Research Involving the Participation of Human Subjects

Our principles for research involving the participation of human subjects are based on the guideline Ethics in Social Sciences and Humanities from the Directorate General Research and Innovation of the European Commission.

1 General Principles

The fundamental ethical principles to protect human participants from harm, and which originate in clinical research, apply to all research studies in which people participate by providing researchers with time, effort, knowledge, and personal data. These overarching ethical principles include:

– Ensuring honesty and transparency towards the subjects of the study.

– Respecting the autonomy of the individual and obtaining free and informed consent (as well as assent, where relevant).

– Protection of vulnerable subjects.

– Ensuring privacy and confidentiality.

– Promoting justice and inclusion of all people.

– Minimizing harm and maximizing benefit.

– Sharing benefits with disadvantaged populations, especially when research is conducted in developing countries.

– Respecting and protecting the environment and future generations.

As a researcher, your primary obligation is to protect the human dignity, integrity, welfare and safety of participants and to ensure that they are treated with respect and fairly.

2 Ethics Approval / Ethics Opinion and Ethics Evidance

Before submitting your article, check your institutional, local/regional and national requirements concerning ethics approval and availability of research ethics committees or an institutional review board. An ethics opinion may be given, for example, by:

– your institutional research ethics committee,

– a relevant authority in the country (if applicable), which may give its approval.

3 Informed Consent

Human participation is required when you interact with research participants to collect their data for your analysis through online questionnaires, paper questionnaires, interviews, focus groups, observations or workshops. Anyone considering participating in your research must have a fair chance to evaluate whether it is worth taking the time and effort to share information with you. You are required to obtain informed consent and/or provide appropriate safeguards. Please refer to the following checklist when preparing informed consent:

– Give participants a clear explanation of the aims, overall purpose, methods and implications of the research.

– Explain that participation is voluntary.

– Remind participants that they have a right to withdraw their consent at any time without any consequences.

– Explain the degree of benefit, risks, burden or discomfort involved in participation. Give an estimate of the time and effort expected of participants.

– Explain precautions to ensure participants’ safety and provide information on insurance, if there is any.

– Explain who is funding the research and for what purpose.

– Disclose who will benefit from the research.

– Give a firm commitment to protecting respondents’ anonymity and privacy (provided that this can genuinely be guaranteed).

– Make a clear commitment to treating personal and sensitive information confidentially.

– Reassure participants that there are secure procedures for analysing any data gathered.

– Explain clearly who will have access to any data that participants provide.

– Consider any unintended/unexpected/incidental findings and explain how you intend to deal with such findings.

– Explain briefly where research findings will be published.

– Offer to provide respondents with further information about research if they ask for it.

– Give the name and contact details of the contact person who can answer any queries participants may have.

– Clarify possible uses to which data may be put in future (if this is envisaged) and clarify whether participants will be asked for consent again if this is the case. Cover any issues relating to copyright of data and other materials used in the research.

4 Research Involving Vulnerable Participants

First, you should check whether the research results can also be obtained with another, less vulnerable group. If you include vulnerable participants, you need to justify it. You must ensure and explain how individuals you include will not be stigmatized, retraumatized, or otherwise harmed by their participation in your research.

Be aware that some groups are always at risk. These groups of people include children, people with cognitive impairments, and people who are unable to give informed consent. Other vulnerabilities are likely to be contextual. This means that you and your research colleagues will need to think about whether a particular group is at risk and for what reasons. Groups that are considered vulnerable because of their circumstances generally include: children, refugees, irregular migrants, sex workers, people with cognitive impairments, dissidents, traumatised people at risk of re-traumatisation (e.g. people from conflict areas, victims of crime and/or violence), and people in dependent relationships with the researcher or the research team (e.g. students doing course work with researchers).

5 Privacy, Anonymity and Data Protection

The integrity of the persons interviewed or observed must be preserved. Procedures must be used to ensure the privacy and anonymity of the participans and to exclude their identification.

Researchers must be aware of and comply with the legal requirements regarding the storage and use of personal data such as the European General Data Protection Regulation. Our data protection requirements are based on Ethics and Data Protection from the European Commission. In essence people have a right to know

– how, why and how long their personal data is stored,

– what they are used for,

– how they can access any personal data held about them, and

– to whom they may be disclosed.

