Authors are required to consult the “Author Guidelines” prior to submission and ensure that their manuscripts comply with the journal’s editorial policies and ethical standards.

All submissions to Intelligent Education (IE) undergo a rigorous double-blind peer review process. Each manuscript is initially assessed by the editorial office for its relevance to the journal’s aims and scope, originality, and overall scientific and language quality before being sent for external peer review.

Information collected during the submission and peer review process is used solely for editorial and publishing purposes and is treated as strictly confidential. It will not be shared or disclosed to any unauthorized third parties.

Authors are encouraged to include a cover letter highlighting the main contributions of their work. The cover letter may also include relevant declarations such as conflicts of interest, confirmation of original submission (not under consideration elsewhere), and, where applicable, statements on data availability and research reproducibility.

The journal is committed to maintaining high standards of academic quality, integrity, and transparency through a rigorous peer review process.

Peer Review Model

The journal adopts a double-blind peer review model, in which both authors and reviewers remain anonymous to each other. This process is designed to ensure fairness, reduce bias, and support objective evaluation of submitted manuscripts.

Scope of Peer Review

All research articles and relevant manuscript types submitted to the journal are subject to peer review, except for Editorials and other content types designated by the Editors as non-peer-reviewed.

Review Process

Each manuscript is evaluated by at least two independent experts in the relevant field. Additional reviewers may be invited when necessary to ensure a fair and comprehensive evaluation.

Reviewers assess manuscripts based on scientific quality, originality, methodological rigor, clarity, and relevance to the journal’s aims and scope.

Editorial Decision

Editorial decisions are made by the Editors based on reviewer reports and their academic judgment. The possible decisions include:

• Accept
• Minor Revisions
• Major Revisions
• Reject
• Reject and Resubmit

Revised manuscripts may be sent back to reviewers for further evaluation when necessary.

Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers are expected to:

• Maintain strict confidentiality regarding all manuscripts under review
• Provide objective, constructive, and evidence-based evaluations
• Avoid personal criticism of the authors
• Declare any potential conflicts of interest and decline review invitations when appropriate
• Complete reviews within the agreed timeframe

Confidentiality and Ethics

All manuscripts under review are treated as confidential. Information obtained during the peer review process must not be shared with or used by unauthorized parties.

Reviewers and Editors must not use unpublished materials for personal research purposes without the explicit consent of the authors.

Reviewers and Editors are required to maintain high ethical standards throughout the peer review process, including the proper handling of confidential information and avoidance of misuse.

Editorial Independence

Editorial decisions are made solely on the basis of academic merit, originality, and relevance to the journal’s scope. Editorial processes are conducted independently of commercial, institutional, or personal influences.

The journal is an open access journal where all content is freely accessible to users and their institutions without any charges. Users are permitted to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, link to the full texts of articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose without needing prior permission from the publisher or author.

Conflicts of interest in publishing refers to situations where authors, reviewers, or Editors may be influenced in their decision-making or behavior due to personal or institutional interests. These interests may include financial gain, academic competition, personal relationships, or other potential benefits, which could affect their objectivity and fairness in reviewing, editing, or publishing scholarly articles.

For Authors

Authors are required to disclose all conflicts of interest related to their work. Each manuscript must include a Conflicts of Interest section at the end, detailing any competing financial and/or non-financial interests. If authors have no competing interests to declare, the statement should indicate: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

For Editors

All Editors of the journal must declare any interests that might affect or be perceived to affect their editorial duties; failure to do so will be considered a violation. Editors with detected conflicts of interest will typically not be invited to make decisions or review manuscripts. Editors should recuse themselves when conflicts of interest could influence their decisions or assessments during the review process.

For Reviewers

Typically, reviewers with detected conflicts of interests with authors, will not be invited to participate in peer review, and reviewers should recuse themselves when they have significant conflicts of interest. If a reviewer discloses a conflict of interest with the authors and asserts that it does not affect his/her review of the manuscript, the opinion could be considered. However, the acceptance of the reviewer's comments will depend on specific factors such as the nature and extent of the conflict, clarity of the reviewer's disclosure, and the Editor's assessment. Editors are responsible for ensuring the fairness and transparency of the peer review process, so they may further evaluate whether the conflict could potentially influence the reviewer's objectivity before making a final decision.

