IGI Global Scientific Publishing allows limited use of AI tools to support authors' writing processes. However, as AI can produce incorrect, repetitive, or biased output, authors must provide a level of oversight and control in its usage and must carefully review and edit the content generated. Authors are ultimately accountable for the contents of the work. Authors may use AI tools to:
Authors choosing to use AI tools in the research and writing process must also disclose the tool and its usage by providing a written statement in the manuscript.
No AI tool will be credited with authorship and authors should not list or cite any AI as an author. This is because only humans have the ability to accept the responsibilities and accountability for the work, such as confirming its accuracy and integrity, of which AI cannot take responsibility.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) use in image and video creation can result in legal copyright and research integrity issues. As such, IGI Global Scientific Publishing does not permit the use of AI-generated images or videos in its publications. IGI Global Scientific Publishing also does not permit the use of AI to manipulate, augment, remove/conceal, introduce, etc. a feature within an image or figure. Included within this policy are videos, animation, illustrations, photographs, drawings, and other 2D and 3D visual representations. Items such as tables, graphs, etc. which do not use images and are text-based are exempt.
To maintain integrity and transparency of the publication process, IGI Global Scientific Publishing requires all contributing authors and editors verify their identity through the provision of:
In cases where submitted information is incomplete, inconsistent, or otherwise unverifiable, IGI Global Scientific Publishing reserves the right to request additional documentation to confirm identity and affiliation. Such documentations may include, but is not limited to:
Institutional Documentation:
Government-Issued Identifications:
Failure to provide adequate verification upon request may result in delays in the editorial process, suspension of manuscript review, or disqualification from participation in IGI Global Scientific Publishing activities.
IGI Global Scientific Publishing is firmly committed to data protection and privacy. All personal data collected during the verification process will be:
Please visit our Web Content Accessibility Guidelines page for more information on how we are continually working to make our content more inclusive.
The use of AI in any aspect of the peer review process, including evaluation, decision-making, and the generation of summaries or comments, is strictly prohibited due to concerns regarding confidentiality and potential biases. IGI Global Scientific Publishing will continue to monitor advancements in AI technology and will update this policy as necessary.
IGI Global Scientific Publishing follows the guidance of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), which acknowledges that patients and study participants have a right to privacy that should not be breached without informed consent.
Consent to Participate
Informed written consent must be voluntarily provided from any participants involved in a study, prior to the start of the study. Should the participant be a minor or is considered vulnerable and unable to provide informed consent, a legal guardian will need to provide consent. Should the participant be deceased, a next of kin may provide consent. Participants must have full knowledge of the study they are participating in, including the risks involved. Authors must include a statement confirming the participants consent within the manuscript.
Should verbal consent be obtained instead of written consent, authors must explain why written consent was not obtained, the approval process for the verbal consent, and its documentation methods.
Consent to Publish
Individuals who agree to participate in a study, may not agree to have their identifiable data published. Identifiable data includes but is not limited to descriptions, photographs, images, videos, names, dates of birth, and biometrical characteristics. Identifiable data should generally be excluded from the manuscript as much as possible. Manuscripts that do include potentially identifiable data should obtain written informed consent that the data and any additional images may be published. Consent must be received from the participant (or a legal guardian for minors or next of kin for the deceased) prior to submission. When in doubt, it is best to obtain written informed consent.
Manuscripts that include identifiable images or data of participants must include a statement confirming that permission was obtained to publish the images or data. If the data is anonymized, authors must state that no consent to publish was required. Alterations to images and/or data to anonymize them should not distort scientific meaning.
Ethics Approval
All studies on humans (individuals, human data, or material) must be conducted in accordance with the principles stated in the Declaration of Helsinki. Authors must receive ethical approval for all protocols from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or other appropriate ethics committee to ensure compliance with national and international guidelines. Authors must include details of this approval upon submission of the manuscript and should provide the name of the ethics committee and permit numbers where available.
Manuscripts granted an exemption by an ethics committee should state so with a full explanation and the name of the granting committee within the manuscript. Ethical approval should always be sought prior to the start of the research/study. Retrospective ethics approval usually cannot be obtained. Authors should also check their national ethical guidelines.
Non-stigmatizing and non-discriminatory language should be used when categorizing groups by race/ethnicity, age, disease, disability, religion, gender, sexual orientation, etc. A justification of the choice of definitions and categories should be explained including whether a relevant funding agency required the categorization.
Clinical Trials
Clinical trials must be registered in a publicly accessible registry prior to the trials initiation. Suitable registries can be found at the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP). The trial registration number and registration date should be included in the article and/or article’s abstract.
Should a trial not have registered prior to participant recruitment, a retrospective trial registration should be sought. Authors retrospectively registering trials should provide an explanation for the retrospective registration as well as the trial registration number and date.
Human Embryos and Stem Cells
Submissions that include studies involving vertebrates or regulated invertebrates must offer detailed information on the ethical treatment of the animals including their appropriate care and handling. Manuscripts should include the name of the ethics committee(s) which approved the study and study procedures must be carried out in accordance with applicable national or international guidelines. If the study did not require ethics approval or was granted an exemption, this should be stated in the manuscript.
