Editorial ethics
“Sport Science Spectrum is committed to a high standard of editorial ethics.
- The Editorial Board adheres to the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors on the principles of ethics in scholarly works. The Editorial Board adheres to the principles of the Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines developed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), as well as the principles of DORA (San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment).
- Conflicts of interest of persons directly or indirectly related to the publication of the article or the data contained therein are resolved under the legislation of Ukraine on intellectual property.
By submitting the article, authors:
- Give their consent to publish its full text in open access;
- Agree with the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
- Indicate whether there is a conflict of interest with other scientists on the subject.
Conflict of Interest Policy
A conflict of interest refers to any financial, professional, institutional, or personal relationships that may influence or appear to influence editorial decisions or manuscript content.
Disclosure is mandatory for:
authors (financial and non-financial relationships);
reviewers (potential competing interests);
editors (when handling manuscripts involving their institution or colleagues).
If a potential conflict is identified:
the editor or reviewer must recuse themselves;
an independent handling editor is appointed;
independent reviewers are assigned;
decisions and justifications are documented.
Submissions by Editors or Editorial Board Members
Manuscripts submitted by the Editor-in-Chief or editorial board members:
are handled by an independent editor;
undergo standard double-blind peer review;
exclude author involvement in editorial decisions;
include a published COI disclosure statement.
Retraction Policy
The journal follows COPE recommendations to ensure transparent and justified retractions and corrections.
Retraction
Retraction may occur in cases of:
plagiarism, fabrication, or falsification;
major errors invalidating findings;
ethical violations;
duplicate publication.
The procedure includes:
editorial investigation;
consultation with authors and institutions if necessary;
formal editorial decision;
publication of a retraction notice.
Retracted articles remain accessible but are clearly marked as “Retracted.”
Corrections
Minor errors not affecting scientific conclusions are addressed via:
publication of an erratum or corrigendum;
preservation of the original version;
clear indication of correction date.
Policy on the Use of AI
The Journal’s policy on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools is based on international and national recommendations and regulatory documents, in particular the statements of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the provisions of the European Union Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act), the Concept for the Development of Artificial Intelligence in Ukraine, and the requirements of the Law of Ukraine “On Academic Integrity”.
The Journal recognizes the possibility of using AI tools as auxiliary instruments during the preparation of scientific materials. At the same time, the use of such tools must comply with the principles of academic integrity, transparency, and the author’s responsibility for the content of the scientific work and the reliability of the results presented.
AI tools may be used, in particular, for auxiliary tasks such as language editing, structuring of materials, technical data processing, and similar activities. Authors remain fully responsible for the originality, accuracy, and scientific validity of the submitted materials, proper citation of sources, and for the absence of plagiarism, fabrication, or falsification of research results.
The Journal requires authors to openly disclose any use of AI tools during manuscript preparation. AI systems cannot be considered authors or co-authors of scientific articles, as they cannot take responsibility for the content of a publication.
Editors and reviewers must also adhere to principles of confidentiality and must not use AI tools in a way that would disclose unpublished manuscript materials or any other confidential information obtained during the editorial review process.
Violations of the principles for using AI tools may be considered breaches of academic integrity and publication ethics and may result in appropriate editorial actions, including rejection of the manuscript or retraction of a published article.
Privacy, Personal Data Protection and Ethical Approval Policy
The Editorial Board adheres to the principles of academic integrity and research ethics and ensures the protection of personal data in accordance with the legislation of Ukraine, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and international standards for data processing.
1. Collection and Use of Personal Data
Names, email addresses, and other personal data provided by authors, reviewers, and website users are used exclusively for the following purposes:
ensuring the editorial and publishing process;
communication regarding manuscript submission, peer review, and publication;
maintaining and supporting the functioning of the journal’s website.
Personal data are not transferred to third parties and are not used for commercial purposes without the explicit consent of the user, except where required by law.
The Editorial Board applies appropriate technical and organizational security measures to prevent unauthorized access, loss, alteration, or disclosure of personal data. Personal data are retained only for the period necessary to fulfill the purposes of processing or as required by law.
Users have the right to:
access their personal data;
request correction of inaccurate or outdated data;
restrict or object to data processing;
request deletion of personal data (“right to be forgotten”) where provided by law;
withdraw consent to the processing of personal data at any time.
For questions regarding personal data processing or the exercise of their rights, users may contact the Editorial Board using the official contact details provided on the journal’s website.
2. Ethical Approval of Research
This policy applies to all submitted manuscripts if the research:
involves human participants (respondents, experts, interviewees, etc.);
includes the processing of personal or confidential data;
is based on surveys, interviews, focus groups, or other empirical methods involving human participants;
uses restricted-access data or data requiring special authorization.
Authors must confirm that:
participation in the research was voluntary;
participants were properly informed about the purpose and nature of the study;
informed consent was obtained where required by applicable legislation;
confidentiality and proper protection of personal data were ensured in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On Personal Data Protection”.
If the research required review by an ethics committee or another authorized body, the relevant approval must have been obtained prior to the commencement of the study and must be indicated in the manuscript (in the “Methodology” or “Ethical Considerations” section).
By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm compliance with this Policy and bear full responsibility for the accuracy of the information provided. The Editorial Board reserves the right to request supporting documentation, refuse publication, or retract a published article in case of violations of ethical standards or legal requirements.
Consideration of Complaints and Appeals
The Editorial Board of the Journal ensures a transparent and fair procedure for handling complaints related to potential violations of academic integrity and publication ethics. This procedure establishes the process for considering complaints regarding breaches of ethical principles by authors, reviewers, or members of the Editorial Board. It applies to issues related to plagiarism, improper appropriation of materials, conflicts of interest, data manipulation, and other violations of academic integrity.
1. Submission of a complaint.
Complaints regarding possible violations of academic integrity, plagiarism, fabrication or falsification of data, conflicts of interest, duplicate or redundant publications, authorship issues, or other breaches of publication ethics should be submitted to the Editorial Office in written form (via email), clearly stating the nature of the alleged violation and providing supporting evidence or justification.
2. Preliminary assessment.
The Editorial Board conducts an initial evaluation of the complaint to determine its validity and relevance to the journal’s scope. If necessary, the Editorial Office may request explanations or additional materials from the author(s).
3. Investigation.
If the complaint is deemed well-founded, the Editorial Board initiates an internal investigation involving independent experts or Editorial Board members not associated with the handling of the manuscript in question. All parties have the right to be heard.
4. Decision-making.
Based on the results of the investigation, the Editorial Board may decide to:
close the case if no violation is found;
require corrections or clarifications;
publish a correction, expression of concern, or retraction;
reject the manuscript or impose a temporary ban on future submissions;
inform the author’s institution or other relevant bodies, if appropriate.
5. Notification of parties.
The complainant and the author(s) are informed of the outcome of the complaint review in writing within the timeframe established by the Editorial Office. All correspondence is handled confidentially.
6. Confidentiality and impartiality.
All complaints are handled confidentially, objectively, and without discrimination. The Editorial Office ensures that no conflicts of interest affect the complaint review process.
Any appeals to the editorial office regarding violations of the requirements of the Procedure for forming the List of scientific professional publications of Ukraine are accepted in a written form by sending a letter of appeal to the official address of the journal’s founder.
