Journal of Life-Span Psychology, Linguistics, and Media Studies (JLLM) is a peer-reviewed journal. This statement explains the ethical behavior of all parties involved in the act of publishing articles in this journal as well as alleged research violations, including the authors, Editor-in-Chief, Editorial Board, peer-reviewers, and the publisher of JLLM. This statement follows the COPE Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors.

Guidelines for Journal Publication Ethics

Articles in JLLM are an essential part of building a respected academic knowledge network. This reflects the quality of work by authors and the institutions that support them. Peer-reviewed articles uphold the scientific method and ethical integrity. Therefore, it is crucial to establish clear ethical standards for all parties involved in the publication process, including authors, editors, reviewers, publishers, and the academic community.

JLLM, as the publisher, takes its role seriously in ensuring that the publishing process maintains high ethical standards. The journal commits to preventing any commercial influence on editorial decisions.

Alleged Research Violations

Research misconduct includes fabrication, falsification, citation manipulation, or plagiarism in conducting, reviewing, or reporting research. If authors are found to have engaged in unethical practices, the Editor is responsible for ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the academic record.

In cases of suspected violations, the Editors and Editorial Board will follow COPE best practices to resolve complaints fairly. This may include conducting an internal investigation. Manuscripts found to contain ethical breaches will be rejected. If a published article is found to be in violation, a formal retraction may be issued.

Publication Decisions

The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for deciding which submitted articles should be published in JLLM.

Editors must follow journal policies and legal requirements concerning defamation, copyright infringement, and plagiarism when making decisions. The Editor-in-Chief may consult with the Editorial Board or external reviewers when making publication decisions.

Complaints and Appeals

JLLM has a structured procedure for handling complaints against the journal, Editorial Staff, Editorial Board, or Publisher. Complaints will be assessed by an independent party, and COPE guidelines will be followed to ensure fairness.

Post-Publication Discussions

JLLM allows academic discussions on published works through letters to the editor, commentaries, or on external moderated platforms.

Fair Play

Manuscripts are evaluated solely based on their intellectual content, without regard to the author’s race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, nationality, or political philosophy.

Confidentiality

Editors and editorial staff must maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and not disclose any details to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, or editorial advisors.

Conflicts of Interest

Unpublished material from submitted manuscripts may not be used by editors or reviewers for personal research without the author's written consent.

Data Sharing Policy

JLLM encourages authors to share research data, including raw data, processed data, software, and methodologies, to support transparency and reproducibility in academic research.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

Peer reviewers play a critical role in the publication process by providing objective evaluations and constructive feedback to help improve the quality of submitted manuscripts.

Author Responsibilities

Authors must ensure that their work is original and properly cite previous research. Submitting the same manuscript to multiple journals is considered unethical and will not be tolerated.

Ethical Oversight

If a study involves human or animal subjects, authors must obtain ethical approval and clearly state this in their manuscript.

If confidential data or proprietary business practices are involved, authors must provide justification for how this information is securely handled.