Afarand journals allow readers to raise concerns about published work and correct the record promptly and transparently.
Types of notices. The journal publishes corrections for errors that affect the interpretation of the work, expressions of concern when serious concerns are under investigation or cannot be completed, and retractions when findings are unreliable, misconduct is proven, or there is serious redundant publication or plagiarism. Minor typographical errors are corrected silently only when they do not affect meaning, and the correction is logged.
Process. Editors assess concerns following the COPE flowcharts and the retraction guidelines, ask authors and, where needed, their institutions to respond, and aim to complete the first assessment within 30 days. Decisions are not delayed because authors object.
Publication of notices. Every notice states the reason, the person or body that requested it (where this is appropriate), and links to the original article. The original is marked with the notice and remains accessible, and the notice is registered with a DOI and sent to indexing services.
Withdrawal and removal. Articles are removed only in exceptional circumstances (for example, for legal reasons or serious risk to health), and the record then states why.
Corrections and the scholarly record. If a published article is found to contain errors or major flaws, ASPET takes responsibility for promptly correcting the published record, following the COPE retraction guidelines and the NISO CREC recommended practice. A correction notice may state whether the error originated with the authors or the journal. Every notice (correction, expression of concern, retraction) is publicly linked to the original article, listed in the table of contents, registered through Crossref (e.g., Crossmark), and supplied to indexing databases (e.g., Scopus, PubMed, PMC). Retracted articles remain accessible and are clearly marked as retracted.
This page is part of the Afarand Best Practice Statement, which contains the complete text of all sections.