Manuscripts must be written in clear and comprehensible English suitable for academic publication.

Submissions that do not meet acceptable language standards may be returned to authors for revision prior to peer review.

Authors whose first language is not English are encouraged to seek professional language editing prior to submission.

The journal is committed to maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record and follows the COPE Retraction Guidelines and ICMJE recommendations on corrections.

Corrections

Corrections are issued when errors are identified that affect the accuracy of a published article but do not invalidate its overall results or conclusions.

A correction will:

• Clearly describe the changes made and link to the original article;
• Ensure transparency between the original and updated versions;
• Be published in a timely manner to maintain the integrity of the record.

Minor typographical or formatting issues that do not affect the scientific content may not require a formal correction.

Expressions of Concern

An Expression of Concern may be issued when substantial concerns have been raised regarding a published article, but the available evidence is inconclusive or an investigation is ongoing.

Examples may include:

• Allegations of research misconduct under investigation;
• Concerns regarding the reliability of data or findings;
• Unresolved disputes concerning authorship or ethical approval;
• Institutional investigations that have not yet reached a final conclusion.

An Expression of Concern is intended to alert readers to potential issues while ensuring fairness to all parties involved during the investigation process.

The notice will be linked to the original article and may subsequently be replaced by a correction, retraction, or removal of the notice depending on the outcome of the investigation.

Retractions

Retraction is used to correct the literature and alerting readers to articles that contain such seriously flawed or erroneous content or data that their findings and conclusions cannot be relied upon. Unreliable content or data may result from honest error, naïve mistakes, or research misconduct. The main purpose of retraction is to correct the literature and ensure its integrity rather than to punish the authors.

An article may be retracted in cases including, but not limited to:

• Significant errors affecting the reliability of results or conclusions;
• Data fabrication, falsification, or inappropriate manipulation;
• Plagiarism or redundant publication without proper attribution;
• Ethical violations in research design or conduct;
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest that may have influenced interpretation;
• Compromised or manipulated peer review processes;
• Legal issues such as copyright infringement or libel.

A retraction notice will:

• Clearly identify the retracted article;
• Remain linked to the original article, which will be marked as “Retracted”;
• State the reason for retraction in an objective and transparent manner;
• Be issued promptly to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record.

Withdrawal of Submission

Withdrawal of submission is usually a formal action taken by authors, sometimes it can be prompted by the journal Editors, to remove their manuscripts from the journal's submission and review process before any acceptance or publication occurs.

Withdrawal may be considered in cases such as:

• Discovery of significant errors requiring revision;
• Change of journal selection by authors;
• Resolution of authorship or internal disputes;
• Manuscript not fitting the journal scope;
• Ethical or conflict-of-interest concerns.

The editorial office will review each request and decide whether withdrawal is appropriate. Manuscripts under review or after acceptance are subject to stricter evaluation, and withdrawal may not always be granted.

Manuscripts withdrawn from consideration will not proceed further in the editorial process.

Please note, in practical editorial work, withdrawal cases can be more complex than mentioned above, and the journal handles them according to COPE guidance.

Editorial Responsibility

The journal evaluates all correction, concern, retraction, and withdrawal cases on an individual basis and follows relevant COPE guidance and international publication ethics standards.

Decisions are made with the objective of maintaining the accuracy, transparency, and integrity of the scholarly record.

The journal is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication integrity and follows the principles and guidance established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), and International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

The journal does not tolerate any form of academic misconduct. All allegations are assessed carefully and investigated in accordance with established ethical guidelines and publication ethics procedures.

Types of Misconduct

Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to:

• Data fabrication, falsification, or selective reporting of research findings;
• Manipulation, inappropriate enhancement, or misleading presentation of images, figures, or research data;
• Plagiarism, including the use of text, ideas, data, images, or results without appropriate attribution;
• Duplicate submission, redundant publication, or simultaneous submission of substantially similar work to multiple journals without proper disclosure;
• Improper authorship practices, including guest authorship, gift authorship, ghost authorship, or exclusion of eligible contributors;
• Misappropriation of confidential information, ideas, or data obtained through peer review or editorial processes;
• Failure to obtain required ethical approvals, informed consent, or regulatory permissions;
• Citation manipulation or other practices intended to artificially influence scholarly metrics;
• Interference with the peer review process, including reviewer identity fraud or manipulation of reviewer recommendations;
• Any other conduct that compromises the integrity, transparency, or reliability of scholarly publication.

