Publication Ethics

1.   Duties of Authors

a.   Acknowledgement of Sources
Authors should make sure that they have appropriately acknowledged the work of others, and should cite publications that have been significant. Data obtained in private (from conversation, correspondence or discussion with third parties) must not be used or conveyed without obvious written permission from the source.

b.   Authorship of the Paper
The authorship of research publications should accurately reflect individuals’ contributions to the work. Authorship should be limited to those who have completed a significant contribution to conception, design, execution or interpretation of the study. Others who have completed significant contribution must be listed as co-authors. In cases where main contributors are listed as authors while those who completed less significant, or only technical, contributions to the research or to the publication are listed in an acknowledgement section. Authors also make sure that all the authors have seen and agreed to the submitted version of the manuscript and their inclusion of names as co-authors.

c.   Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
Authors should make known any conflicts of interest that might be construed to influence the results or their interpretation in the manuscript. Examples of potential conflicts of interest that should be disclosed include financial ones, as well as non-financial ones. All sources of financial support for the work should be disclosed (including the grant number or other reference number if any).

d.   Fundamental Errors in Published Works
If the author notices a significant error or inaccuracy in the submitted manuscript, then the author should promptly inform the journal editor or publisher and work together with the editor to retract or correct the paper.

e.   Hazards and Human Subjects
If the work includes the use of participants, the authors should make sure that all procedures were performed in compliance with appropriate laws and official guidelines and that the appropriate institutional committee(s) has accepted them; the manuscript should enclose a statement to this effect. The privacy rights of human participants must always be observed.

f.   Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publications
Author should not in all-purpose submit the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. Multiple publications arising from a single research project should be clearly identified as such and the primary publication should be referenced.

g.   Originality
Authors must ensure that they have written original work, and if they have used the work and/or words of others, this has been appropriately cited. Relevant previous work and publications, both by other researchers and the authors’ own, should be properly acknowledged and referenced. The primary literature should be cited where possible.

h.   Reporting Standards
Authors of original research should present an accurate account of the work performed and the results, followed by an objective discussion of the significance of the work. Authors should present their researches without fabrication, alteration or incorrect data. The manuscript should follow the guidelines of the journal and contain appropriate detail and references to permit others to replicate the work. Inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.

2.   Duties of Editor

a.   Confidentiality
The editor must ensure that information regarding manuscripts submitted by the authors is kept confidential. This includes requiring properly informed consent for the actual research presented, consent for publication where applicable.

b.   Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
Editors and editorial board members will not use unpublished information disclosed in a submitted manuscript for their own research purposes without the authors’ explicit written consent. Privileged information or ideas obtained by editors because of handling the manuscript will be kept confidential and not used for their individual benefit. Editors will recuse themselves from considering manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships/connections with any of the authors, companies or institutions connected to the papers; instead, they will ask another member of the editorial board to handle the manuscript.

c.   Fair Play
The editor must ensure that each manuscript received by the journal is reviewed for its intellectual content without regard to sex, gender, race, religion, citizenship, etc. of the authors. An important part of the responsibility to make fair and unbiased decisions is the upholding of the principle of editorial independence and integrity. Editors are in an authoritative position by making judgments on publications, which makes it very important that this process is as fair and unbiased as possible.

d.   Publication Decisions
Based on the review report of the editorial board, the editor can accept, reject, or request modifications to the manuscript. The validation of the work in question and its importance to researchers and readers must always drive such decisions. The editors may confer with other editors or reviewers in making this decision. Editors have to take responsibility for everything they publish and should have procedures and policies in place to ensure the quality of the material they publish and maintain the integrity of the published record.

e.   Review of Manuscripts
Editor must ensure that each manuscript is initially evaluated by the editor for originality. The editor should consolidate peer review objectively and wisely. Editors should clarify their peer review procedures in the information for authors. Editor should use proper peer reviewers for papers that are considered for publication by deciding on people with appropriate expertise and avoiding those with conflicts of interest.