Researchers must furthermore

– collect only the data they need to meet the research objectives (data minimisation), 

– ensure that data is kept securely,

– obtain permission from participants before sharing personal information with third parties, and

– ensure that publication on the Internet, does not directly or indirectly lead to a breach of agreed confidentiality and anonymity.

In case studies, confidentiality may be difficult to achieve. One solution is to obtain written consent from the report recipient to publish the study. Another solution is to disguise identifying material, e.g. by altering specific characteristcs, adding extraneous material or limiting the description of specific characteristics. (American Psychological Association, 2020, p. 22)

6 Bias-Free Language

Non-discriminatory and non-stigmatizing language must be used when describing different groups by ethnicity, disease, age, religion, disability, gender, sexual orientation, etc. Human studies that use rules to categorize people must include an explanation of the definitions and categories used. Not only must references follow APA 7th style, but furthermore the APA requirements for bias-free language. This concerns in particular to provide operational definitions and labels, avoid false hierarchies and reduce bias by age, disability, gender, racial and ethnic identity, sexual orientation, scioeconomic status and intersectionality.

 

Publication Ethics & Malpractice Statement

Our publication ethics and malpractice statement is based on the Core Practices from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Please note that we reserve the right to make editorial amendments to the content of the submitted articles.

1. Introduction

IJVES is committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity and publication ethics. We follow the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices and use COPE flowcharts when responding to ethical concerns or allegations of misconduct. All parties involved in the publication process - authors, editors, and reviewers - share responsibility for ensuring the reliability, transparency, and integrity of the scholarly record.

2. Duties of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to the journal must ensure that:

- the work is original, unpublished, and not under consideration elsewhere;
- data and results are presented honestly and without fabrication, falsification, or inappropriate manipulation;
- all sources are cited properly and permissions obtained for the reuse of copyrighted materials;
- authorship reflects genuine scholarly contributions, and contributors are accurately acknowledged;
- conflicts of interest are fully disclosed;
- research involving human participants, animals, or sensitive materials has received appropriate ethical approval.

Authors are expected to cooperate with any inquiries related to potential ethical issues and to provide raw data or supporting documentation upon request.

3. Duties of Editors

Editors are responsible for:

- ensuring fair, timely, and unbiased peer review;
- making publication decisions based on scholarly merit and ethical standards;
- preserving the confidentiality of submissions; declaring and avoiding conflicts of interest;
- taking active steps to detect and prevent research misconduct;
- addressing ethical concerns according to COPE guidelines.

Editors issue corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern when necessary to maintain the integrity of the scholarly literature.

4. Duties of Reviewers

Reviewers must:

- provide objective, constructive, and timely evaluations;
- maintain the confidentiality of the peer-review process;
- identify potential ethical issues such as plagiarism, redundant publication, or data inconsistencies;
- decline review assignments when conflicts of interest exist;
- avoid using unpublished materials for personal benefit.

5. Procedures for Addressing Misconduct

The journal follows COPE recommendations for handling allegations of misconduct, including plagiarism, data fabrication or falsification, duplicate publication, unethical research practices, authorship manipulation, and undisclosed conflicts of interest.

Procedures may involve:

- preliminary assessment by the editorial team;
- written requests for clarification or original data;
- consultation with reviewers or subject experts;
- contacting authors’ institutions or funders when institutional investigation is warranted.

Possible outcomes include manuscript rejection, correction, expression of concern, or retraction.

6. Transparency, Accessibility, and Integrity 

All editorial policies, peer-review guidelines, and ethical expectations are publicly accessible on the journal’s website. The editorial team routinely reviews and updates these policies in line with current best practices and COPE standards.

7. Post-Publication Discussions and Commentaries 

The journal welcomes scientifically grounded post-publication dialogue. Substantive critiques are evaluated by the editorial team and may result in published responses, corrections, or other editorial actions. Readers may report concerns regarding published articles.

8. Corrections, Retractions, and Editorial Notes

Corrections are issued for minor errors that do not compromise findings. Retractions are issued for major errors or misconduct that invalidate results, following COPE guidance. Expressions of Concern may be published during ongoing investigations. All notices are clearly linked to the original article and remain freely accessible.

9. Conclusion

By submitting a manuscript, authors acknowledge and accept these ethical and editorial policies. The journal remains dedicated to promoting responsible scholarship, ensuring fairness and transparency in editorial processes, and preserving the accuracy and credibility of the scientific record.