may create competing interests in the evaluation or publication of research.

• Political or ideological interests: Commitments or affiliations that may reasonably be perceived to affect the impartial assessment of research, particularly in areas related to public policy, politics, governance, and public administration.

• Other competing interests: Any additional circumstances that could reasonably be perceived as influencing scholarly judgment or editorial decisions.

The existence of a conflict of interest does not automatically imply misconduct. However, relevant interests must be disclosed and appropriately managed to protect the integrity of the publication process.

3. Responsibilities of Authors

All authors are required to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that may be relevant to their submitted manuscripts. Disclosures should be provided at the time of submission and should identify the nature of the interest and its potential relevance to the research.

Authors must also disclose relevant funding sources and the role of funders, where applicable, in the research design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

If no conflicts of interest exist, authors should include the following statement in their manuscript:

“The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest related to the research, authorship, or publication of this article.”

Authors are responsible for ensuring that all co-authors have been informed of and agree with the conflict of interest disclosure. Any relevant conflict identified after submission or publication must be communicated promptly to the editorial office.

4. Responsibilities of Editors

Editors must maintain impartiality and ensure that editorial decisions are based on the manuscript's scholarly quality, originality, relevance, methodological rigor, and compliance with publication ethics.

Editors must disclose any conflict of interest that could affect their judgment concerning a submitted manuscript. An editor who has a conflict of interest must not participate in the editorial evaluation or decision-making process for that manuscript. The manuscript must instead be assigned to another qualified editor who can handle it independently.

Conflicts may arise from personal relationships with the authors, recent collaboration, institutional affiliation, financial interests, academic competition, or other circumstances that could compromise editorial independence.

Editors must also maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and refrain from using unpublished information for personal or professional advantage.

5. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment or as soon as a relevant conflict becomes apparent.

A reviewer should decline the assignment if a conflict could compromise, or reasonably be perceived to compromise, their ability to provide an objective and impartial assessment. Examples include close personal relationships with an author, significant recent collaboration, direct academic competition, financial interests, or other relationships that may influence the review.

Reviewers must evaluate manuscripts fairly, maintain confidentiality, and refrain from using unpublished data, arguments, or findings for personal or professional benefit.

6. Disclosure and Management Procedures

JISPAR requires conflicts of interest to be disclosed as early as possible during the submission and review process. The editorial team will assess each disclosure and determine appropriate measures to safeguard the fairness and integrity of editorial decisions.

Depending on the circumstances, management measures may include:

1. Requesting additional information or clarification from the relevant party.

2. Reassigning the manuscript to an independent editor or reviewer.

3. Excluding a conflicted individual from discussions or decisions concerning the manuscript.

4. Requiring an appropriate disclosure statement in the published article.

5. Taking further action in accordance with the journal's publication ethics policies if a conflict was intentionally concealed or misrepresented.

The editorial team will consider the nature, significance, and potential impact of the disclosed interest when determining the appropriate response.

7. Undisclosed Conflicts of Interest

If JISPAR identifies a potential conflict of interest that was not disclosed, the editorial team may request an explanation from the relevant author, editor, or reviewer.

If the concern is substantiated, the journal may take appropriate action in accordance with its editorial policies and publication ethics procedures. Depending on the circumstances and the stage of publication, such action may include requesting a correction, publishing a disclosure statement, suspending the editorial process, or considering further measures consistent with the journal's policies on research misconduct and post-publication corrections.

Any action taken will be proportionate to the circumstances and intended to preserve the accuracy, transparency, and credibility of the scholarly record.

8. Post-Publication Disclosure

If a relevant conflict of interest is identified after an article has been published, the authors must inform the editorial office promptly. JISPAR will assess the matter and determine whether a correction, additional disclosure, or other editorial action is necessary.

Any post-publication action will be handled transparently and in accordance with the journal's applicable policies, with the objective of maintaining the integrity of the published scholarly record.

9. Confidentiality and Fair Treatment

All disclosures and concerns relating to conflicts of interest will be handled confidentially to the extent appropriate. Information will be shared only with individuals who need it to assess or manage the matter.

JISPAR is committed to handling all disclosures fairly, consistently, and without discrimination. The disclosure of a conflict of interest will not, by itself, constitute grounds for rejecting a manuscript, provided that the conflict can be appropriately managed and does not undermine the reliability or integrity of the research.

10. Policy Implementation

All authors, editors, reviewers, and other parties involved in the publication process are expected to comply with this policy. By submitting a manuscript to JISPAR, authors acknowledge their responsibility to disclose relevant conflicts of interest and to provide accurate and complete information.

JISPAR reserves the right to review and update this policy when necessary to reflect developments in publication ethics and scholarly publishing standards.