Plagiarism and Data Fabrication

Case-based similarity assessment, evidence preservation, author response, and proportionate action

Integrity Violations Covered

• Plagiarism: presenting another person's words, ideas, argument, structure, data, images, tables, code, instruments, or other intellectual contribution without appropriate attribution and permission where required.
• Text recycling or undisclosed reuse: reusing substantial material from an author's earlier work without transparent citation, disclosure, and a legitimate scholarly reason.
• Fabrication: inventing participants, data, interviews, observations, approvals, documents, citations, results, or other research records.
• Falsification: manipulating, omitting, altering, or selectively reporting data, images, methods, analyses, or results so that the research record becomes misleading.
• Redundant or concurrent publication: submitting or publishing substantially overlapping work without disclosure, justification, cross-reference, and permission where required.
• Image, citation, or review manipulation: deceptive alteration of visual evidence, fabricated or irrelevant references, coercive citation, false identities, or interference with independent peer review.

Author Requirements

• Submitted work must be original, accurately reported, properly cited, and not simultaneously under consideration by another journal.
• Direct quotations must be clearly marked and cited. Figures, tables, instruments, translations, and copyrighted material require attribution and permission when applicable.
• Related manuscripts, conference papers, preprints, theses, reports, datasets, and prior versions must be disclosed so the editor can assess legitimate overlap.
• Previously disseminated material may be considered only when the new contribution is substantial, the earlier source is identified, permissions are secured, and republication is lawful and transparent.
• All authors share responsibility for the integrity of the submission, but individual knowledge, role, evidence, and response are considered before any finding or restriction is imposed.

Similarity and Integrity Screening

JPM may use Turnitin or another publisher-authorized similarity service before review, after revision, or after publication. A similarity score is a screening indicator—not proof of plagiarism—and no universal percentage automatically determines acceptance, rejection, or misconduct. Editors examine the matched sources, quotations, references, methods language, author reuse, type of material, originality of ideas and data, and any explanation or documentation supplied by the authors.

Editorial Response

1. The editor records the specific concern and preserves relevant files, reports, metadata, correspondence, and evidence.
2. Authors receive the material allegation and a reasonable opportunity to explain, correct the record, or provide source data, permissions, related manuscripts, or other documentation.
3. An unconflicted editor may obtain independent textual, methodological, statistical, image, ethics, or legal advice.
4. Before publication, the proportionate outcome may be clarification, revision, rejection, or referral. After publication, the case is routed to correction, Expression of Concern, or retraction only under the applicable dedicated policy.
5. Any temporary submission restriction must be evidence-based, proportionate, time-limited, documented, and independently approved. JPM does not apply automatic collective, permanent, or percentage-based bans.

Suspected fabrication, falsification, deceptive manipulation, or organized misconduct follows the Research Misconduct and Allegation Handling Policy. A reliable article containing a repairable error follows Corrections and Errata; potentially unreliable work under unresolved investigation may receive an Expression of Concern; and fundamentally unreliable published work is assessed under the Retraction Policy.