Honest errors, legitimate differences in scientific interpretation, or unintentional mistakes do not normally constitute misconduct.

Duplicate Submission and Redundant Publication

Manuscripts submitted to the journal must be original and must not be simultaneously under consideration by another journal or publication venue.

Authors are required to disclose any related manuscripts, prior dissemination, or potentially overlapping publications at the time of submission. Any overlap with previously published or submitted work must be appropriately cited and explained.

The journal generally accepts submissions that have previously appeared as preprints, conference abstracts, posters, theses, dissertations, or conference presentations, provided that such prior dissemination is transparently disclosed and does not constitute duplicate publication.

Where secondary publication is justified and consistent with international publishing standards, it may be considered with appropriate disclosure and editorial approval.

Investigation and Handling Procedures

The journal uses plagiarism-detection and research-integrity screening tools, including iThenticate, to identify potential ethical concerns.

All suspected cases of misconduct are evaluated in accordance with COPE flowcharts, recommendations, and best-practice guidelines. Authors may be asked to provide original data, supporting documentation, ethical approvals, or other materials relevant to an investigation.

Depending on the nature and severity of the case, the journal may take one or more of the following actions:

• Request clarification, explanation, or correction from the authors;
• Suspend editorial assessment while an investigation is conducted;
• Reject the manuscript;
• Publish a correction, expression of concern, or retraction;
• Notify relevant institutions, funding bodies, or regulatory authorities where appropriate;
• Restrict future submissions from individuals found responsible for serious or repeated misconduct.

Reporting Concerns

The journal encourages authors, reviewers, editors, readers, and other stakeholders to report suspected misconduct or publication ethics concerns.

All allegations will be treated confidentially and investigated fairly, objectively, and in a timely manner. The journal is committed to protecting the integrity of the scholarly record and ensuring due process for all parties involved.

The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies is transforming scholarly research and publishing. This policy establishes principles for the responsible, transparent, and ethical use of AI tools in order to safeguard research integrity, editorial independence, and publication ethics.

This policy applies to all submissions, peer-review activities, and editorial processes of the journal.

For Authors

Authors may use AI and AI-assisted technologies to support the preparation of manuscripts, provided that such use does not replace human intellectual contributions or scholarly judgment. Acceptable uses may include:

• Language editing, grammar correction, and readability improvement;
• Reference formatting and content organization;
• Data visualization, code refinement, and technical assistance;
• Preparation of schematic, conceptual, or illustrative figures, provided that such figures do not represent original research data, observations, or experimental results.

Authors must carefully review, verify, and take full responsibility for all content generated or modified with the assistance of AI tools.

Authors must not use AI or AI-assisted technologies to:

• Generate, fabricate, falsify, or manipulate research data, images, results, or conclusions;
• Create or alter scientific images, observations, or experimental evidence in a misleading manner;
• Replace critical scholarly judgment, interpretation, analysis, or originality;
• Generate inaccurate, unverifiable, or fabricated citations, references, or source materials;
• Be listed as an author or co-author, as AI tools do not meet authorship criteria.

Authors must disclose the use of AI or AI-assisted technologies in the Acknowledgements section or other appropriate sections of the manuscript. The disclosure should describe the purpose and extent of the AI-assisted contribution. Authors must confirm that they have reviewed, edited, and approved the final content and accept full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the work.

 For Reviewers

Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts and associated materials throughout the peer-review process.

Reviewers must not upload manuscripts, in whole or in part, to AI tools or third-party platforms if doing so may compromise confidentiality, intellectual property rights, or data protection requirements.

Peer review must be conducted by the assigned reviewer. AI tools must not be used to generate, replace, or substantially influence review reports, recommendations, or editorial assessments.

Reviewers may use AI-assisted technologies solely to improve the language or readability of their review comments, provided that no confidential manuscript content is disclosed to the AI system.

 For Editors

Editors retain full responsibility for all editorial decisions. AI tools must not replace human judgment in the evaluation of scientific quality, ethical compliance, originality, or suitability for publication.

Editors may use AI-assisted technologies for limited administrative and operational purposes, including:

• Preliminary language or formatting assessment;
• Workflow management and manuscript classification;
• Administrative support that does not influence editorial decisions.

