Conflicts of Interest

Description 

A competing interest is any financial or non-financial relationship that could reasonably be perceived to influence, or appear to influence, scholarly judgment. This policy applies to authors, reviewers, editors, guest editors, Editorial Board members, and journal staff. 

Disclosure does not necessarily imply wrongdoing. Its purpose is to allow transparent and appropriate management of relevant interests. 

Policy 

  1. Authors must disclose relevant employment, consultancies, honoraria, funding, patents, intellectual-property interests, investments, litigation, personal or family relationships, academic rivalry, institutional relationships, advocacy positions, and other interests connected to the work. 
  2. Authors with no competing interests must state: “The authors declare no competing interests.” Funding disclosures do not replace competing-interest declarations. 
  3. Reviewers must decline or seek advice before accepting an assignment when a financial, personal, professional, academic, or institutional relationship could impair, or appear to impair, impartiality. 
  4. Editors must recuse themselves from manuscripts involving close collaborators, recent co-authors, supervisors, students, family members, direct competitors, personal disputes, or direct financial or institutional interests. 
  5. Submissions by editors or Editorial Board members receive no preferential treatment and must be handled by an independent editor. The submitting editor must not access confidential editorial information or influence the process. 
  6. JFU may manage a disclosed interest through publication of a statement, reassignment, recusal, additional review, or another proportionate safeguard. 
  7. Undisclosed material interests may result in review reassignment, reconsideration of a decision, correction, expression of concern, retraction, or action under the Misconduct Policy. 

Technical Operational Steps 

  1. The submission system collects funding and competing-interest declarations separately from all authors. 
  2. The handling editor reviews declarations before reviewer invitation and records any management action. 
  3. Invited reviewers confirm that they have assessed potential conflicts before receiving or reviewing the full manuscript. 
  4. Editor recusals and replacement assignments are documented in the editorial system. 
  5. The production editor verifies that the accepted declaration appears in the published article and metadata where supported. 
  6. A post-publication allegation of an undisclosed interest is assessed for relevance, materiality, intent, and effect on review or interpretation. 
  7. Confirmed omissions are corrected promptly. Potentially deliberate concealment is handled under the Allegations of Research and Publication Misconduct Policy. 
  8. Conflict declarations and management records are retained in the editorial file.