These policies apply to every journal of Peninsula Publishing Press, together with the Peer Review process. They follow the COPE Core Practices and the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing of COPE, DOAJ, OASPA and WAME.
Editorial independence
The Editor-in-Chief and the editorial board decide what is published. The decision rests on quality, originality, validity and relevance to the journal’s scope. It is not affected by the authors’ nationality, gender, religion or institution, by the payment or waiver of the article processing charge, or by the interests of the owner or of any funder. Publisher staff do not take part in the decision.
Originality and duplicate submission
A manuscript must be original, must not have been published, and must not be under consideration elsewhere. Plagiarism, including self-plagiarism, is not accepted. By submitting, authors agree that the journal may act if plagiarism or fabricated material is found.
An abstract or poster presented at a meeting, and a results table shared with investigators or participants without interpretation, are not treated as prior publication. A translation of a published article is considered only with permission from the copyright holder, a clear statement that the text is a translation, and a full citation of the original. The editor may ask for the earlier version.
Preprints
A preprint is an early version that has not been accepted by a journal. Depositing a preprint on the authors’ site, in an institutional repository, or on a recognised non-profit preprint server, before or at submission, is allowed and is not treated as prior publication. The cover letter should identify the preprint.
Screening and plagiarism
Plagiarism is the presentation of another person’s text, results, images or ideas as one’s own, without citation. Authors cite the work they use and are responsible for the sources being genuine. Every submission is checked with Turnitin against published and online material, and the similarity report is read by the editor before a decision to review. Overlap that is properly quoted and cited is not treated as plagiarism. Concealed overlap, copied results, or copied images are. COPE’s flowcharts for plagiarism in a submitted or published article are followed.
Fabrication, falsification and images
Fabrication is inventing data, experiments or sources. Falsification is altering or omitting data or images so that the record misleads. Authors should be able to produce original, unprocessed images if asked. The following image practices are not accepted, in line with COPE’s image guidance:
- Enhancing, hiding, moving, adding or removing a specific feature in order to change what the image shows.
- Adjusting brightness or contrast so that the change does not apply to the whole image and to the controls, or so that information is lost.
- Building a figure from different gels, fields or experiments without dividing lines and a legend that says so.
- Using a non-linear adjustment without disclosing it in the legend.
Confirmed fabrication or falsification leads to rejection or retraction, and may be reported to the authors’ institution.
Research involving people
Research involving human participants is conducted in line with the Declaration of Helsinki and the ICMJE recommendations. The manuscript names the ethics committee that approved the study, or explains why approval was not required. Informed consent is obtained and stated in the article. Participants are not identified by name, initials or hospital number, and not by a photograph, unless they (or a parent or legal guardian) have given written consent for that specific publication after seeing the material. Covering the eyes is not a substitute for consent. Case reports require consent. Editors may ask to see the approval or the consent and may reject a manuscript that does not meet this standard.
Research involving organs, tissues or cells must confirm that the material was obtained with consent, without coercion, payment that amounts to trafficking, or exploitation, and in line with the applicable law.
Research involving animals and plants
Research involving animals names the committee that approved it and states that the work followed the relevant national rules and the 3Rs: replace, reduce and refine. Reporting of animal studies follows the ARRIVE guidelines. Studies of client-owned animals state that the owner gave informed consent. Methods of anaesthesia and euthanasia are described. Editors may ask for the approval if the methods appear to depart from accepted practice.
Field research on plants, especially protected or endangered species, states the permits obtained, including where relevant those required under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
Sex and gender
Where sex or gender is relevant to the study, authors follow the SAGER guidelines: they define the terms they use, report the sex or gender of participants or animals, and discuss the results accordingly. They justify a single-sex study.
Hazards
Unusual risks from chemicals, equipment or procedures are stated in the methods.
Confidentiality
Editors and reviewers treat an unpublished manuscript as confidential. They do not announce its contents or use them in their own work. The blinding rules are on the Peer Review page.
Conflicts of interest
Authors, reviewers and editors declare interests as set out under Conflict of Interest. Funding is named in the article.
Proofs
After acceptance, the corresponding author receives proofs. They are returned by the date given with the proof, for correction of errors, not for rewriting the article. The corresponding author confirms that the co-authors have agreed the corrected version.
Corrections, withdrawal and retraction
An error in a published article, including an error in an author’s name or affiliation, is corrected by a published notice linked to the article. Authors and readers are asked to report such errors to the editor.
An article that has been accepted but not yet assigned to a volume and issue may be withdrawn if it contains a serious error or a breach of these policies, including duplicate submission, a false authorship claim, plagiarism or fraudulent data. The article file is replaced by a statement that it has been withdrawn.
A published article that is found to involve plagiarism, redundant publication, fabricated or falsified data, or another serious breach is retracted under the COPE retraction guidelines. The article stays online, with a retraction notice linked to it and a clear mark on the PDF. The notice is approved by the Editor-in-Chief.
Authors check whether a paper they cite has been retracted. A retracted paper is cited only when the retraction itself is relevant, and the citation says that the paper was retracted.
Reporting unethical behaviour
Anyone may report suspected misconduct to the editor or to support@peninsula-press.ae, with enough detail to investigate. The editor and the publishing office look into the concern in confidence. The authors are told of the concern and given a chance to respond. Where the concern is serious, the authors’ institution, funder or another journal may be told. Possible outcomes include a notice to the authors, a published editorial note, a correction, a retraction, and a temporary ban on further submissions. The steps are set out under Research Misconduct.
Appeals and complaints
Authors may appeal a decision once, in writing to the Editor-in-Chief, within 30 days, with reasons and evidence. An editor who did not make the original decision reviews the appeal. That decision is final. Complaints about process or staff go to support@peninsula-press.ae, are acknowledged within 5 working days, and are handled in line with COPE guidance.
Views expressed in an article are the authors’ own.
Peninsula Publishing Press · Peninsula Publishing L.L.C., Dubai · support@peninsula-press.ae · In force 30 October 2026 · COPE Core Practices