Editors must not upload unpublished manuscripts, reviewer reports, personal information, or other confidential materials to unauthorized AI systems. Editors are responsible for ensuring compliance with this policy and addressing suspected misuse of AI in accordance with established publication ethics procedures.

Failure to comply with this policy may be considered a breach of publication ethics. Suspected misuse of AI or AI-assisted technologies will be assessed in accordance with the journal’s ethical policies and relevant COPE guidance and may result in appropriate editorial action.

The journal supports transparency, reproducibility, and responsible data sharing in scientific research.

Data Sharing Principles

Authors are expected to make the data, code, software, materials, and protocols underlying their findings available whenever possible and appropriate.

Where feasible, research data should be deposited in recognized public repositories prior to or upon publication.

Data Availability Statement

All manuscripts must include a Data Availability Statement describing:

• Where the data can be accessed;
• Whether data are publicly available, restricted, or unavailable;
• Any relevant repository links or accession numbers.

Data Restrictions

Where data cannot be shared due to ethical, legal, privacy, confidentiality, or commercial restrictions, authors must clearly state the reasons in the manuscript.

Such restrictions will not affect editorial evaluation provided that sufficient evidence is available to support the findings.

Reproducibility and Supporting Materials

Authors are encouraged to provide sufficient methodological detail and, where appropriate, supporting materials such as datasets, software, and code to enable verification and replication of results.

Journal Verification Rights

The journal may request access to underlying data, code, or supporting materials during peer review or after publication to assess the validity and integrity of the research.

Author Responsibility

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, integrity, and availability of all data associated with their work.

The journal adheres to the authorship definition outlined by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Authorship confers credit and has important academic, social, and financial implications. Authorship also implies responsibility and accountability for published work. Contributors who have made substantive intellectual contributions to a paper should be given credit as authors, and contributors credited as authors understand their role in taking responsibility and being accountable for what is published.

Authorship Criteria

All authors must meet all of the following four criteria:

• Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work;
• Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content;
• Final approval of the version to be published;
• Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work, ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Funding acquisition, general supervision, or administrative support alone does not qualify for authorship.

Corresponding Authors

The corresponding author is the primary contact between the journal and all authors during submission, peer review, and publication. The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all administrative requirements of the journal are properly completed, including authorship details, ethical approvals, clinical trial registration (where applicable), and disclosure statements.

The corresponding author should remain available throughout the editorial process and after publication to respond to editorial queries and facilitate any requests for data or additional information.

Group Authorship

When a large multi-author group has conducted the work, the group should determine authorship before the study begins and confirm authorship before manuscript submission. All listed authors must meet the four authorship criteria and accept responsibility for the integrity of the work.

Group authorship may be attributed to a group name, with or without individual author names. The corresponding author must clearly identify all individuals who qualify as authors and take responsibility for the work.

Authorship Contributions

The journal uses the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) system to specify individual author contributions. A dedicated Author Contributions Statement must be included in the manuscript, clearly describing each author’s role.

Where authors have contributed equally, this should be explicitly stated (e.g., “Author A and Author B contributed equally to this work”).

Artificial Intelligence (AI)-Assisted Technology

AI and AI-assisted technologies cannot be listed as authors or co-authors, as authorship requires accountability and responsibility that AI cannot assume.

Authors remain fully responsible for all content generated or assisted by AI tools. AI-assisted tools may be used to support language editing, formatting, or other non-substantive improvements, provided that all content is carefully reviewed, verified, and edited by the authors.

Acknowledgements

Individuals who do not meet authorship criteria but have contributed to the work (e.g., technical assistance, language editing, proofreading, administrative support, or general supervision) should be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section.

Because acknowledgment may imply endorsement of the work, corresponding authors must obtain permission from all individuals named in this section.

Use of AI tools for writing assistance should also be disclosed in the Acknowledgements section where applicable.

Authorship Changes

Requests to add, remove, or rearrange authors after submission or publication require a clear justification and written agreement from all listed authors and any affected individuals.

The journal follows COPE guidelines for changes in authorship.

Authorship Disputes

Authorship determination is the responsibility of the authors. The journal does not arbitrate authorship eligibility or disputes. If disagreements arise, institutions where the research was conducted may be asked to investigate.

