Ethics Statement

All parties involved in producing a scientific study (author, editor, reviewer, and publishing board) aim to contribute to the advancement of science in an accurate manner. In scientific studies prepared for this purpose, adherence to scientific ethical principles is important. These ethical principles are based on guidelines and policies published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA), and World Association of Medical Editors (WAME). Alma Mater - Journal of Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies commits to embracing and fulfilling the following ethical responsibilities at every stage of the publication process.

All articles submitted to the journal for evaluation must be original and unpublished elsewhere, and should not be under consideration for evaluation elsewhere. Each article undergoes double blind peer review by at least one editor and two reviewers (double-blind peer-review process). Plagiarism, duplication, ghost authorship/undisclosed authorship, research/data fabrication, article slicing, slicing for publication, copyright infringement, and concealing conflicts of interest are considered unethical behaviors.

Articles submitted to the journal for publication must submit a similarity report through plagiarism detection programs (iThenticate, Turnitin, etc.). The similarity rate should not exceed 15%.

All articles that do not adhere to the ethical standards adopted by the journal will be rejected and removed from publication. This includes articles with potential irregularities or improprieties identified after publication.

Authorship of the Manuscript

Alma Mater - Journal of Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies adheres to the highest standards of research ethics and adopts the following international research ethics principles. The ethical compliance of articles is the responsibility of the authors.

1. Integrity, quality, and transparency principles should be followed in the design and conduct of research.

2. Research teams and participants should be fully informed about the purpose, method(s), and potential risks of the research, as well as any anticipated uses.

3. The confidentiality of participants and the information they provide should be ensured. Research should be designed to protect the personal rights and dignity of participants.

4. Research participants should volunteer for the research, without any coercion, and should be adequately informed beforehand.

5. Steps should be taken to avoid situations where participants may be harmed, and research should be planned to avoid putting them at risk.

6. The independence of the conducted research should be clearly stated; if there is a conflict of interest, it should be disclosed.

7. In experimental studies, participants who decide to participate in the research should provide written informed consent. Consent of legal guardians should be obtained for children and those under guardianship or with diagnosed mental illness.

8. If the study is to be conducted in any institution or organization, approval must be obtained from that institution or organization.

9. In studies involving human subjects, it should be indicated in the "method" section that informed consent was obtained from the participants and ethical approval was obtained from the institution where the study was conducted.

Duties of Authors

The scientific and ethical compliance of articles submitted to Alma Mater - Journal of Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies is the responsibility of the author/authors. The author must ensure that the article is original, has not been previously published elsewhere, and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere in another language. Copyright laws and agreements in practice should be observed. Copyrighted materials (such as tables, figures, or extensive quotations) should be used with necessary permission and acknowledgment. The ideas of other authors, the studies used, or the sources should be used in accordance with writing rules and ethical principles and should be indicated in the references (bibliography).

All authors of the article submitted to the journal should have direct academic and scientific contributions to the work. At this point, an "author" is considered to be someone who has made a significant contribution to the conceptualization, organization, data acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of a published research, or has been involved in writing the paper or critically revising it for intellectual content. Other conditions for authorship include planning, executing, and/or revising the study in the article. Providing funding, collecting data, or advising the research group alone does not entitle one to authorship. All individuals listed as authors should meet all the criteria mentioned, and any individual meeting the criteria mentioned above may be included as an author in the article. The sequence of authors' names should be a joint decision of the authors of the respective study. All authors must indicate their authorship order signed in the Copyright Agreement Form.

Individuals who do not meet the sufficient criteria for authorship but contribute to the study should be listed in the "acknowledgment/contribution statement" section. These may include individuals providing technical support or offering financial and material support.

All authors must disclose financial relationships, conflicts of interest, and joint ownership that may potentially affect the results or scientific evaluation of the research. If an author identifies a significant error or mistake in their published article, they are responsible for contacting the editor immediately to collaborate on correcting or retracting it.

Duties of Editors and Reviewers

The chief editors of the journal evaluate articles independent of the authors' ethnic origin, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religious belief, and political philosophy. Editors ensure that articles submitted to the journal undergo a fair double-blind peer review process. Editors guarantee that all information regarding submitted articles will remain confidential until the article is published. Chief editors and section editors are responsible for the overall quality of content and publication. They may publish an erratum or make corrections as necessary.

Chief editors do not allow conflicts of interest among authors, section editors, and reviewers. Chief editors have full authority in appointing reviewers and making final decisions regarding articles to be published in the journal.

Reviewers appointed to evaluate the article should not have conflicts of interest with the research, authors, and/or financial supporters of the research. Reviewers should reach an impartial judgment based on their evaluations. Reviewers should ensure that all information about submitted articles is kept confidential, and if they notice any copyright infringement or plagiarism on the part of the author, they should report it to the editor. If a reviewer does not feel competent about the subject matter of the article or cannot provide a timely response, they should inform the editor of this situation promptly and request not to be included in the review process.

During the review process, the editor clearly states that the articles sent for review are the private property of the authors and that this is privileged communication. Reviewers and editorial board members should not discuss an article submitted to the journal with others. Editors are responsible for ensuring the confidentiality of reviewers' identities. In some cases, with the editor's decision, comments on the article by relevant reviewers can be sent to other reviewers evaluating the same article to enlighten them during this process.