Conflict of Interest Policy

Promoting transparency, impartiality, and accountability in scholarly publishing.

 

Policy Statement

Smart Human-centered Emerging Research in Machine Intelligence (SHEM) is committed to ensuring that editorial decisions and peer-review assessments are fair, independent, transparent, and based on scholarly merit. A conflict of interest (COI), also referred to as a competing interest, arises when financial, professional, personal, academic, or other relationships could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the objectivity of an author, reviewer, or editor.

The existence of a potential conflict of interest does not automatically indicate misconduct. However, relevant conflicts must be disclosed and appropriately managed to protect the integrity of the editorial and publication process.

SECTION 01

Conflict of Interest for Authors

Authors must disclose any financial or non-financial interests that could reasonably be perceived to influence the research, its interpretation, or the presentation of its findings.

Examples of relevant interests include:

Financial interests

Research funding, grants, sponsorships, employment, consultancies, financial support, share ownership, patents, intellectual property, or other financial interests related to the research.

Personal and professional relationships

Personal, professional, or academic relationships that may influence the conduct of the research, its reporting, or the interpretation of its findings.

Institutional and other commitments

Affiliations, organizational responsibilities, or other commitments that could reasonably affect the interpretation or presentation of the research.

Authors must provide a conflict of interest statement during manuscript submission. If no relevant conflict exists, the statement should explicitly indicate that the authors declare no competing interests.

Authors must promptly notify the editorial office if a relevant conflict is identified or changes during the editorial process.

Undisclosed conflicts identified after publication will be assessed by the editor and may result in a correction, expression of concern, retraction, or other appropriate action, depending on the circumstances and their impact on the article.

SECTION 02

Conflict of Interest for Reviewers

Reviewers must evaluate manuscripts objectively and independently. Before accepting a review invitation, reviewers must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest that could compromise their impartiality.

Potential conflicts include:

  • Current employment at the same institution as one or more of the authors, where this relationship could compromise impartiality.
  • Recent supervisory, mentorship, or close collaborative relationships with an author.
  • Recent co-authorship, joint grant participation, or other close professional relationships.
  • Personal disputes, competing academic interests, or relationships that may affect impartial judgment.
  • Financial or commercial interests related to the manuscript's subject matter.
  • Direct competitive interests in the research or a closely related manuscript under preparation.

Reviewer responsibility

Reviewers who identify a significant conflict must promptly notify the editor and decline the invitation when the conflict cannot be adequately managed. The editor may withdraw a reviewer from an assignment if a conflict is identified after the review has begun.

Reviewers must maintain manuscript confidentiality and must not use unpublished information for personal, professional, or financial advantage.

SECTION 03

Conflict of Interest for Editors

Editors must make editorial decisions independently and solely on the basis of scholarly quality, originality, methodological rigor, relevance, and compliance with the journal's ethical standards.

Potential editorial conflicts include:

  • Being an author or co-author of the submitted manuscript.
  • Having a close personal, professional, supervisory, or collaborative relationship with an author.
  • Having a direct financial, commercial, or intellectual interest in the manuscript's outcome.
  • Being involved in a dispute or competition that could compromise impartiality.
  • Any other circumstance that could reasonably call the editor's independence into question.

Independent editorial handling

An editor who has a relevant conflict must not make decisions about the manuscript or influence its peer-review outcome. The manuscript must be reassigned to an independent editor or the editor-in-chief, provided that the alternative decision-maker is free from the relevant conflict.

If the editor-in-chief has a conflict, the publisher or an appropriately designated independent editor will appoint an alternative decision-maker. The journal will maintain the confidentiality of the submission and document the reassignment where appropriate.

SECTION 04

Disclosure and Management Procedure

Smart Human-centered Emerging Research in Machine Intelligence (SHEM) manages conflicts of interest through a consistent process of disclosure, assessment, mitigation, and documentation.

01. Disclosure

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose relevant conflicts as soon as they become aware of them.

02. Assessment

The responsible editor evaluates the nature, significance, and potential effect of the disclosed conflict on the fairness and integrity of the editorial process.

03. Management

Depending on the circumstances, the journal may require additional disclosure, appoint an alternative reviewer or editor, or implement other appropriate safeguards to protect impartiality.

04. Documentation

Significant conflicts and the measures taken to manage them will be documented in the journal's confidential editorial records.

05. Post-publication concerns

If an undisclosed conflict is identified after publication, the editor will assess whether a correction, expression of concern, retraction, or another response is warranted.

Important: Where a conflict cannot be adequately managed, the individual concerned must be removed from the relevant review or decision-making process.

SECTION 05

Transparency and Editorial Accountability

Conflict of interest declarations will be handled confidentially and disclosed publicly where appropriate to ensure transparency and protect the integrity of the scholarly record.

The journal will not automatically reject a manuscript solely because a conflict of interest exists. Instead, the journal will assess whether the conflict has been appropriately disclosed and whether reasonable safeguards can preserve the fairness and credibility of the editorial process.

All decisions concerning conflicts of interest will be made consistently, fairly, and independently of commercial or personal considerations. Smart Human-centered Emerging Research in Machine Intelligence (SHEM) may consult the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidance when additional advice is required.