Peer-review

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

The Bank and Policy Journal is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics, academic integrity, and editorial independence. The journal promotes responsible research practices and ensures that every manuscript is evaluated through a transparent, objective, and confidential editorial process. Our editorial policies are guided by internationally recognized principles of scholarly publishing and are developed in accordance with the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

All participants in the publication process—including authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher—share responsibility for maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record. Ethical conduct, transparency, confidentiality, and fairness are fundamental principles throughout the submission, peer-review, editorial, and publication processes.

1. Editorial Responsibilities

Editors are responsible for ensuring that every manuscript receives a fair, unbiased, and independent evaluation. Editorial decisions are based exclusively on the scientific quality, originality, methodological rigor, significance, and relevance of the submitted work to the aims and scope of the journal.

Editors evaluate manuscripts without discrimination regarding the authors' nationality, ethnicity, gender, institutional affiliation, political views, or religious beliefs. Commercial interests, sponsorship, or external influence do not affect editorial decisions.

Editors are expected to:

Maintain complete confidentiality throughout the editorial and peer-review process.
Ensure that manuscripts are assessed solely on academic merit.
Select qualified reviewers with appropriate expertise.
Monitor the quality, fairness, and timeliness of the peer-review process.
Prevent conflicts of interest from influencing editorial decisions.
Take appropriate action when ethical concerns or publication misconduct are suspected.
Protect the integrity of the scholarly record by issuing corrections or retractions when necessary.

Editors who have any personal, professional, financial, or institutional conflict of interest with a submitted manuscript must withdraw from handling that manuscript and delegate editorial responsibility to another qualified editor.

2. Peer Review Process

The Bank and Policy Journal operates a double-blind peer-review system. The identities of authors and reviewers remain anonymous throughout the review process to ensure impartiality and minimize potential bias.

Every submitted manuscript first undergoes an initial editorial assessment. During this stage, the editorial office evaluates:

Compliance with the journal's aims and scope.
Academic quality and originality.
Scientific relevance and contribution.
Language quality and overall presentation.
Compliance with publication ethics.
Similarity screening using plagiarism detection software.

Manuscripts that successfully pass the initial screening are assigned to independent expert reviewers with relevant subject expertise. Normally, each manuscript is evaluated by at least two reviewers.

Reviewers assess manuscripts according to several criteria, including:

Originality and novelty.
Scientific significance.
Methodological soundness.
Quality of analysis and interpretation.
Organization and clarity of presentation.
Validity of conclusions.
Adequacy of references and literature review.

Based on reviewers' reports and the editor's assessment, one of the following editorial decisions may be made:

Accept.
Accept with Minor Revisions.
Major Revision Required.
Reject.

The Editor-in-Chief retains the final responsibility for all editorial decisions.

3. Reviewer Responsibilities

Peer review plays a central role in maintaining the scientific quality of the journal. Reviewers are expected to provide independent, objective, constructive, and evidence-based evaluations that assist editors in making informed editorial decisions while helping authors improve their manuscripts.

Reviewers are expected to:

Accept review invitations only when they possess appropriate expertise.
Complete reviews objectively and within the requested timeframe.
Provide constructive comments supported by scholarly reasoning.
Identify important literature that has not been cited where appropriate.
Report suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, image manipulation, fabricated data, or other ethical concerns.
Maintain strict confidentiality regarding all submitted materials.
Refrain from using unpublished information for personal or professional advantage.

Reviewers must immediately notify the editorial office if they identify any actual or potential conflict of interest arising from personal relationships, institutional affiliations, research collaborations, financial interests, or competitive circumstances that could compromise the objectivity of the review.

Reviewer identities remain confidential unless disclosure is explicitly permitted under the journal's editorial policies.

Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to:

Plagiarism and self-plagiarism.
Duplicate or simultaneous submission.
Data fabrication or falsification.
Image manipulation or misleading presentation of results.
Unethical authorship practices.
Citation manipulation.
Undisclosed conflicts of interest.
Interference with the peer-review process.

When potential misconduct is identified, the editorial office will conduct an impartial investigation. Depending on the outcome, the journal may request clarification from the authors, reject the manuscript, publish a correction, retract a published article, or take other appropriate editorial action in accordance with international publication ethics standards.

6. Conflict of Interest

Transparency is essential for maintaining trust in scholarly communication. Authors, reviewers, editors, and members of the editorial board must disclose any financial, institutional, professional, or personal relationships that could influence—or reasonably appear to influence—the publication process.

Where a conflict of interest exists, appropriate measures will be taken to ensure an independent and unbiased editorial decision. Individuals with significant conflicts may be excluded from the review or editorial process.

7. Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern

The journal is committed to preserving the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record. When significant errors or ethical concerns are identified after publication, appropriate editorial action will be taken.

Depending on the nature and severity of the issue, the journal may publish:

A correction (Erratum or Corrigendum).
An Expression of Concern.
A formal Retraction.

Such decisions are made following a careful editorial assessment and, where appropriate, consultation with authors, reviewers, institutions, or other relevant parties.

8. Ethical Oversight

The Bank and Policy Journal is committed to promoting responsible scholarly publishing and safeguarding the integrity of the academic record. All allegations of unethical conduct are handled fairly, confidentially, and without bias.

The journal follows internationally recognized principles of publication ethics and editorial best practices. Editorial policies are regularly reviewed and updated to reflect developments in research integrity and scholarly publishing.

Questions regarding publication ethics, research integrity, or editorial policies may be directed to the Editorial Office at info@bankandpolicy.org.

Important Notice

Submission to the Bank and Policy Journal constitutes the authors' agreement to comply with the journal's editorial policies, publication ethics, and standards of research integrity throughout the submission, peer-review, and publication processes.