Authorship disputes do not typically result in retraction unless the validity of the research is affected. The journal follows COPE guidance in handling such cases.

The journal operates under an open access publishing model. All accepted articles are made freely and permanently available to readers immediately upon publication.

Article Processing Charge

A standard Article Processing Charge (APC) of USD 600 applies to all manuscripts accepted for publication following peer review.

This fee covers the costs associated with editorial management, peer review administration, copyediting, typesetting, online hosting, DOI registration, and long-term digital archiving.

APCs are charged only after a manuscript has been formally accepted for publication. Manuscripts that are rejected at any stage of the review process are not subject to any charges.

Editorial and Invited Content

Certain article types, including editorials, invited contributions, and special issue articles commissioned by the editorial office, may be published without APCs.

Such decisions are made independently by the editorial office and are not influenced by the peer review process or acceptance decisions.

Waivers and Discounts

The journal is committed to supporting equitable access to publication opportunities. APC waivers or discounts may be granted on a case-by-case basis, particularly for authors from low-income or lower-middle-income countries, or under specific editorial considerations.

Authors may apply for a waiver by contacting the editorial office. All waiver decisions are made independently and do not affect the editorial or peer review process.

Reviewers, editorial board members, and collaborating institutions may be eligible for discounts or waivers as part of the journal’s recognition and engagement policy.

Editorial Independence

The payment of APCs has no influence on editorial decisions. All manuscripts are evaluated solely on the basis of academic merit, originality, and relevance to the journal’s scope.

The journal is published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). Authors retain the copyright of their work and agree to make their original works freely available for use, copying, and redistribution in all formats without needing permission, provided that proper citation is given to the authors and the original source.

The journal is committed to upholding the highest standards of research integrity, ethical responsibility, and transparency in all published work. All submissions must comply with internationally recognized ethical standards, including the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki where applicable, as well as relevant institutional and national guidelines.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that all necessary ethical approvals, informed consent, and regulatory requirements have been obtained prior to the conduct of the research. A clear statement of ethical approval and informed consent must be included in the manuscript. Where ethical approval is not required, authors must provide a clear justification.

The journal follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), and International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) guidelines in handling all ethical matters, including investigations of potential misconduct.

Scope of Research Involving Human Participants

Research involving human participants is primarily limited to educational, cognitive, behavioral, or learning-related studies relevant to intelligent education, including but not limited to:

• Classroom or online learning interventions
• Educational experiments and assessments
• Teacher–student interaction studies
• Learning analytics and educational data mining
• Human–AI interaction in learning environments

Studies that are purely clinical, medical, psychological therapy–oriented, or not directly related to educational processes are outside the scope of this journal.

Ethical Requirements for Human Research

All research involving human participants must be reviewed and approved by an appropriate institutional ethics committee or review board.

Written informed consent must be obtained from all participants prior to data collection or participation in the study. Participants must be fully informed of the study purpose, procedures, potential risks, benefits, and data usage. Participation must be voluntary, and participants retain the right to withdraw at any time.

For minors, vulnerable individuals, or deceased persons, informed consent must be obtained from their legal guardians, next of kin, or legally authorized representatives, as appropriate.

Authors are responsible for ensuring the privacy and confidentiality of human subjects. The disclosure of any identifiable personal information should be strictly avoided. Where such disclosure is essential for scientific interpretation, explicit written consent for publication must be obtained from the participants or their authorized representatives prior to submission.

Educational Data and Learning Analytics Ethics

For studies involving educational data, learning analytics, or digital learning platforms, authors must ensure that:

• Data are collected and processed in compliance with applicable privacy and data protection regulations
• Personal identifiers are anonymized or de-identified where possible
• Data use does not infringe on learners’ rights or institutional policies
• Any use of artificial intelligence or automated decision systems is transparently described

Where applicable, authors should include a data availability statement describing how data can be accessed or why access is restricted.

Clinical and Non-Educational Research Exclusion

The journal does not consider submissions that are:

• Purely clinical or medical studies without an educational component
• Biomedical or psychological interventions not directly related to educational processes
• Studies lacking clear relevance to intelligent education systems or learning technologies

Clinical or health-related studies are considered only when they are directly integrated into educational technologies or learning systems (e.g., digital health education tools, cognitive training systems, or AI-based learning interventions).

Animal Research

Research involving animal subjects is generally outside the scope of this journal.

