Publication Ethics

The Journal of Physical Education, Sport, and Human Performance (JPESHP) is committed to maintaining high standards of integrity, transparency, accountability, and ethical conduct in scholarly publishing. This Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement establishes the ethical responsibilities of authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher and provides procedures for addressing suspected misconduct.

JPESHP follows recognized principles of responsible scholarly publishing and bases its editorial policies on guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) where relevant, internationally accepted principles for research involving human participants, and established standards of research integrity.

All parties involved in the publication process are expected to comply with these principles.

General Principles of Publication Ethics

JPESHP is committed to:

maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record;
ensuring editorial independence;
conducting fair and rigorous peer review;
protecting the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts;
preventing plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, and other forms of research misconduct;
ensuring transparency regarding authorship, funding, and conflicts of interest;
protecting the rights, safety, dignity, and privacy of research participants;
correcting the scholarly record when errors or misconduct are identified;
preventing inappropriate influence from commercial, institutional, personal, or political interests; and
promoting responsible, transparent, reproducible, and ethical research practices.

Editorial decisions are based on the scientific and scholarly merit of manuscripts and their relevance to the aims and scope of JPESHP.

Responsibilities of the Editor-in-Chief and Editors

2.1 Editorial Independence

The Editor-in-Chief has responsibility for the academic and editorial direction of JPESHP.

Editorial decisions shall be independent of commercial, financial, institutional, political, or personal influence.

The payment or non-payment of Article Processing Charges (APCs), where applicable, shall not influence editorial decisions.

2.2 Fair Evaluation

Editors shall evaluate manuscripts based on:

originality;
scientific significance;
methodological quality;
theoretical contribution;
clarity of presentation;
ethical compliance;
relevance to physical education, sport, exercise, and human performance; and
alignment with the aims and scope of JPESHP.

Manuscripts shall be evaluated without discrimination based on authors' nationality, ethnicity, gender, religion, institutional affiliation, political views, or other irrelevant personal characteristics.

2.3 Editorial Decisions

Editors are responsible for determining whether manuscripts should be:

rejected without external review;
sent for peer review;
returned for revision;
accepted for publication; or
rejected following peer review.

The final editorial decision rests with the Editor-in-Chief or a designated editor acting within the journal's editorial policies.

2.4 Confidentiality

Editors and editorial staff shall maintain the confidentiality of all manuscripts submitted to JPESHP.

Information concerning submitted manuscripts shall only be disclosed to persons directly involved in the editorial and peer-review process.

Unpublished information contained in submitted manuscripts must not be used by editors for their own research or personal advantage without explicit permission from the authors.

2.5 Editorial Conflicts of Interest

Editors must disclose and appropriately manage any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest.

An editor shall not make decisions on manuscripts when the editor has a relationship with the authors or research that could reasonably compromise impartiality.

Such manuscripts shall be assigned to another qualified editor without a relevant conflict.

Peer-Review Policy

3.1 Peer-Review Process

Manuscripts that pass initial editorial screening shall undergo independent peer review.

JPESHP should clearly state the peer-review model used by the journal on its website. Where JPESHP adopts double-anonymous (double-blind) peer review, the identities of authors and reviewers shall be concealed from one another as far as reasonably possible.

Manuscripts should normally be evaluated by at least two independent reviewers with relevant expertise.

3.2 Selection of Reviewers

Reviewers shall be selected based on:

expertise relevant to the manuscript;
academic qualifications;
publication and research experience;
absence of significant conflicts of interest; and
ability to provide a timely and objective review.

Editors should avoid selecting reviewers whose relationships with authors could compromise the independence of the review.

3.3 Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers are expected to:

provide objective and constructive evaluations;
assess methodological and scientific quality;
identify important limitations;
assess whether conclusions are supported by the evidence;
identify relevant literature that may have been overlooked;
identify potential ethical concerns;
report suspected plagiarism or substantial overlap;
maintain manuscript confidentiality; and
complete reviews within the agreed timeframe.

3.4 Confidentiality of Peer Review

Manuscripts received for review are confidential documents.

Reviewers must not distribute, reproduce, discuss, upload, or share submitted manuscripts without authorization from the journal.

