Ethics Policy

Publication Ethics & Conflict of Interest:

This journal is committed to upholding the highest standards in research publication ethics. The editors are committed to eliminating plagiarism and other forms of publication misconduct and fraud within our journal. Any detected cases of misconduct are vigorously pursued. This journal fully endorses the COPE International Standards for Editors and Authors. As such, there are a number of responsibilities that all stakeholders are expected to uphold relating to the publication process. These responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following statements:

Editors must:

-Evaluate manuscripts solely on the basis of intellectual content.

-Maintain confidentiality by not disclosing any information about the author, except to editors, editorial board members and/or the publisher, if appropriate.

-Maintain confidentiality by not disclosing any information about the submitted manuscript, except to potential reviewers, editors, editorial board members and/or the publisher, if appropriate, until that manuscript has been rejected or published.

-Ensure that the names, email addresses and other personal information entered in the journal site are used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and are not made available for any other purpose or to any other party.

-Ensure that each submission is anonymously reviewed by at least two qualified peer reviewers.

-Maintain objectivity in reviewing manuscripts, providing authors with constructive feedback that is free of personal criticism.

-Not request any charge or fee to authors for article submission or processing.

- Not accept funds, goods, services or other forms of sponsorship in exchange for publishing a manuscript.

-Take responsive action when there are ethical, or conflict-of-interest concerns raised regarding a submitted manuscript or published paper. These actions will be determined on a case-by-case basis, and may result in several outcomes, including (but not limited to) amending the paper, publishing an erratum document or retracting the paper

Authors must:

-Ensure that their manuscript adheres to the highest standard of academic integrity and ethical practice.

-Alert the editor(s) to any potential conflict(s) of interest related to the manuscript and/or study.

-Submit a manuscript that is an entirely original work, that has not been copied in whole or in part from other works. If the manuscript contains copyrighted materials, the author should note this in their cover letter and forward letters of permission to the editor(s).

-Provide the editor(s) with a letter stating that the manuscript is original material that has not been published and is not currently being considered for publication elsewhere.


-Ensure that the work of others is cited and/or quoted accurately and completely. Plagiarism takes many forms. It is the author’s responsibility to ensure that their manuscript does not contain any plagiarized content.

-Represent the research data that underlies the manuscript accurately.

-Maintain accurate and complete copies of study data associated with the submitted manuscript.

-If applicable, maintain accurate and complete records of ethics documentation for research involving human subjects from their home institution(s).

-Make no knowingly fraudulent or inaccurate statements in the manuscript.

-Provide enough detail in the methodology section of the manuscript to allow for the work to be replicated.

-Limit authorship to individuals who made a significant contribution to the study and/or manuscript.

-Report errors or inaccuracies in the manuscript to the editor immediately upon discovery so that efforts can be made to correct or retract the paper.

Reviewers must:

-Maintain confidentiality by not disclosing any information about the submitted manuscript with anyone except the journal editors.

-Provide a timely review that does not unnecessarily lengthen or hinder the peer review process.

-Provide an accurate and objective review that contains constructive feedback and is free of personal criticism.

-Provide meaningful feedback that contributes to the academic rigour of the paper and assists the editor in making an editorial decision.

-Identify instances of unacknowledged sources within the manuscript to the best of their abilities.

-Alert editors of any potential conflicts of interest in reviewing the manuscript, including conflicts related to the authors of a manuscript, the content of a manuscript or funding sources related to the study.

Research Misconduct Policy (Plagiarism, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Incorrect Citation, Falsified Data, etc.):

The editors of Insights Undergraduate Journal will take reasonable steps to identify and prevent the publication of papers where research misconduct has occurred, including plagiarism, citation manipulation, and data falsification/fabrication, among others. In the event that the editors are made aware of any allegation of research misconduct relating to a published article in their journal, the editor shall follow the Committee on Publication Ethic’s guidelines in dealing with allegations.