In rare cases where animal-related data are used to support the development of bio-inspired educational technologies or computational learning models, such studies must comply with relevant ethical standards and institutional requirements.

Ethical Compliance and Misconduct

The journal reserves the right to reject manuscripts that do not meet ethical standards or that raise concerns regarding research integrity.

Any suspected ethical misconduct will be investigated in accordance with COPE guidelines. The journal may request additional documentation, contact authors’ institutions, or take appropriate actions, including rejection, correction, or retraction.

Authors are expected to adhere to the highest standards of transparency, integrity, and responsibility in conducting and reporting research.

The journal accepts manuscripts that have previously been deposited on recognized preprint servers. Preprint posting is not considered prior publication and does not affect the peer review or editorial evaluation process.

Authors are required to disclose any preprint version of their manuscript at the time of submission. This disclosure should include the title, DOI (if available), preprint server name, and date of posting, and should be provided in the cover letter and/or manuscript.

Once an article is published, authors are encouraged to update the preprint record with the final published version, including the journal name, DOI, and a link to the official publication. Authors should also clearly indicate that the manuscript has been formally published in the journal.

The journal evaluates all submissions based on their scientific merit, originality, and relevance, regardless of preprint status.

Advertisements may be displayed on the journal website provided that they are relevant, appropriate, and comply with applicable laws and regulations.

All advertisements are subject to approval by the publisher prior to publication. The journal reserves the right to accept or reject any advertising content at its discretion.

Advertisements must not influence, or be perceived to influence, editorial decisions or the peer review process. Editorial independence is strictly maintained at all times.

Advertising content must be clearly distinguishable from editorial content and must not be misleading, deceptive, or promote unverified claims. The journal does not endorse any advertised products, services, or organizations.

The publisher reserves the right to remove or withdraw any advertisement at any time.

The journal is committed to the long-term preservation of its published content and intends to deposit all published articles in recognized digital preservation services such as PKP PN, Portico or equivalent archiving platforms when available.

The views, opinions, and conclusions expressed in published articles are solely those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the journal or publisher.

The publication of articles, advertisements, or product information does not constitute endorsement or approval by the journal or the publisher.

The journal and publisher disclaim responsibility for any injury, loss, or damage resulting from the use or interpretation of information contained in published content.

The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

The journal is committed to safeguarding user privacy and maintaining the confidentiality of all materials submitted for publication. This policy applies to authors, reviewers, editors, and all users of the journal submission and publication system.

Manuscript Confidentiality

All submitted manuscripts are treated as strictly confidential. Editors, editorial staff, and reviewers must not disclose, share, or use any unpublished materials, data, ideas, or findings obtained through the peer review process for personal or professional purposes.

Peer review is conducted on a confidential basis. Reviewers must not disclose manuscript content or their review reports to any third party. Manuscripts may not be shared, distributed, or used beyond the scope of the review process.

Editors are responsible for maintaining confidentiality throughout all stages of editorial handling and decision-making and for ensuring the integrity of the peer review process.

Where consultation with additional experts is required, confidentiality obligations must continue to be fully observed.

Personal Data Protection

The journal collects and processes personal information necessary for manuscript submission, peer review, publication, and journal administration.

Such information may include:

• Names;
• Institutional affiliations;
• Email addresses;
• ORCID iDs;
• Correspondence information;
• Other information voluntarily provided during submission or review.

Personal data are used solely for editorial, publishing, indexing, archiving, and communication purposes.

The journal does not sell, rent, or disclose personal information to third parties for advertising or commercial marketing purposes.

Access to personal data is restricted to authorized personnel and protected through appropriate technical and organizational measures.

Ethical Investigations and Disclosure

Where allegations of research misconduct, publication ethics violations, or legal concerns arise, confidential information may be shared with relevant editors, publishers, institutions, ethics committees, or external experts as necessary for investigation and resolution.

Any such disclosure will be limited to the minimum information required and conducted in accordance with applicable ethical and legal obligations.

Third-Party Websites

The journal website may contain links to external websites or services. The journal is not responsible for the privacy practices, policies, or content of third-party websites.

Users are encouraged to review the privacy policies of any external sites they visit.

Policy Updates

The journal reserves the right to update this policy from time to time in line with changes in publishing ethics, regulatory requirements, or best practices.