Information obtained through peer review must not be used for personal, professional, academic, financial, or competitive advantage.

3.5 Reviewer Conflicts of Interest

Reviewers must disclose conflicts of interest and decline review assignments when impartial evaluation cannot reasonably be ensured.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and ethical compliance of manuscripts submitted to JPESHP.

Authors must ensure that:

the manuscript represents original work;
research findings are reported accurately;
data have not been fabricated, falsified, or improperly manipulated;
all relevant contributors are appropriately recognized;
all listed authors meet authorship criteria;
all authors approve the submitted manuscript;
conflicts of interest are disclosed;
funding sources are disclosed;
ethical approval has been obtained where required;
informed consent has been obtained where applicable;
the manuscript is not simultaneously submitted elsewhere; and
all sources are properly acknowledged and cited.

Authorship and Contributorship

5.1 Authorship Criteria

Authorship should reflect substantial intellectual contribution to the research.

Authors should normally have made substantial contributions to one or more aspects of the study, such as:

conception or design;
data acquisition;
data analysis;
data interpretation;
drafting the manuscript; or
substantive critical revision.

All authors must approve the final manuscript and agree to be accountable for their contributions.

5.2 Unacceptable Authorship Practices

JPESHP does not permit:

gift authorship;
guest authorship;
honorary authorship;
ghost authorship; or
deliberate omission of legitimate contributors.

Individuals who contributed to the research but do not qualify for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately.

5.3 Contributor Statement

JPESHP encourages authors to provide a contributor statement describing each author's contribution.

Where appropriate, contributions may be reported according to the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy).

5.4 Changes in Authorship

Requests to add, remove, or rearrange authors after submission must include:

a clear explanation for the requested change; and
agreement from all affected authors.

Authorship changes after acceptance will only be permitted under exceptional and adequately justified circumstances.

Originality and Plagiarism

JPESHP requires all submitted manuscripts to be original.

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

copying text without appropriate attribution;
presenting another person's ideas as one's own;
copying figures, tables, or data without appropriate acknowledgment or permission;
inappropriate paraphrasing;
unattributed translation of previously published material; and
substantial reuse of previously published material without appropriate disclosure.

Submitted manuscripts may be screened using appropriate similarity-detection software.

A similarity percentage alone shall not determine whether plagiarism has occurred. Editors shall evaluate the nature, extent, location, and context of textual overlap.

Confirmed plagiarism may result in rejection. If significant plagiarism is identified after publication, JPESHP may issue a correction, retraction, or other appropriate notice.

Duplicate and Redundant Publication

Authors must not submit the same manuscript simultaneously to JPESHP and another journal.

Authors must disclose publications or manuscripts that substantially overlap with the submitted work.

Redundant publication, duplicate publication, and inappropriate fragmentation of research findings ("salami publication") may constitute publication misconduct.

Secondary publication may only be considered when scientifically justified, transparently disclosed, appropriately referenced, and consistent with relevant copyright and editorial requirements.

Data Fabrication and Falsification

JPESHP has zero tolerance for deliberate fabrication or falsification of research findings.

Fabrication refers to creating data, observations, participants, results, or records that did not exist.

Falsification refers to manipulating research materials, equipment, procedures, images, data, or results in a manner that misrepresents the research.

Editors may request raw data, research protocols, ethical approval documents, statistical outputs, or other supporting materials when concerns about research integrity arise.

Research Ethics Involving Human Participants

Research involving human participants must comply with internationally recognized ethical principles and applicable institutional and national regulations.

Research involving exercise interventions, physical fitness testing, physiological measurements, sports performance, physical education interventions, or other procedures involving human participants should receive approval from an appropriate Research Ethics Committee, Institutional Review Board (IRB), or equivalent body where required.

Authors should state in the manuscript:

the name of the approving ethics committee;
the approval/reference number, where available;
confirmation that appropriate ethical standards were followed; and
the informed-consent procedures used.

Where ethical approval was not required, authors should explain the basis for exemption where appropriate.

Informed Consent

Participation in research must be voluntary.

Authors must obtain informed consent from participants before participation when required.

Participants should receive adequate information concerning:

study objectives;
procedures;
potential risks;
potential benefits;
confidentiality;
voluntary participation; and
the right to withdraw.

