Puitika is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics, academic integrity, editorial independence, and transparency. This policy is informed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices; the COPE Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors (2011), as a historical reference; the COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers, Version 2 (2017); the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, Version 4.0 (2022), developed by COPE, the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), the Open Access Scholarly Publishing Association (OASPA), and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME); and other applicable scholarly publishing standards. Recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) are applied where relevant to the journal’s disciplinary scope.
This policy applies to authors, editors, editorial board members, peer reviewers, and other parties involved in the submission, evaluation, publication, and post-publication processes. All parties are expected to act honestly, impartially, transparently, and responsibly to safeguard the reliability of the scholarly record. This policy should be read together with the journal’s Author Guidelines, Peer Review Policy, AI Usage Policy, Citation Ethics, and Allegations of Research and Publication Misconduct policy.
Authors’ Responsibilities
Authors must submit original work that accurately represents their research, arguments, sources, and findings. All ideas, quotations, data, translations, and other intellectual contributions derived from other sources must be appropriately acknowledged. Plagiarism, fabrication or falsification of evidence, deceptive manipulation of research materials, duplicate or redundant publication, simultaneous submission to multiple journals, and other practices that compromise scholarly integrity are unacceptable.
Authorship must reflect substantial intellectual contributions and the ability to take responsibility for the work. All listed authors must approve the submitted and final versions of the manuscript, agree to the authorship order, and accept accountability for their respective contributions. Contributors who do not meet the applicable authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately. Changes to authorship after submission require a legitimate justification and the documented agreement of all affected authors, subject to the journal’s applicable authorship policy. Authorship disputes that require institutional investigation may be referred to the relevant institution.
Authors must ensure the accuracy, authenticity, and integrity of their research materials, analytical procedures, quotations, citations, and references. Research methods and evidence must be reported sufficiently and accurately to support scholarly evaluation. Data, materials, or supporting documentation must be made available when reasonably requested, subject to applicable copyright, privacy, confidentiality, consent, and legal restrictions. Any inability to share such materials should be explained.
Authors must disclose relevant funding, financial and non-financial competing interests, prior dissemination of substantially related work, and any other circumstances that could reasonably be perceived as influencing their research or its interpretation. Manuscripts must comply with applicable research ethics requirements, including informed consent, protection of privacy, and ethical approval where required by the nature of the research and relevant institutional or legal standards. Authors must obtain permission to reproduce copyrighted or otherwise restricted materials whenever necessary.
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) must comply with the journal’s AI Usage Policy. Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, validity, and integrity of all submitted content, including material generated or modified with AI assistance. Required disclosures must be provided, and AI systems must not be listed as authors or co-authors.
Editors’ Responsibilities
Editors are responsible for ensuring that editorial decisions are fair, independent, timely, and based on scholarly merit, originality, relevance to the journal’s aims and scope, analytical rigor, and compliance with applicable ethical standards. Decisions must not be influenced by authors’ nationality, ethnicity, gender, institutional affiliation, political beliefs, religion, personal relationships, or other characteristics unrelated to scholarly merit.
Editors must preserve the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and associated information, disclose relevant competing interests, and withdraw from decisions in which their impartiality could reasonably be questioned. Manuscripts submitted by editors, editorial board members, or other individuals with editorial authority must be handled through an independent process that prevents conflicts of interest from compromising editorial decisions.
Editors must ensure that the journal’s peer review, authorship, citation, AI usage, research ethics, intellectual property, and misconduct policies are applied consistently. They must not engage in coercive citation practices, manipulate publication metrics, or allow financial, institutional, or personal interests to override scholarly standards.
Editors must take credible allegations of research or publication misconduct seriously, assess them impartially, and follow the journal’s established procedures. Where appropriate, they may seek expert advice, request clarification or supporting evidence, consult relevant institutions, or refer matters to competent authorities. Editors are responsible for ensuring that substantiated problems affecting the scholarly record are addressed through appropriate corrections, expressions of concern, retractions, or other editorial actions.
Peer Reviewers’ Responsibilities
Puitika employs a double-anonymous peer review process. Each manuscript proceeding to substantive peer review must be evaluated by at least two independent reviewers with relevant expertise, in accordance with the journal’s Peer Review Policy.
Reviewers must provide objective, constructive, evidence-based, and timely assessments. Their evaluations should address the manuscript’s originality, scholarly contribution, theoretical framing, methodological appropriateness, analytical rigor, interpretation of evidence, and engagement with relevant literature. Criticism must be professional and supported by scholarly reasoning.
Reviewers must treat manuscripts and all information obtained during peer review as confidential. They must not disclose, reproduce, retain for unauthorized purposes, or exploit unpublished ideas, data, arguments, or other intellectual contributions. Reviewers must disclose relevant competing interests, decline assignments beyond their competence or involving conflicts of interest, and notify the editor of suspected plagiarism, fabricated evidence, citation manipulation, or other ethical concerns.
Reviewers must not use AI systems to evaluate manuscripts or disclose manuscript content to external AI tools except as expressly permitted by the journal’s AI Usage Policy. They remain responsible for the integrity and confidentiality of their reviews and must not use the review process for personal, professional, or institutional advantage.
