Research Ethics

This policy applies to every manuscript submitted to a published title that reports original empirical research, including any manuscript that involves human participants, human-derived data, or human-technology interaction. It applies to all authors, and to any non-author contributor whose role in the design, conduct, or reporting of the work is disclosed under the Authorship policy.

JQBio does not accept, review, or publish reports of biological or clinical trials, and this policy does not set standards for the conduct of such trials. Where a submission’s subject matter otherwise touches on health- or medicine-adjacent content, the scope provisions and requirements of the Publication Ethics policy also apply.

This policy does not currently set standards for research involving animal subjects. Should research of that kind fall within the scope of a JQBio-published title, applicable requirements will be set out separately.

JQBio requires that research submitted for publication is designed, from the outset, with a genuine intention to report the findings responsibly, whatever they turn out to be, and that the reporting of that research is complete and accurate. Where a submission involves human participants, authors must demonstrate that the research was conducted and reported responsibly, with participants’ wellbeing, privacy, and consent placed at the centre of the study.

Authors are required to submit, alongside their manuscript, traceable and original supporting documentation demonstrating that the work was conducted ethically and is, on its face, suitable for publication. The specific requirements are set out in Sections 3 and 4 below.

Experimental design and intention for dissemination

Authors are expected to define, in advance of submission, the design of the study being reported — including its objectives or hypotheses, methodology, sampling or selection criteria, planned analyses, and, where applicable, any pre-registration of the protocol. Where the design was amended after the work commenced, the manuscript must disclose the nature of the amendment and the reason for it.

Submission of a manuscript is treated as a representation by the authors that the work was designed, from the outset, with the intention of responsible scientific dissemination — that is, with a genuine intention to report the findings, whatever they turn out to be, rather than to construct a study in order to reach a predetermined conclusion, to support a commercial or promotional position, or to selectively disseminate only favourable results. Authors must disclose the intended audience and use of the work where this differs from ordinary academic readership, including any intended use in marketing, regulatory, or promotional contexts.

Where a study was funded, commissioned, or otherwise supported by a party with a commercial or other interest in a particular outcome or manner of dissemination, the manuscript must state whether that party had any right of review, approval, or control over the decision to submit the work, or over the content of the submission, prior to publication. See also the Funding Statements policy.

Research involving human participants

Where a submission involves human participants, authors are expected to demonstrate that the research was conducted and reported responsibly, with participants’ wellbeing, privacy, and consent placed at the centre of the study.

Ethical approval

Studies involving human participants should comply with the appropriate ethical standards and hold approval from a relevant ethics committee or institutional review body where required. Manuscripts should name the approving body and cite the approval or reference number, or explain clearly why the study was exempt.

Informed consent

Authors should confirm that participants gave informed consent before taking part, and that this consent extended to the collection, processing, and use of any personal data, recordings, images, physiological measurements, or other identifiable information involved in the study. Where a participant is a minor or is otherwise unable to provide informed consent directly, authors must confirm that consent was obtained from a parent, guardian, or other legally authorised representative, in accordance with the applicable legal and ethical framework.

Participant privacy and data protection

Human-related research should protect participants’ privacy and confidentiality throughout. Authors should explain how personal, behavioural, physiological, location, or sensor-derived data were collected, stored, anonymised, or otherwise safeguarded.

Description of participants

Manuscripts should provide sufficient information about the study population to allow readers to assess the relevance and limitations of the research, without including unnecessary personal characteristics. Any participant characteristics used to define groups or analyse outcomes should be clearly justified.

Sex, gender, and other participant characteristics

Where characteristics such as sex, gender, age, or physical characteristics could plausibly influence a system, measurement, or outcome under study, authors should explain how these characteristics were determined and how they were accounted for in the study’s design and analysis.

Human–technology interaction

For studies involving people interacting with machinery, robotics, automation, sensing systems, decision-support tools, or other engineered systems, authors should address participant safety, usability, workload, and any risks arising from the technology or experimental procedure.

Experimental safety

Studies involving physical equipment, field environments, wearable sensors, or other potentially hazardous conditions should describe the safety measures and procedures used to minimise risk to participants.

Vulnerable participants

Where participants may be particularly susceptible to discomfort, coercion, or harm, researchers should take additional precautions to ensure voluntary participation, appropriate consent, and participant safety.

Human-derived measurements

When physiological, behavioural, or other measurements are collected from participants, authors should clearly describe the measurement procedures, equipment, and conditions used, while ensuring that the collection and reporting of such data do not unnecessarily identify individuals.

Responsible reporting

Authors should use respectful, non-stigmatising language throughout, and should avoid presenting participant characteristics as inherent explanations for observed differences when those differences may instead reflect environmental, socioeconomic, technological, or other confounding factors.

Data sharing

Where participant data or recordings are shared, authors should ensure this is consistent with the consent obtained, the relevant ethical approval, and applicable data-protection requirements, with data anonymised or otherwise appropriately safeguarded where necessary.

Evidentiary documentation and traceability

As a condition of submission, authors are required to be able to produce, on request from the editorial office, traceable and original supporting documentation demonstrating that the work described in the manuscript was conducted ethically and is, on its face, suitable for publication. This documentation may include, as applicable to the study concerned:

• The written approval, favourable opinion, or exemption determination of the relevant ethics committee or institutional review board, together with the approved study protocol and any subsequent amendments;
• Evidence of informed consent, including the consent form or script used and, in the case of minors or other participants unable to consent directly, evidence of consent from an authorised representative;
• Documentation of any licence, permission, or clearance required for the use of third-party materials, datasets, images, instruments, or other proprietary content incorporated into the work;
• Records sufficient to demonstrate the provenance and integrity of the underlying data, including primary data, laboratory or field notes, and any pre-registration or protocol registration record; and
• Any funding, sponsorship, or material transfer agreement relevant to the conduct of the study.

Authors bear sole responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, and authenticity of this documentation. JQBio does not independently verify, investigate, or attest to the underlying facts, data, or ethical conduct described in a submission, and the acceptance or publication of a manuscript is not to be construed as confirmation by JQBio that any such documentation is genuine, complete, or that the underlying research was in fact conducted as represented. JQBio reserves the right to request this documentation at any time, including after publication.

Editors and reviewers assess whether a submission’s stated experimental design, disclosed intention for dissemination, and, where applicable, its human-participants declarations are complete and internally consistent with the manuscript as written. Editors may request the supporting documentation described in Section 3 at any point in the review process, and may refer a submission to an editor or reviewer with relevant subject-matter expertise where the design, participant population, or documentation raises questions outside the handling editor’s expertise.

A submission that does not include the declarations required by this policy, or for which requested supporting documentation is not provided, is not progressed to a decision. The mechanism by which these declarations and documents are recorded, checked, and made traceable across the stages of submission is set out in the Publication Ethics policy.

A manuscript that does not meet the requirements of this policy, or for which the required documentation is incomplete, inconsistent, or cannot be produced on request, will not be accepted for publication. Where a deficiency is identified after acceptance but before publication, publication will be held pending resolution of the deficiency.

Where a breach of this policy — including a misrepresentation of experimental design or intention for dissemination, a failure to obtain or disclose ethical approval or informed consent, or the provision of documentation that is later found to be inaccurate, incomplete, or inauthentic — comes to light after publication, the matter is addressed under the Corrections and Retractions policy, and may result in a correction, expression of concern, or retraction, in accordance with the Publication Ethics policy.