When identifiable participant information, photographs, videos, or case information is published, appropriate consent for publication must be obtained.

Research Involving Children and Vulnerable Populations

JPESHP recognizes that physical education and sport research frequently involves children, adolescents, students, athletes, and other potentially vulnerable groups.

Research involving minors must follow appropriate ethical safeguards.

Parental or legal guardian consent and participant assent should be obtained when required by applicable ethical standards.

Researchers must ensure that teacher-student, lecturer-student, coach-athlete, or other power relationships do not result in coercion or undue influence.

The decision not to participate must not result in inappropriate academic, sporting, professional, or personal consequences.

Participant Safety in Sport and Exercise Research

Researchers conducting physical activity, exercise, fitness, or sports-performance interventions must take reasonable measures to protect participants.

Authors should appropriately report:

participant eligibility;
relevant screening procedures;
intervention intensity;
potential risks;
adverse events where relevant;
safety procedures; and
supervision by appropriately qualified personnel.

Research protocols must not unnecessarily expose participants to avoidable physical or psychological harm.

Clinical Trials and Prospective Intervention Studies

Where relevant to the study design, clinical trials and eligible prospective intervention studies should be registered in a publicly accessible and recognized registry.

Authors should provide the registration number in the manuscript when applicable.

Where registration is expected but was not completed prospectively, authors should transparently explain the circumstances.

Data Availability and Research Transparency

JPESHP supports transparency and reproducibility in research.

Authors are encouraged to make underlying research data available when this is ethically, legally, and practically possible.

Manuscripts may include a Data Availability Statement indicating:

where the supporting data can be accessed;
repository information and persistent identifiers where applicable;
whether data are available upon reasonable request; or
why data cannot be shared.

Restrictions related to participant confidentiality, informed consent, legal requirements, or research ethics must be respected.

Conflicts of Interest

All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose relationships or interests that could reasonably be perceived as influencing their work.

Conflicts may include:

financial relationships;
employment;
consultancy;
research funding;
institutional relationships;
intellectual property;
personal relationships; or
professional competition.

Authors should include a Conflict of Interest Statement.

If no conflict exists, the manuscript may state:

“The authors declare no conflict of interest.”

Funding Disclosure

All sources of financial support must be disclosed.

Authors should identify:

funding organizations;
grant numbers, where applicable; and
the funder's role in the study where relevant.

If the research received no external funding, authors may state:

“This research received no external funding.”

Funding status must not influence editorial decisions.

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence

JPESHP recognizes the increasing use of generative artificial intelligence and AI-assisted technologies in scholarly communication.

17.1 AI Cannot Be an Author

Generative AI systems and Large Language Models cannot be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility and accountability for scholarly work.

17.2 Author Responsibility

Authors remain fully responsible for all submitted content, including content developed with AI assistance.

Authors must verify:

factual accuracy;
references and citations;
originality;
statistical and scientific interpretations;
absence of fabricated information; and
compliance with research and publication ethics.

17.3 Disclosure of AI Use

Substantive use of generative AI in manuscript preparation or research should be transparently disclosed where appropriate.

Authors should identify the tool and explain the purpose for which it was used when its use materially contributed to manuscript preparation or research processes.

17.4 Prohibited Uses

AI must not be used to:

fabricate research data;
falsify results;
generate fictitious references;
manipulate images deceptively;
conceal plagiarism;
misrepresent research findings; or
otherwise compromise research integrity.

17.5 AI in Peer Review

Editors and reviewers must protect the confidentiality of unpublished manuscripts.

Confidential manuscripts, research data, or personally identifiable information should not be uploaded into external generative AI systems where such use could compromise confidentiality, intellectual property, or data protection.

Citation Ethics

Authors must cite sources accurately and appropriately.

JPESHP prohibits citation manipulation, including:

coercive citation;
unnecessary self-citation;
excessive citation of articles from JPESHP for the purpose of increasing journal metrics;
coordinated citation arrangements; and
inclusion of irrelevant references primarily to manipulate citation indicators.

Editors and reviewers must not require authors to add citations solely for the purpose of increasing citations to themselves, their associates, or the journal.

Image Integrity

Figures and images must accurately represent the underlying data.

