Statement on Publication Ethics and Unethical Practices in Publishing
1. Ethical Standards and Guidelines
Balkanistic Worlds is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and integrity. The journal adheres to the principles and best practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) (https://publicationethics.org) and follows internationally recognized standards for scholarly publishing.
2. Editorial Independence
All editorial decisions are made independently of the publisher, sponsors, or external influences. The Editor-in-Chief, together with the issue editors, has full authority over the journal’s editorial content and is responsible for ensuring academic integrity and quality.
3. Peer Review Process
The journal operates a double-blind peer review system.
Each submitted article undergoes:
- Initial editorial review (scope, quality, plagiarism check).
- Review by at least two independent experts.
- The final decision on manuscript acceptance is made by the Editor-in-Chief, based on reviewers’ reports and the recommendation of the Editorial Board.
Evaluation criteria include:
- originality and scientific contribution
- methodological rigor
- clarity and relevance to Balkan studies
The average review time is 4–8 weeks.
4. Responsibilities of the Editors
The editors are responsible for:
- making decisions based solely on academic merit;
- ensuring a fair, impartial, and timely review process;
- maintaining the confidentiality of submitted articles;
- managing conflicts of interest;
- responding to ethical complaints in a timely and transparent manner.
5. Responsibilities of Reviewers
Reviewers must:
- provide objective and constructive feedback;
- treat manuscripts as confidential documents;
- disclose conflicts of interest;
- identify relevant uncited works;
- report suspected misconduct.
6. Responsibilities of Authors
Authors must ensure that:
- the material is original and not under consideration elsewhere;
- all sources are properly cited;
- all listed authors have made a substantial contribution;
- the data are accurate and have not been fabricated or manipulated;
- sources of funding and conflicts of interest are disclosed.
7. Misconduct in publishing and procedures for addressing it
Misconduct includes:
- plagiarism;
- fabrication or falsification of data;
- duplicate publication;
- incorrect attribution of authorship;
- manipulation of the peer review process.
8. Procedure for addressing misconduct:
- Initial assessment by the editor-in-chief
- Gathering of evidence (including reports of plagiarism, reviewer comments)
- Notification of the author and request for a response
- Assessment by the editorial board
- Final decision, which may include:
- rejection of the manuscript;
- publication of a correction;
- withdrawal of the article;
- notification of the authors’ institution.
All cases are handled in accordance with COPE guidelines.
9. Conflicts of Interest
All participants (authors, reviewers, editors) must disclose all financial or non-financial conflicts of interest. Manuscripts with undisclosed conflicts may be rejected.
10. Data Access and Reproducibility
Authors must be prepared to provide raw data upon request. The journal promotes transparency and supports reproducibility where applicable in the humanities.
11. Ethical Oversight
Research involving human participants must comply with institutional and international ethical standards. Documentation of ethical approval must be provided where appropriate.
12. Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern
The journal will publish corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern when necessary to maintain the integrity of the scientific record, in accordance with COPE recommendations.
13. Article Processing Charges (APC)
The journal:
- does not charge submission or publication fees.
There are no hidden costs for authors.
14. Archiving and Digital Preservation
The journal ensures long-term preservation through:
National repository Bulgarian Portal for Open Science
All articles are assigned a DOI.
15. Publication Frequency
The journal is published three times a year (three issues per year).
16. Website Transparency
The journal’s website clearly provides:
- information about the editorial board;
- guidelines for authors;
- a description of the peer review process;
- contact information for the editorial office;
- publication policies.