Plagiarism Policy
The Journal of Hypermedia & Technology-Enhanced Learning (J-HyTEL) strictly adheres to ethical publishing standards. It follows the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) to address all cases of plagiarism.
Plagiarism involves the use of someone else’s ideas, processes, results, or words without appropriate acknowledgment. J-HyTEL considers all forms of plagiarism to be unethical and unacceptable, including but not limited to:
- Direct plagiarism: Reproducing text word-for-word without citing the source.
- Self-plagiarism: Republishing previously written work or data without proper citation.
- Mosaic plagiarism: Paraphrasing text from a source without proper attribution.
- Accidental plagiarism: Failing to cite sources appropriately due to misunderstanding or oversight.
Plagiarism Detection
All submitted manuscripts undergo a plagiarism screening using Turnitin or similar software to detect potential overlap or similarity with existing published works. J-HyTEL requires the similarity score to be below 20%, excluding properly cited references and common technical terms. If a manuscript is found to have a similarity score exceeding this threshold, the following actions will be taken:
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Initial Screening: If the similarity is excessive during the initial editorial review, the manuscript will be rejected immediately or sent back to the authors for significant revision and resubmission.
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During Peer Review: If plagiarism is identified during the peer review process, the manuscript will be rejected, and the authors may be banned from submitting future manuscripts.
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Post-Publication Detection: If plagiarism is discovered after publication, J-HyTEL will take appropriate action, including retraction of the article and notification to the relevant databases and indexing services.
Consequences of Plagiarism
- Manuscript Rejection: Manuscripts that contain any form of plagiarism will be rejected, and the authors will be notified of the reason.
- Retraction of Published Articles: If plagiarism is detected after an article has been published, it will be retracted in accordance with the COPE Retraction Guidelines. A retraction notice will be issued, and the article’s PDF will be watermarked with "RETRACTED," while its DOI will remain active.
- Banning: Authors found to have committed serious plagiarism may be banned from submitting manuscripts to J-HyTEL in the future.
Plagiarism Screening for Articles in Press
All articles submitted to the Journal of Hypermedia & Technology-Enhanced Learning (J-HyTEL) undergo rigorous plagiarism screening, including those published under the Articles in Press section. Before being accepted and added to Articles in Press, each submission is checked using plagiarism detection tools like Turnitin to ensure a similarity score below 20%. Any submission found to exceed this threshold will either be rejected or returned to the authors for revision.
Articles in Press are subject to the same plagiarism standards and consequences as fully published articles. Suppose any instance of plagiarism is discovered post-publication. In that case, the article will be retracted following the COPE Retraction Guidelines, and proper action will be taken, including notification of the relevant indexing services and databases.
Self-Plagiarism
Authors cannot reuse substantial portions of their previously published works without citation. If authors wish to reuse their previously published material, they must clearly cite the original source and explain how the new manuscript offers a novel contribution beyond the prior work.
Response to Allegations of Plagiarism
J-HyTEL takes all allegations of plagiarism seriously. If a reviewer, editor, or third party alleges plagiarism:
- The editorial team will investigate the claim by checking the manuscript with plagiarism detection software and comparing it with the reported sources.
- If plagiarism is confirmed, the editorial team will inform the authors and may request an explanation or clarification.
- Based on the severity of the plagiarism, appropriate actions will be taken, including rejecting the manuscript, retracting the published article, and notifying the relevant parties.
For more information, refer to the COPE Guidelines on Plagiarism at
https://publicationethics.org/resources/flowcharts/plagiarism-submitted-manuscript
https://publicationethics.org/resources/flowcharts/plagiarism-published-article
Please visit the Turnitin Similarity Check service web at https://www.turnitin.com/