3.   Duties of Reviewers

a.   Acknowledgement of Sources
Reviewers must ensure that authors have acknowledged all sources of data used in the research. Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation. The reviewers should notify the journal immediately if they come across any irregularities, have concerns about ethical aspects of the work, are aware of substantial similarity between the manuscript and a concurrent submission to another journal or a published article, or suspect that misconduct may have occurred during either the research or the writing and submission of the manuscript; reviewers should, however, keep their concerns confidential and not personally investigate further unless the journal asks for further information or advice.

b.   Confidentiality
Information regarding manuscripts submitted by authors should be kept confidential and be treated as privileged information. They must not be shown to or discussed with others except as authorized by the editor.

c.   Disclosure and Conflict of Interest
Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.

d.   Promptness
The reviewers should respond in a reasonable time-frame. The reviewers only agree to review a manuscript if they are confident; they can return a review within the proposed or mutually agreed time-frame, informing the journal promptly if they require an extension. In the event that a reviewer feels it is not possible for him/her to complete review of manuscript within stipulated time then this information must be communicated to the editor, so that the manuscript could be sent to another reviewer.

e.   Standards of Objectivity
Review of submitted manuscripts must be done objectively and the reviewers should express their views clearly with supporting arguments. The reviewers should follow journals’ instructions on the specific feedback that is required of them and, unless there are good reasons not to. The reviewers should be constructive in their reviews and provide feedback that will help the authors to improve their manuscript. The reviewer should make clear which suggested additional investigations are essential to support claims made in the manuscript under consideration and which will just strengthen or extend the work.

4.   Duties of the Publisher

a.   Access to Journal Content
The publisher is committed to the permanent availability and preservation of scholarly research and ensures accessibility by collaborating with organizations and maintaining the digital archive. 

b.   Handling of Unethical Publishing Behavior
In cases of suspected or proven scientific misconduct, falsified publication or plagiarism, the publisher, in close collaboration with the editors, will take all appropriate measures to clarify the situation and to adjust the article in question. This includes the prompt publication of an erratum, clarification or, in the most severe case, the retraction of the affected work.  The publisher, together with the editors, shall take reasonable steps to identify and prevent the publication of papers where research misconduct has occurred, and under no circumstances encourage such misconduct or knowingly allow such misconduct to take place.

Article Correction, Retraction and Withdrawal Policy

Alphabet believes in protecting and maintaining the integrity of the academic record. Very rarely, when the scientific information in an article is substantially undermined then it becomes necessary for Alphabet to publish corrections to, or retractions of articles published in its journal, at the discretion of the editors.

1.      Article Corrections
Authors are encouraged to report errors in their articles with regard to the accuracy of published information. Only errors that impact the article significantly will be considered. Corrections are made at the journal’s discretion. The correction procedure depends on the publication stage of the article. Corrections will be published under corrections and addendum in a later issue of the journal.

2.      Article Retractions
The article may be retracted because of scientific misconduct in cases such as multiple submissions, bogus claims of authorship, plagiarism or fraudulent use of data. A signed statement from the concerned authors will be required to be submitted before an article can be retracted. Agreement of all authors of a paper is required before a retraction can be published. A notice of retraction will be published and linked to the original article clearly marked as a retracted. The notice will also include the reason for the retraction and who is retracting the article. The original article will not be removed from online or print versions of the journal, but will be identified as a retracted article. Retractions will also be listed on the contents page.

3.      Article Withdrawal
Articles can be withdrawn either by the authors or the publisher. Article withdrawal by authors may be permitted only for the most compelling and unavoidable reasons. Authors must not assume that their article has been withdrawn until they have received appropriate notification to this effect from the editorial office. If an article is found to violate the ethical publishing guidelines of Alphabet such as duplicate publication, plagiarism, fraudulent use of data, multiple submission or bogus claims of authorship, the publisher has all the rights to withdraw that article.

Copyright Licensing

Authors who publish in Alphabet  have to agree to the following terms:

1. Alphabet holds the copyright for each article published with work licensed simultaneously under the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 4.0 International License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal’s published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
3. Authors should submit the signed copyright transfer agreement form along with the checked and corrected proofs. This form must be completed by the main author. Accepted manuscripts will not be published until the completed form has been received.