Conflicts of Interest and Citation Ethics
Authors, editors, reviewers, and editorial board members must disclose financial, professional, personal, institutional, or other interests that could influence, or reasonably appear to influence, their judgment. Disclosure does not automatically establish misconduct; the journal will assess the circumstances and take appropriate measures to preserve editorial independence and impartiality.
Citations must be accurate, relevant, verifiable, and justified by their scholarly contribution. Fabricated references, misleading attribution, coercive citation, excessive or unjustified self-citation, and coordinated citation practices intended to manipulate bibliometric indicators are unacceptable. Requests to add or remove references must be based on legitimate scholarly reasons, not on personal interests or attempts to inflate citation counts. Further requirements are set out in the journal’s Citation Ethics policy.
Research Ethics, Intellectual Property, and Publication Transparency
Research involving human participants, vulnerable populations, personal information, sensitive cultural materials, or other ethically protected subjects must comply with applicable ethical, legal, and institutional requirements. Where required, authors must obtain prior ethical approval, informed consent, consent for publication, and permissions for the use of restricted or copyrighted materials. The journal may request supporting documentation when necessary.
Authors retain copyright in their published works, subject to the journal’s stated licensing arrangements. Published articles are distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0), as specified in the journal’s copyright and licensing policy. Authors and other parties must respect applicable copyright, attribution, licensing, privacy, and confidentiality requirements.
The journal is committed to transparent editorial procedures, clearly stated publication conditions, and the consistent application of its policies to all manuscripts, including contributions to special issues. Editorial decisions must remain independent of financial or other non-scholarly interests. Any publication charges, funding arrangements, or other sources of revenue must be disclosed through the relevant journal policies.
Allegations of Research and Publication Misconduct
Puitika takes credible allegations of research and publication misconduct seriously, whether they concern manuscripts under consideration, published articles, or the conduct of individuals involved in the publication process. Potential concerns include plagiarism, fabrication or falsification of evidence, redundant publication, inappropriate authorship, citation manipulation, undisclosed competing interests, breaches of research ethics, copyright violations, peer review manipulation, and improper or undisclosed AI use.
Allegations will be assessed fairly, impartially, proportionately, and confidentially to the extent reasonably possible. The journal distinguishes allegations from substantiated findings and will not treat an allegation alone as proof of misconduct. Depending on the circumstances, the editorial team may request explanations and evidence, consult independent experts, contact relevant institutions, or refer the matter to an appropriate authority.
The journal’s procedures for reporting, assessing, investigating, and resolving allegations are detailed in its Allegations of Research and Publication Misconduct policy. Possible outcomes include clarification, correction, rejection of a manuscript, an expression of concern, retraction, or referral to the relevant institution or authority, as warranted by the evidence and seriousness of the matter.
Corrections, Retractions, and Post-Publication Discussion
Puitika is committed to preserving the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record after publication. When significant errors, ethical concerns, or unreliable findings are identified, the journal will assess the available evidence and take proportionate action.
Corrections may be issued when errors can be rectified without invalidating the overall reliability of the work. Retractions may be necessary when findings are unreliable or serious ethical violations have occurred. Expressions of concern may be published when substantial questions remain unresolved while further investigation is pending. Editorial notices must clearly identify the affected article and explain the reasons for the action to the extent appropriate and legally permissible.
The journal welcomes legitimate scholarly discussion and criticism of published work. Post-publication concerns will be assessed objectively, and authors may be invited to respond where appropriate. Further procedures are governed by the journal’s applicable post-publication policies and relevant COPE guidance.
Complaints, Appeals, and Accountability
Authors and other affected parties may submit reasoned complaints concerning editorial conduct, publication ethics, or the application of journal policies. Authors may also appeal editorial decisions by presenting substantive grounds for reconsideration. Complaints and appeals must be handled fairly, transparently, and without retaliation.
Where feasible, complaints or appeals must be considered by an editor or designated individual who was not directly involved in the original decision and who has no relevant conflict of interest. The journal may request supporting documentation and consult independent experts or relevant institutions when necessary. Complaints concerning research or publication misconduct will be handled under the journal’s specific misconduct policy.
Complaints and appeals may be submitted to:
Editorial Office: Program Studi Sastra Indonesia, Fakultas Ilmu Budaya, Universitas Andalas, Kampus Limau Manis, Padang, Sumatra Barat, Indonesia.
Email: puitika@hum.unand.ac.id
For matters requiring independent escalation, complaints may be referred to an independent editor appointed by the journal’s management.
Implementation and Policy Review
The editorial team of Puitika is responsible for implementing this policy and ensuring that editors, reviewers, authors, and other relevant parties are informed of their ethical obligations. The journal will apply its policies consistently, document significant editorial and ethical decisions, protect confidential information, and cooperate with relevant institutions or authorities when necessary.
This policy is informed by internationally recognized publication ethics standards and will be reviewed periodically to reflect developments in scholarly publishing, research integrity, applicable regulations, and best practices. Any substantive amendments will be communicated transparently through the journal’s website.
Policy Last Updated: 19 May 2026
Responsible Institution/Publisher: Program Studi Sastra Indonesia, Fakultas Ilmu Budaya, Universitas Andalas.
Policy Contact: puitika@hum.unand.ac.id