Image adjustments are permitted only when they do not alter the scientific meaning of the image.

Authors must not selectively enhance, remove, obscure, move, introduce, or manipulate features in a way that could misrepresent research findings.

Original images may be requested during peer review or post-publication investigation.

Corrections

JPESHP shall correct published articles when errors are identified that materially affect the article but do not invalidate its main conclusions.

Correction notices should:

clearly identify the original article;
explain the error;
provide the corrected information; and
remain permanently linked to the original publication where technically possible.

Minor errors that do not affect interpretation may be handled according to the journal's editorial policy.

Retraction Policy

An article may be considered for retraction when there is reliable evidence that:

findings are unreliable because of major error or misconduct;
data have been fabricated or falsified;
plagiarism has occurred;
the work has been published elsewhere without appropriate justification;
unethical research has been conducted;
peer review has been compromised; or
other serious misconduct has substantially undermined the integrity of the article.

Retraction notices should be transparent and clearly linked to the affected article.

The original scholarly record should ordinarily remain accessible and clearly marked as retracted rather than being silently removed.

Expressions of Concern

JPESHP may publish an Expression of Concern when serious questions have been raised regarding a published article but available evidence is insufficient to reach a definitive conclusion.

An Expression of Concern may remain in place while an investigation is conducted by the journal, authors' institution, or another appropriate body.

Handling Allegations of Research and Publication Misconduct

Allegations of misconduct will be handled fairly, confidentially, objectively, and consistently.

Depending on the circumstances, JPESHP may:

conduct an initial assessment;
contact the corresponding author for clarification;
request supporting documentation or original data;
contact co-authors where appropriate;
consult independent experts;
contact institutional research-integrity or ethics offices;
suspend editorial processing during an investigation;
reject a manuscript;
publish a correction;
issue an Expression of Concern; or
retract an article.

The journal shall avoid making unsupported allegations and shall provide relevant parties a reasonable opportunity to respond.

Appeals and Complaints

Authors have the right to submit a reasoned appeal regarding editorial decisions.

Appeals must be based on substantive scientific, methodological, ethical, or procedural grounds rather than disagreement with the outcome alone.

Where possible, complaints concerning an editor should be handled by another editor or appropriate authority who was not directly involved in the matter.

The outcome of an appeal shall be communicated transparently to the author.

Repeated appeals without substantial new evidence may not be considered.

Post-Publication Discussion

JPESHP supports scholarly debate and post-publication discussion.

Readers who identify potential errors, methodological concerns, undisclosed conflicts, ethical issues, or research-integrity concerns are encouraged to contact the editorial office.

Substantive concerns will be evaluated and, when warranted, appropriate corrective action will be taken.

Intellectual Property and Copyright

Authors must respect copyright and intellectual property rights.

Permission must be obtained for copyrighted material where required.

The journal shall clearly state its:

copyright policy;
author rights;
licensing terms;
open-access policy; and
reuse conditions.

Where Creative Commons licenses are used, the applicable license must be clearly displayed on published articles.

Article Processing Charges and Other Fees

Any Article Processing Charges (APCs), submission fees, publication fees, or other charges must be transparently disclosed on the JPESHP website.

Information should include:

the amount charged;
when payment is required;
available exemptions or waivers;
refund policies where applicable; and
services covered by the fee.

Fees must not influence peer-review outcomes or editorial decisions.

Advertising and Commercial Activities

Where JPESHP accepts advertising, sponsorship, or other commercial support, such activities must remain independent of editorial decision-making.

Advertising and sponsorship must not influence:

manuscript selection;
peer review;
editorial decisions; or
presentation of scientific conclusions.

Editorial Board Standards

Members of the Editorial Board should be selected based on relevant scholarly expertise, research experience, professional integrity, and ability to contribute to the development of the journal.

JPESHP should maintain an Editorial Board that reflects appropriate disciplinary and, where feasible, international diversity.

The names, affiliations, and roles of Editorial Board members should be transparently presented on the journal website and periodically reviewed.

Journal Governance and Transparency

JPESHP shall transparently provide information regarding:

journal title;
aims and scope;
publisher;
editorial office;
Editor-in-Chief;
Editorial Board;
peer-review process;
publication frequency;
author guidelines;
publication ethics;
copyright and licensing;
open-access policy;
publication fees;
archiving arrangements; and
contact information.

