The Pacific Journal of Advanced Obstetrics & Gynecology (PJAOG) is unwaveringly committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity, originality, and quality in scholarly publishing. Plagiarism in any form is a serious violation of academic ethics and is unequivocally prohibited. This policy outlines PJAOG’s approach to detecting and addressing plagiarism, as well as the responsibilities of authors, reviewers, and editors in ensuring the highest ethical standards are maintained.

 

1. Definition of Plagiarism: Plagiarism involves the unethical use of another person's ideas, words, or work without proper acknowledgment. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Direct Plagiarism: Copying text verbatim from another source without appropriate citation and quotation marks.
• Paraphrasing Plagiarism: Rewriting another author’s ideas or work with minimal changes while retaining the original meaning, without proper citation.
• Self-Plagiarism: Reusing significant portions of one’s previously published work without proper acknowledgment, including duplicate publication or text recycling.
• Mosaic Plagiarism: Borrowing phrases, ideas, or structures from various sources and blending them without proper citation.
• Data Misappropriation: Presenting someone else’s research findings, data, or experimental results as one's own without permission or acknowledgment.

2. Responsibilities of Authors

• Originality Requirement: Authors must ensure their submissions are entirely original and have not been published or submitted elsewhere. Proper attribution is required for all borrowed content, ideas, or data.
• Similarity Threshold: PJAOG enforces a strict similarity limit of 10% with AI-generated content restricted to 0%, as determined by plagiarism detection software. Authors must verify adherence to this threshold before submission.
• Proper Attribution: Authors must cite all sources of ideas, text, or data derived from other works. Failure to do so will result in rejection of the manuscript or additional penalties.
• Ethical Statement: Authors must submit an ethical declaration confirming that their manuscript is original, free from plagiarism, and compliant with the journal’s ethical guidelines.

3. Detection of Plagiarism

• Plagiarism Detection Tools: All manuscripts are screened using advanced plagiarism detection software (e.g., Turnitin, iThenticate) to compare submissions against an extensive database of published works.
• Editorial Screening: The editorial team conducts an initial review to identify overlapping content. Manuscripts with excessive similarity or clear plagiarism are flagged for further investigation.

4. Handling Plagiarism Cases

• Initial Assessment: If plagiarism is detected during the screening or peer review process, the editorial team evaluates the severity of the violation.
• Minor Overlap: For minor instances of overlap (e.g., within acceptable limits with proper citation), authors are asked to revise the manuscript. The manuscript may proceed after satisfactory revisions.
• Major Plagiarism: Manuscripts with significant plagiarism (e.g., extensive copying, paraphrasing without citation) are rejected outright. Authors will be notified and provided with evidence of plagiarism.
• Self-Plagiarism: Authors who self-plagiarize are required to rewrite or remove the duplicated content. Substantial self-plagiarism may result in rejection.

5. Post-Publication Actions

• Retraction: If plagiarism is discovered after publication, an investigation will be initiated. If substantiated, the article will be retracted, and a retraction notice will explain the reasons for the withdrawal.
• Corrections: For less severe plagiarism cases, a correction notice will be issued to properly attribute the plagiarized content.
• Notification of Parties: In severe cases, the authors' institutions and funding agencies may be informed of the misconduct.

6. Consequences for Authors

• Manuscript Rejection: Manuscripts containing plagiarism will be rejected without further consideration.
• Publication Ban: Authors found guilty of significant plagiarism may be banned from submitting to PJAOG for a specific period or indefinitely, depending on the severity of the offense.
• Institutional Reporting: Serious or repeated offenses may be reported to the authors’ affiliated institutions for further action.

7. Role of Reviewers and Editors

• Reviewer Vigilance: Reviewers are expected to be vigilant in identifying potential plagiarism and report any suspicions to the editorial team with evidence.
• Editorial Responsibility: Editors are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of the peer review process while ensuring ethical standards are upheld. Allegations of plagiarism are handled discreetly and in accordance with established procedures.

8. Education and Awareness

• Author Guidance: PJAOG provides resources and guidelines on proper citation practices and the ethical use of content to help authors avoid unintentional plagiarism.
• Reviewer Training: Reviewers receive training and resources to assist in detecting plagiarism and understanding their role in upholding ethical standards.