COPE Recommendation for Conflict of Interest (specific to editors)

Journal of Intelligent Systems and Future Computing (JISFC) requires its editors to manage conflicts of interest in accordance with the principles set out in COPE's guidance for editors on conflicts of interest. This page summarizes how those principles are applied within JISFC's editorial process; see the journal's general Conflict of Interest Policy for the disclosure requirements that apply to authors, reviewers, and editors alike.

Editors Must Disclose

Before handling any manuscript, an editor must disclose to the Editor-in-Chief (or, where the Editor-in-Chief is the individual with the conflict, to another senior editorial board member) any:

  • Financial interest in the outcome of the manuscript (e.g., funding relationships, consultancies, equity)
  • Personal or professional relationship with the author(s) (e.g., current or recent collaborator, family member, current or former student/supervisor)
  • Institutional affiliation shared with the author(s) where this could reasonably be perceived to affect objectivity
  • Direct competing research interest in the same specific research question

Handling Manuscripts with an Editorial Conflict

Where a conflict is identified:

  • The conflicted editor takes no part in the selection of reviewers, evaluation of reviewer reports, or the final editorial decision for that manuscript.
  • The manuscript is reassigned to another editor or handled by an independent guest editor with no such conflict.
  • Where the Editor-in-Chief is the author or has a conflict, the manuscript is handled entirely by another senior editorial board member from initial screening through to final decision.

Editors' Own Submissions

Where a member of the editorial team (including the Editor-in-Chief) submits their own manuscript to JISFC, that individual is recused from all editorial involvement with the manuscript, and the submission is handled under the same process described above, with the review conducted at the same standard applied to any other submission.

Ongoing Disclosure

Editors are expected to update their conflict of interest disclosures as circumstances change (e.g., new funding relationships, new collaborations), not only at the point of appointment to the editorial board.