COPE provides leadership in thinking on publication ethics and practical resources to educate and support members, and offers a professional voice in current debates.
Hot topic
Increasingly, large scale manipulations of the publication process are being seen across the research publishing landscape. The production of fraudulent papers at scale via alleged "paper mills" is one such manipulation. Read the summary of issues and add your experience to the discussion.
Our core practices
Core practices are the policies and practices journals and publishers need, to reach the highest standards in publication ethics. We include cases with advice, guidance for day-to-day practice, education modules and events on topical issues, to support journals and publishers fulfil their policies.
Events & discussion
Is it acceptable to edit peer reviews and, if so, when? In our survey around 15% said it is never acceptable for an editor to edit a peer reviewer’s comments and about 25% said it is never acceptable to suppress a review. #TrustInPeerReview #PeerRevWeek20
During this time, with some researchers working remotely, it is hard to maintain consistent oversight as workflows breakdown and pressures to push research forward mount. Despite these unusual conditions, it is important to preserve the practices and principles necessary to maintain an ethical process in research. Advice, and more news, in Digest.
Increasingly, large scale manipulations of the publication process are being seen across the research publishing landscape. The production of fraudulent papers at scale via alleged "paper mills" is one such manipulation. Read the summary of issues and add your experience to the discussion.
Dr Trevor Lane, spoke at a webinar co-organised by the China Association for Science and Technology, Taylor & Francis Group and the Society of China University Journals. See the presentation, in Chinese and English, introducing the trend, challenges and best practices in research and publishing ethics. Plus real publication ethics cases with advice.
WORKSHOP NOW FULL! During this year’s Peer Review Week, COPE will host a workshop for members where we work through real cases to identify issues in peer review and how to handle them. We'll create an online environment for attendees to share ideas, experience, and suggest next steps for each case.
We bring together support and guidance on issues that have come about during this crisis. The collection includes articles on how authors, editors and reviewers are handling their work during this period and guidelines developed in response to the changing environment and workflow.
This month's discussion begins with a focus on the case 'lack of trial registration leads to new concerns about study conduct and ethical review/approval'. Is retraction appropriate in this case? The discussion includes guidelines and advice for anyone experiencing a similar issue.
C0PE members: the COPE Journal Audit corresponds to COPE's Core Practices and can be used by members to identify any areas that need to be revised in your journals. Use it as a checklist to identify any areas that need to be revised in your journals.