All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial or non-financial interests that could affect their objectivity or be perceived as influencing their professional judgment. Disclosure does not automatically imply inappropriate conduct. Rather, it enables the journal to evaluate potential conflicts and implement appropriate safeguards to protect the integrity of the peer-review and publication process.

Types of Conflicts of Interest

Conflicts of interest may take different forms and should be disclosed whenever they are relevant to the research, manuscript evaluation, or editorial decision-making process.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for identifying and disclosing relevant competing interests associated with their research and manuscript. All co-authors should review the disclosure statement and ensure that the information provided is accurate and complete.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers must disclose any competing interests that could compromise, or reasonably appear to compromise, their ability to evaluate a manuscript objectively. This includes recent collaboration with the authors, close personal relationships, direct competition, financial interests, or other relevant professional connections.

Reviewers who cannot provide an impartial assessment should decline the invitation or inform the editor promptly. Reviewers must not use unpublished information obtained during peer review for personal, professional, or commercial advantage.

Responsibilities of Editors

Editors must manage manuscripts independently and avoid participating in decisions where personal, financial, professional, or institutional interests could compromise their impartiality. When a conflict is identified, the editor should disclose it to the appropriate editorial authority and arrange for an independent editor to handle the manuscript.

Editorial decisions must be based on the manuscript's scholarly merit, relevance, quality, and compliance with publication ethics rather than personal relationships, commercial interests, institutional affiliations, or external pressure.

Disclosure and Editorial Management

Relevant competing interests should be disclosed during manuscript submission and included in the appropriate section of the manuscript. The editorial team will assess the disclosure and determine whether additional information, independent review, reassignment, or other safeguards are necessary.

Undisclosed or Misrepresented Conflicts

Failure to disclose a relevant competing interest, or the deliberate provision of misleading disclosure information, may lead to further editorial action. The response will depend on the nature of the interest, its relevance to the publication, the circumstances of the omission, and the available evidence.

• Request clarification or a corrected disclosure statement.
• Pause the editorial process while a concern is assessed.
• Reassign reviewers or editorial responsibility where impartiality may be affected.
• Reject a manuscript when a serious unresolved conflict compromises the integrity of the submission or review process.
• Consider a correction, expression of concern, or other post-publication action where warranted.

Declaration of No Competing Interests

Authors who have no relevant competing interests should explicitly state this in their manuscript. A declaration of no competing interests confirms that, after reasonable consideration, the authors have no interests to disclose that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the research or its presentation.

JCODA is committed to ensuring that scholarly publishing decisions are transparent, fair, and based on academic merit. Through appropriate disclosure and responsible management of competing interests, the journal seeks to protect the independence of peer review, the credibility of published research, and the trust of authors, reviewers, readers, and the wider research community.