Withdrawal, Retraction & Correction Policy
The Journal of Hypermedia & Technology-Enhanced Learning uses proportionate, transparent, and traceable editorial actions to preserve the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record.
Preserving an Accurate Scholarly Record
Published content should remain stable and accessible wherever possible. When a scientific, ethical, legal, authorship, privacy, or technical concern is identified, the journal assesses the evidence and selects the least disruptive action capable of correcting or protecting the record. Substantive actions are documented through persistent notices linked to the affected article.
Withdrawal
Used mainly for manuscripts that have not entered the public scholarly record. An Online First article, or any article with a public landing page and stable publication record, is treated as published scholarship and remains traceable through an appropriate notice rather than silent deletion.
Retraction
Used when a major error, misconduct, unethical research, compromised review, or another serious problem makes an article or its central findings unreliable.
Correction
Used when the article remains reliable but requires a visible amendment, clarification, or correction.
Concern, Removal or Replacement
Used when an investigation is incomplete or exceptional legal, privacy, safety, or public-health circumstances require further action.
Manuscript Withdrawal Before Publication
Withdrawal ordinarily applies to an accepted manuscript that has not yet been publicly published. Acceptance alone does not create a published article.
Possible Grounds
Accidental duplicate processing, duplicate submission, serious error, plagiarism, fabricated or falsified material, unethical research, compromised review, legal risk, or another substantial breach identified before publication.
Author Request
An author request must provide a clear written explanation and is not effective until confirmed by the journal. Withdrawal must not be used to avoid an integrity investigation or to submit elsewhere while assessment remains open.
Public Record, if One Exists
If content has already appeared publicly or received a DOI, the landing page and DOI remain traceable. The file may be replaced by a notice that explains the action as fully as confidentiality, legal duties, and procedural fairness permit.
Article Retraction
Retraction is used when the integrity, reliability, provenance, or ethical legitimacy of a published article is seriously compromised and cannot be corrected adequately through a narrower amendment.
- Unreliable findings caused by major error or research misconduct
- Fabricated, falsified, manipulated, or seriously unreliable data or images
- Plagiarism or substantial unattributed reuse
- Duplicate, redundant, or unauthorised publication
- Unethical research or missing required approval or consent
- Unauthorised use of confidential, personal, copyrighted, or protected material
- Compromised, fabricated, or manipulated peer review
- A major undisclosed competing interest that materially undermines the work
Separate Notice
A freely accessible notice identifies the article, explains the reason, states who initiated the action where appropriate, and distinguishes misconduct from honest error when the evidence permits.
Persistent Article and DOI
The original article and DOI normally remain accessible so that the publication history is traceable. The webpage and PDF are marked clearly and linked to the notice.
Author Agreement Not Required
Retraction may proceed without agreement from every author when the evidence supports the action. The notice may state whether authors agreed, disagreed, or did not respond.
No Partial Retraction
A correction is used when reliable parts can be preserved clearly; full retraction is used when the article’s reliability cannot be separated adequately.
Investigation & Decision Process
Post-publication decisions follow an evidence-based assessment, conflict management, and a reasonable opportunity for relevant parties to respond.
Concern Recorded
The journal logs the allegation, error report, evidence, and affected record securely.
Evidence Reviewed
Editors may examine the article, source records, data, images, reports, correspondence, approvals, and other relevant materials.
Relevant Parties Contacted
Authors and other affected parties are invited to respond. The journal may contact institutions, funders, ethics committees, or competent authorities when independent investigation is required.
Proportionate Action
An authorised, non-conflicted editor determines whether no action, correction, expression of concern, retraction, withdrawal, removal, or replacement is appropriate.
Expression of Concern
An expression of concern may alert readers to a potentially serious problem when available evidence does not yet support a final correction or retraction decision.
Serious but Unresolved Concern
It may be appropriate when an investigation is incomplete, delayed, inconclusive, legally restricted, procedurally unreliable, or dependent on evidence the journal cannot yet obtain.
Linked, Factual and Reviewable
The notice identifies the article, describes the concern without overstating unverified conclusions, remains freely accessible, and is reviewed when additional evidence becomes available.
Corrections
A correction is used when an error or omission requires amendment but the article’s central findings and overall reliability remain intact.
Errors Without Material Impact
Typographical, formatting, affiliation, citation, or limited factual errors may be corrected when they do not change data, interpretation, authorship, ethical status, or central conclusions.
Interpretive but Non-Invalidating Impact
Errors affecting a table, figure, analysis, statement, or interpretation may be corrected when the article remains reliable and the amendment can be described transparently.
Substantive changes are documented through a correction notice, version statement, updated article page, or another persistent editorial record. Purely typographical changes that do not affect meaning may be corrected without a formal notice.
Online First Articles
An Online First article is a final published record once released online with stable public metadata and article files. Its page must show whether the DOI is assigned or pending. A temporary DOI-pending label does not make the record provisional and must be resolved on the same article record without resetting its original first-publication date. Issue assignment likewise does not erase or reset the publication history.
Correction or Updated Version
When the article remains reliable, a corrected file may replace the earlier file only when the change and version history are explained through a persistent editorial notice.
Retraction or Exceptional Withdrawal
When a serious concern invalidates the article, the journal issues a retraction or, in exceptional early-publication circumstances, a transparent withdrawal notice. The DOI and public record remain traceable.
Article Removal & Replacement
Removal and replacement are exceptional measures used only when ordinary correction, expression of concern, or retraction cannot address the risk adequately.
Content Removed, Record Retained
Content may be removed when continued access would violate a legal order, serious privacy or confidentiality rights, defamation law, or create a substantial public-health or safety risk.
- Bibliographic metadata and the DOI remain visible where legally possible.
- A removal notice explains the reason as fully as circumstances permit.
- The publication history remains identifiable and traceable.
Corrected Work Linked to the Original
In exceptional cases, an unreliable article may be retracted and a corrected work published separately after re-evaluation.
- The original article and retraction notice remain accessible.
- The corrected publication is identified as a separate version or work.
- Notices and metadata link the original, retraction, and corrected publication.
No Charge for Integrity Actions
The journal does not charge authors for a withdrawal, correction, expression of concern, retraction, removal, or replacement arising from an integrity concern, serious error, or necessary correction of the scholarly record.
Status, Ownership & Review
Policy status: Active. Policy owner: J-HyTEL Editorial Board. Last reviewed: 5 August 2026. The policy is reviewed periodically and when applicable publication-ethics guidance, legal requirements, or journal procedures change.