Journal information should accurately represent actual editorial practices.

JPESHP shall not make misleading claims regarding indexing, impact factors, metrics, affiliations, partnerships, or recognition by external organizations.

Digital Preservation and Archiving

JPESHP recognizes the importance of permanent preservation of the scholarly record.

The journal should use recognized digital preservation and archiving mechanisms to ensure long-term accessibility of published content.

The journal's archiving arrangements should be clearly described on the official website.

Editorial Independence from the Publisher

The publisher supports the journal's operations while respecting editorial independence.

The publisher shall not interfere with individual editorial decisions for commercial, financial, institutional, political, or personal reasons.

The Editor-in-Chief shall have appropriate authority over the journal's academic content and editorial decisions.

Special Issues and Guest Editors

Special issues must follow the same standards of peer review, editorial independence, conflicts-of-interest management, and publication ethics as regular issues.

Guest Editors must disclose conflicts of interest and must not make editorial decisions on manuscripts where impartiality could reasonably be questioned.

The Editor-in-Chief retains appropriate oversight of special issues and may intervene when necessary to protect editorial standards.

Research Integrity and Reproducibility

JPESHP encourages research practices that improve transparency and reproducibility.

Where appropriate to the research design, authors are encouraged to:

clearly describe research methods;
report participant selection criteria;
describe statistical procedures;
provide sufficient information about interventions;
report relevant effect sizes and uncertainty measures;
disclose deviations from research protocols;
make research materials or data accessible where possible; and
follow appropriate disciplinary reporting guidelines.

Authors should use recognized reporting guidelines when relevant to their research design.

Reporting Guidelines

Authors are encouraged or required, as appropriate, to follow internationally recognized reporting guidelines relevant to their study design.

Examples include:

CONSORT for randomized controlled trials;
STROBE for observational studies;
PRISMA for systematic reviews and meta-analyses;
CARE for case reports;
COREQ for qualitative research; and
other recognized reporting standards relevant to sport, exercise, health, and education research.

Use of appropriate reporting guidelines improves transparency, completeness, reproducibility, and scientific quality.

Research Involving Athletes and Sports Organizations

Research involving athletes, teams, schools, clubs, federations, or sports organizations must protect participants' autonomy, privacy, confidentiality, and welfare.

Participation must not be improperly influenced by coaches, teachers, team officials, researchers, or institutional authorities.

Authors should disclose relevant relationships with sports organizations, teams, sponsors, governing bodies, or other stakeholders where these relationships may represent potential conflicts of interest.

Publication Schedule

JPESHP should publish according to the publication frequency stated on its official website.

Any changes to publication frequency should be transparently communicated.

Articles should be published according to legitimate editorial and production processes rather than manipulated publication schedules intended primarily to influence journal metrics.

Ethical Oversight

JPESHP shall maintain appropriate ethical oversight over matters including:

human-participant research;
vulnerable populations;
informed consent;
participant confidentiality;
research data;
authorship;
conflicts of interest;
plagiarism;
research misconduct;
publication misconduct; and
ethical use of emerging technologies.

Editors may request additional documentation when necessary to determine whether research meets applicable ethical requirements.

Commitment to COPE Principles

JPESHP is committed to applying internationally recognized good practices in publication ethics and will refer to relevant COPE Core Practices, guidelines, and flowcharts when handling suspected publication misconduct and complex ethical cases.

Where an ethical matter is not specifically addressed in this policy, the editorial team shall consider relevant COPE guidance and other internationally recognized standards before determining an appropriate course of action.

Ethical Standards and Guidelines

This Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement is informed by internationally recognized scholarly publishing and research-ethics principles, including:

Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices;
COPE guidance and flowcharts concerning publication misconduct;
International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) recommendations, where applicable;
internationally recognized ethical principles concerning research involving human participants;
established international reporting guidelines for health, sport, education, and exercise research; and
applicable institutional and national research-ethics regulations.

JPESHP periodically reviews its publication policies to reflect developments in research integrity, publication ethics, open science, scholarly communication, and emerging technologies.