Our policies

We follow the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Submitting to a journal means the authors have read and agreed to these policies.

Peer review and ethics

Peer review processScreening first; every manuscript sent for review needs at least two reviews before a decision.Publication ethicsAuthorship, conflicts, misconduct, corrections and retractions, following COPE.Editorial independenceEditors decide independently; nobody handles their own manuscript.Appeals and complaintsHow to appeal a decision or complain, and who answers.Use of generative AIWhat authors declare; what reviewers and editors must never do.Data availabilityThe statement every article carries; when “on request” is allowed.Special issue guidelinesProposing and guest-editing a special issue.

Access, rights and charges

Open access and licensingFree to read; reuse under the licence shown on each article.CopyrightWho holds the copyright, the licence each article carries, and what submitting confirms.Article postingPreprints, repositories and the published version.Article processing chargesCharges excluding VAT, waivers and discounts, payment, withdrawal and refunds.

Keeping the record

CrossmarkHow corrections, concerns and retractions are shown.ArchivingEvery article preserved in Portico.

Using this site

PrivacyWhat we store and share, how long we keep it, and your rights.Terms of useWho we are and the agreement for using the site.

Concerns about research or a published article: the ethics team, [email protected].Complaints about how a manuscript was handled or about a policy: [email protected]. An appeal of a decision is made from the manuscript page (see Appeals and complaints).