Maspul Journal of Community Empowerment (MJCE) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and preventing all forms of publication malpractice. The journal expects editors, reviewers, authors, and the publisher to uphold integrity, transparency, academic responsibility, and ethical conduct throughout the submission, review, editing, and publication processes.

This ethical statement is intended to guide all parties involved in scholarly publishing and to ensure that the journal contributes responsibly to the advancement of community service, community-based intervention, and evidence-based empowerment practices.

Corrections

To preserve the integrity of the scholarly record, MJCE does not alter published articles except where necessary to correct significant errors introduced during editorial handling, peer review, copyediting, or production, or errors that substantially affect the interpretation or practical use of the article.

When a published article contains an error that affects data presentation, attribution, figures, tables, implementation details, or evaluation of the work, the journal may publish a correction notice linked to the original article. The original article will remain part of the scholarly record.

Retractions

The journal may retract a published article if:

• there is clear evidence that the findings, implementation report, or conclusions are unreliable due to misconduct or serious error;
• the work has been published elsewhere without proper acknowledgment, permission, or justification;
• the manuscript contains plagiarism, duplicate publication, or unethical textual reuse;
• the activity or data reported in the article is found to be unethical, misleading, or harmful to participants, communities, or institutions.

By submitting a manuscript to MJCE, authors confirm that the manuscript is original, has not been published previously, and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere.

1. Authors must ensure that their work is original and that all ideas, sources, data, quotations, and materials derived from other works are properly cited and acknowledged.
2. Authors must not submit substantially the same manuscript to more than one journal or publication venue at the same time. Duplicate or redundant publication is unethical.
3. Authors must present an accurate and honest account of the community service, intervention, empowerment program, or evaluative study conducted. Fabrication, falsification, and misleading presentation of outcomes are not acceptable.
4. Manuscripts must contain sufficient methodological and contextual detail so that readers can understand, evaluate, and where appropriate adapt or replicate the reported practice.
5. Authors must disclose any financial, institutional, professional, or personal conflicts of interest that may influence the interpretation or presentation of the work. Sources of funding or institutional support must be acknowledged appropriately.
6. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce copyrighted material, including images, figures, tables, modules, instruments, and other third-party content where required.
7. Authorship must accurately reflect actual scholarly contribution. Only individuals who made substantial contributions to the work should be listed as authors.
8. The corresponding author must ensure that all listed co-authors have reviewed and approved the final manuscript and agreed to its submission.
9. Where the manuscript reports activities involving participants, communities, schools, institutions, or vulnerable groups, authors must ensure that the work was conducted responsibly, respectfully, and ethically.
10. If an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in a published article, the author must promptly notify the editor and cooperate in the correction or retraction process.

Reviewers play an essential role in maintaining the academic quality and integrity of the journal. They are expected to provide fair, objective, constructive, and timely evaluations of submitted manuscripts.

1. Reviewers should accept manuscripts for review only when the topic matches their expertise and when they are able to complete the review within the requested timeframe.
2. Reviewers must treat all manuscripts as confidential documents and must not disclose or discuss them with others unless authorized by the editor.
3. Reviews must be conducted objectively, professionally, and respectfully. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate.
4. Reviewers should provide constructive feedback that helps improve the quality, clarity, scholarly grounding, and practical significance of the manuscript.
5. Reviewers should identify relevant published works not cited by the authors and inform the editor of any substantial similarity or overlap with other works known to them.
6. Reviewers must inform the editor of any ethical concern, including plagiarism, duplicate publication, fabricated outcomes, falsified data, or unethical activity reporting.
7. Reviewers must decline the review if they have any conflict of interest arising from collaborative, institutional, competitive, or personal relationships with the authors or affiliated institutions.
8. Information or ideas obtained through peer review must not be used for personal benefit or any purpose outside the review process.

The editors of MJCE are responsible for making publication decisions and for ensuring the fairness, confidentiality, transparency, and scholarly quality of the editorial process.

1. Editors have the authority to accept, reject, or request revisions based on academic merit, relevance to the journal’s scope, originality, clarity, and reviewers’ recommendations.
2. Editors must evaluate manuscripts without discrimination based on race, religion, gender, nationality, citizenship, institutional affiliation, or personal background.
3. Editors must maintain confidentiality regarding submitted manuscripts and must not disclose information about a manuscript except to those directly involved in the editorial process.
4. Editors must ensure that peer review is conducted fairly, objectively, and in a timely manner.
5. Editors must not use unpublished material disclosed in a submitted manuscript for their own research or professional advantage without explicit written consent from the authors.
6. Editors must take reasonable steps to identify and prevent plagiarism, duplicate publication, citation manipulation, unethical activity reporting, and other forms of publication misconduct.
7. Editors may request clarification or supporting documents from authors concerning ethical approval, permissions, community consent, or institutional authorization where relevant.
8. Editors must respond appropriately to ethical complaints, including correction, retraction, or expression of concern when justified.

MJCE is committed to safeguarding the integrity of the scholarly record. Allegations of misconduct will be handled seriously, fairly, and confidentially. The journal reserves the right to investigate suspected ethical violations and to take appropriate editorial action when misconduct is confirmed.

MJCE does not tolerate any form of publication misconduct, including but not limited to plagiarism, fabricated data, falsified reports, duplicate submission, redundant publication, citation manipulation, and unethical activities involving communities, institutions, or participants. When ethical violations are identified, the journal reserves the right to take appropriate editorial action, including manuscript rejection, correction, retraction, or notification to the relevant affiliated institution when necessary.