Journal Code of Ethics
Filologia Germanica - Germanic Philology is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that is guided by the publication code of ethics developed by COPE: Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors. All parties involved [authors, editors and reviewers] are familiar with and share the contents of the code set out below.
Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors.
DUTIES OF EDITORS
Decisions on publication
Contributions proposed for publication are first read by at least one member of the editorial board and scientific committee to determine whether the article is suitable for the journal Filologia Germanica - Germanic Philology. The journal only publishes texts that are judged by two anonymous reviewers from outside the Scientific Committee (according to the double blind peer review procedure). The submitted text is anonymised and the reviewers' opinion will be forwarded to the author anonymously.
Correctness
Contributions proposed for publication are evaluated on the basis of their content, without discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexual and political orientation, religion, ethnicity and citizenship of the authors.
The editor and editorial team are committed to ensuring the quality of published texts by taking measures to encourage accuracy, completeness and clarity of writing, including through editorial review and the application of appropriate guidelines.
The editors also undertake to choose suitable reviewers, i.e. scholars capable of judging the work to be evaluated and free of vested interests; to ensure that the peer review process is fair, impartial and timely; and to pass on the reviewers' comments to the authors in their entirety.
The publishing house may not interfere with the editorial board's decisions regarding the choice of articles to be published.
All stages of the review process must be carried out using the protocol set out in the journal's editorial practice to ensure the impartiality of the final decision and to guarantee that the submitted materials remain confidential throughout the evaluation process. The editorial board must carefully consider any criticism of published work and must not be precluded from publishing research that challenges previously published work. It is also the duty of the editorial board to publish corrections, clarifications and retractions where needed and apologies when necessary.
Authors must always be given the opportunity to respond to criticism, with regard to essays published in Filologia Germanica - Germanic Philology. The journal welcomes contributions that question results already published in the journal.
Confidentiality
The Editor-in-Chief and any member of the editorial board or the Scientific Committee undertake not to disclose any information about the texts submitted for consideration by the journal except to the corresponding author, reviewer or potential reviewer.
Conflict of Interest
The Editor-in-Chief and any member of the Editorial Board, as well as any person with knowledge of the content of the submitted articles, undertake not to use it in their own research without the author's written consent.
DUTIES OF THE REVIEWERS
Contribution of the peer reviewer
The peer review process supports the Director and the Scientific Committee in formulating the decision as to whether or not to publish the proposed articles. Reviewers may also suggest corrections and improvements to the author's contribution. The names of the reviewers are listed on the back cover of the volume following the one in which the paper in question was published. In the Supplements, they appear on the back cover from time to time.
Respect of deadlines
If the chosen reviewers do not feel adequate to the task assigned or realise that they cannot carry out the evaluation of the article in the timeframe agreed in advance, they are obliged to inform the editors without delay.
Confidentiality
Any text assigned for reading must be considered confidential. Therefore, such texts must not be discussed with other persons without the explicit authorisation of the editorial board.
Objectivity
The peer review procedure must be conducted objectively. Any personal comment on the author is to be considered inappropriate. Reviewers are obliged to adequately justify their judgements. They are also obliged to point out any errors and suggest improvements.
Bibliographic indications
Reviewers also undertake to indicate the bibliographical references of fundamental works overlooked by the author. They must also point out to the Editor-in-Chief any similarities or overlaps of the text received for reading with other works known to them.
Conflict of interest and disclosure
Confidential information or indications obtained during the peer review process must be considered confidential and may not be disclosed or used for personal purposes. Reviewers are required not to accept for reading articles for which there is a real conflict of interest due to family ties or previous relationships of collaboration or competition with the author and/or his/her institution.
AUTHORS' DUTIES
Access and preservation of data
Authors of original research must also make available the sources or data on which the research is based, so that they can be retained for a reasonable period of time after publication and possibly be made accessible to others who wish to use the work. False or inaccurate claims constitute ethically unacceptable behaviour.
Originality and plagiarism
Authors must guarantee the absolute originality of the texts submitted, and, in the event that the work and/or words of others are used, that they have been appropriately indicated or quoted.
Multiple, repetitive and/or competing publications
The author should not publish articles describing the same research in more than one journal. Simultaneously submitting the same text to more than one journal constitutes unethical behaviour.
Indication of sources
The author must always provide the correct indication of sources and contributions mentioned or used in the article.
Authorship of the work
The authorship of the proposed text must be correctly attributed: all those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, organisation, elaboration and realisation of the research underlying the essay must be indicated as co-authors. The contribution of those who actively participated in certain stages of the research must also be explicitly acknowledged. In the case of co-authored contributions, the author submitting the text to the journal is required to correctly indicate the names of all other co-authors, after obtaining their approval for the final version of the article and consent to its publication.
Conflict of interest and disclosure
All authors must disclose in their manuscript any financial or other conflict of interest that could be interpreted to influence the results or interpretation of their work. All sources of financial support for the project must be indicated. Authors undertake to take into account the reviewers' comments, rework their essay and return it to the journal's editorial office within the agreed time frame. The author must make their own request for permission to reproduce any copyrighted material; the request must be forwarded to the journal's editors.
Errors in published articles
If an author identifies a relevant error in his or her published article, he or she must promptly inform the editorial board, providing all the necessary clarifications to make the appropriate corrections.
