Compliance with the Principles and Recommendations of COPE, WAME, and DORA

The journal Bulletin of Vasyl Stus Donetsk National University. Series: Political Science supports international standards of academic integrity, transparency, and responsible evaluation of scientific results.

Policy of Compliance with COPE Principles

The recommendations of the Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) are applied by the Editorial Board in accordance with the following criteria:

Duplicate Submission

Authors must submit manuscripts that are original and must not be submitted to any other journal (except under exceptional circumstances and only with the approval of the reviewer). In some cases, authors may disregard this requirement by submitting the same manuscript to several journals or by submitting multiple manuscripts based on the same research. As with plagiarism, duplicate submission may take various forms: literal copying, partial but substantial copying, or even paraphrased duplication of the research. Violation of this policy will result in immediate rejection of the manuscript and may lead to sanctions against the authors.

Citation Manipulation

Submitted manuscripts in which citations are found to be primarily intended to increase the number of references to the author’s own work or to articles published in a particular journal will be immediately rejected, and sanctions against the authors may be applied.

Data Fabrication

If falsified or fabricated data from experimental results (including manipulation of images) are detected in a submitted article, this will result in immediate rejection and may lead to sanctions against the authors.

In cases of suspected misconduct or fraud, the journal will conduct an investigation in accordance with Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). If, after the investigation, reasonable concerns remain, the authors involved will be contacted via their e-mail addresses and given the opportunity to address the issue. Depending on the circumstances, the journal may take appropriate measures. If the manuscript is still under review, it may be rejected. If the article has already been published online, the journal will immediately take appropriate actions depending on the nature and severity of the violation.

Policy of Compliance with DORA Principles

The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) establishes standards for a responsible, non-discriminatory, and objective approach to the evaluation of scientific research.

Rejection of Journal-Based Metrics as the Primary Evaluation Criterion

The Editorial Board does not use the journal impact factor or other journal-based metrics as indicators of the quality of individual articles. Decisions regarding the acceptance of manuscripts for publication are based solely on the scientific value, originality, methodological transparency, and quality of argumentation.

Priority of Content over Indicators

Manuscripts are evaluated based on their content, rather than the authors’ affiliations, the prestige of institutions, or the level of research funding. The Editorial Board encourages detailed descriptions of methods, data, and analytical procedures to enable an objective evaluation of the research.

Support for Diverse Forms of Scholarly Output

The journal recognizes the importance not only of full-length research articles but also of research data, software code, methodological developments, representative materials, negative results, and replication studies. All such materials may be accepted for publication on an equal basis, provided they comply with the journal’s editorial requirements.

Transparency of the Evaluation Process

Editorial decisions must be clearly justified. Double-blind peer review is conducted in accordance with the journal’s policy and international COPE standards.

Prevention of Conflicts of Interest

All decisions undergo independent expert evaluation. Members of the Editorial Board do not participate in decisions concerning their own manuscripts or those of individuals with whom they have financial, familial, or professional relationships.

Policy of Compliance with FAIR Principles

The FAIR principles aim to ensure the availability, reuse, and interoperability of research data and related materials.

Findability

Authors must provide complete metadata describing the research. Data related to published results should be deposited in repositories that ensure the assignment of persistent identifiers (for example, DOI).

Accessibility

Data should be available in open formats or through a clearly described access procedure. Access to data should not be restricted by artificial barriers. In cases where full openness is not possible (for example, due to ethical or legal restrictions), authors must provide a justified explanation.

Interoperability (Interoperable)

Data must be presented in standardized formats compatible with international systems for storage and analysis. Authors should ensure the use of widely recognized metadata structures.

Reusability (Reusable)

Data and materials must be provided with a clear license of use. Authors are required to provide sufficient description of the research context, methods, and instruments so that other researchers can reproduce or reuse the data.

Policy of Compliance with WAME Principles

The Editorial Board of the journal Bulletin of Vasyl Stus Donetsk National University. Series: Political Science also adheres to the standards of WAME (World Association of Medical Editors).

WAME recommendations are applied by the Editorial Board in accordance with the following criteria:

  • Editorial independence – editorial decisions are made without pressure from sponsors, institutions, or commercial interests.
  • Conflicts of interest – all authors, reviewers, and editors are required to disclose them.
  • Peer review – ensuring objective, fair, and timely expert evaluation.
  • Funding transparency – disclosure of information about grants, sponsors, and sources of research funding.
  • Support for early-career researchers – encouraging publications by researchers at the early stages of their academic careers.