Studies involving client-owned animals should have documented informed consent from the client or owner. Such studies should still showcase an adherence to the best practices of veterinary care.
Authors should consult with the “Animal Research: Reporting In Vivo Experiments’ (ARRIVE) guidelines developed by the NC3Rs when submitting manuscripts describing animal research. Every effort should be taken to reduce suffering and euthanasia or anesthesia methods must be described in detail. Researchers are advised to consult the NC3Rs guide on Humane Endpoints and the American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines for the Humane Slaughter of Animals, as well as follow applicable veterinary guidelines such as the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Authors should also consult the ethical principles in the Basel Declaration and the guidelines by the International Council for Laboratory Animal Science (ICLAS) and the Association for the study of Animal Behaviour.
When describing research on threatened/endangered species, studies should comply with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Policy Statement on Research Involving Species at Risk of Extinction, the IUCN red list index of threatened species and the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
Research involving cultivated or wild plants and plant material should follow guidelines provided by the authors’ institution and national or international regulations. Manuscripts describing such research should include a statement of permissions granted and/or licenses.
Voucher specimens must be deposited in a public herbarium or other public collection that provides access to deposited material. The manuscript must include information on the voucher specimen and who identified it, including Genus name, species name, and year of publication.
Authors should comply with the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
Manuscripts that include paleontological and geological material should provide detailed information that shows a clear provenance (or attempt to determine provenance in older museum collections), numbers and repository information, museum name (if applicable), and geographic location. Studies must be conducted in accordance with national or international regulations and the author should obtain any permits that may be required for the research and publication of the manuscript from the relevant authority. Manuscripts must include a statement confirming that the necessary permits were acquired and should name the authority that provided those permits. All samples must be collected and exported responsibly and in accordance with national and local law.
Archaeological work that involves human remains requires that all necessary permits relevant for access to the site and the handling of the remains is obtained prior to data collection. Authors should comply with the Guidelines to the Standards for Recording Human Remains (Chartered Institute for Archaeologists).
Authors should also consult the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) normative instruments for the protection of cultural heritage, and Resolutions, Motions, guidance and other statements of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Manuscripts that include studies from protected heritage sites must be conducted in accordance with any necessary guidelines and authors should obtain any permits that may be required for the research and publication of the manuscript from the relevant authority prior to data collection. Manuscripts must include a statement confirming that the necessary permits were acquired and should name the authority that provided those permits.
Authors should also consult the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) normative instruments for the protection of cultural heritage.
Authors may be asked to provide the underlying source data used to support their manuscript in order to comply with open data requirements of the publication, especially in the case of Open Access publications. In such cases, authors should be prepared to provide public access to such data or present an explanation for why the data cannot be openly displayed (i.e., ethical or security considerations). In cases where the data is restricted for such reasons, authors should provide a description for its restrictions and the necessary information required for a reader to apply to access the data.
Standards of reporting guidelines should be utilized to ensure transparency and reproducibility of research. A comprehensive list of reporting guidelines for medical research can be viewed via the EQUATOR network website.
IGI Global Scientific Publishing carefully selects its editors based on academic standing, experience, and expertise in a topic, as supported by their submitted CV prior to appointment. However, in the event that a contributor has questions or concerns, they are first encouraged to contact the editor of the publication directly.
→ For journals, the contact email is listed on the individual journal webpages. For books, the contact email is listed on the book’s Call for Chapters.
→ If a complaint is directed to the editor of a publication, and there is no response within 30 days, the contributor may contact the Intellectual Property and Contracts Division of IGI Global Scientific Publishing at contracts@igi-global.com.
The Editor-in-Chief receives the authors’ argument, and after again looking at the paper, peer reviews and associate/managing editor evaluation can make a decision whether the decision to reject should stand or further investigation is needed. The person lodging the complaint should be informed of the decision with an explanation if appropriate. Decisions on appeals are final.
The Editor-in-Chief and/or in-house contact (where appropriate) will investigate the matter. The complainant will be given appropriate feedback. Feedback is provided to relevant stakeholders to improve processes and procedures.
The Editor-in-Chief follows guidelines published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) such as can be found in the guides and resources pages found below:
If an author is interested in having a chapter or article reproduced in a forthcoming publication (for commercial or non-commercial use), they should contact our Intellectual Property and Contracts Division at contracts@igi-global.com. It is recommended to consult our Fair Use Policy here, for further details on sharing.
IGI Global Scientific Publishing currently does not accept external paid-for advertisements to be published in its publications.
The In-House Editorial Office manages publishing operations for all journals and books. IGI Global Scientific Publishing 701 East Chocolate Avenue Hershey, PA 17033 USAJournal Contact IGI Global Scientific Publishing Phone: (717) 533-8845 E-mail: journaleditor@igi-global.comBook Contact IGI Global Scientific Publishing Phone: (717) 533-8845 E-mail: development@igi-global.com