Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions

This policy defines the procedure for considering errors, inaccuracies, possible violations of publication ethics, and other issues identified after publication of an article, as well as the procedure for publishing corrections, expressions of concern, and retractions.

The journal seeks to maintain the accuracy, reliability, and integrity of the published scholarly literature. If errors or circumstances requiring editorial consideration are identified after publication, the editorial office takes appropriate measures depending on the nature and seriousness of the issue.

1. General Principles

After publication of an article, the editorial office may consider issues related to:

  • factual errors;
  • technical or editorial inaccuracies;
  • errors in data, calculations, formulas, tables, figures, or graphs;
  • incorrect author names, affiliations, or author information;
  • violation of copyright or third-party rights;
  • plagiarism, self-plagiarism, or improper borrowing;
  • data fabrication or falsification;
  • unreliable or unsupported results;
  • undisclosed conflicts of interest;
  • violation of publication ethics requirements;
  • other circumstances that may affect the reliability, correctness, or ethical acceptability of the published article.

The editorial office considers such matters in good faith, objectively, and with regard to the need to preserve the integrity of the scholarly literature.

2. Who May Report a Problem

A report of a possible error, inaccuracy, or violation may be submitted to the editorial office by:

  • an author or co-author of the article;
  • a reader;
  • a reviewer;
  • an editor;
  • an Editorial Board member;
  • a representative of a scientific organization;
  • any other interested person.

The report should contain a description of the problem, a link to the published article, and, where possible, materials or arguments supporting the need for editorial consideration.

The person submitting the report is encouraged to provide contact details so that the editorial office can request additional explanations or materials if necessary.

Submissions without contact details, including anonymous reports, may be taken into account by the editorial office only if they contain specific, verifiable, and sufficiently substantiated information. Such submissions do not constitute an automatic basis for editorial action and are assessed by the editorial office in view of the content of the information provided.

3. Initial Consideration of a Report

After receiving a report of a possible problem, the editorial office conducts an initial assessment of the information provided.

At this stage, the editorial office may:

  • review the content of the report;
  • examine the published article and related materials;
  • request explanations from the author or authors;
  • request additional data, original materials, documents, or clarifications;
  • consult reviewers, Editorial Board members, or external experts;
  • assess whether a correction, expression of concern, retraction, or other editorial measures are required.

The editorial office seeks to consider such matters fairly and without unjustified harm to the reputation of authors, reviewers, editors, or other participants in the process before the circumstances are clarified.

4. Corrections

A correction may be published if errors or inaccuracies are identified after publication that require official notification of readers but do not make the results and conclusions of the article unreliable as a whole.

A correction may be required, in particular, if the following are identified:

  • errors in data, calculations, formulas, tables, figures, or graphs;
  • inaccuracies in the description of the methodology;
  • errors in author information, affiliations, or contact details;
  • errors in acknowledgements, funding information, or conflict of interest information;
  • errors in references, bibliographic data, or article metadata;
  • other inaccuracies that may affect the understanding or use of the article.

A correction must be clearly identified, published on the journal website, and linked to the relevant article.

If an error is a minor technical or typographical inaccuracy and does not affect the scientific content of the article, the editorial office may correct it without publishing a separate notice. However, changes that affect the scientific content, interpretation of results, authorship, data, conclusions, or ethical aspects of the article must not be made without appropriate editorial consideration.

5. Expression of Concern

An expression of concern is an editorial notice of serious concerns regarding a published article when an investigation is still ongoing or when the available information is not yet sufficient to make a final decision on correction or retraction.

The editorial office may publish an expression of concern if:

  • there are serious concerns about the reliability of the data, results, or conclusions of the article;
  • a substantiated report of a possible violation of publication ethics has been received;
  • the investigation requires a significant amount of time;
  • the authors or other parties do not provide sufficient explanations;
  • there is conflicting information requiring additional verification;
  • it is necessary to alert readers to a possible problem before a final decision is made.

An expression of concern must be clearly identified, published on the journal website, and linked to the relevant article.

After the review is completed, the expression of concern may be updated, replaced by a correction, linked to a retraction, or left as a standalone editorial notice if a final decision cannot be made on the basis of the available information.

6. Retraction of an Article

An article may be retracted if the published article contains serious errors, unreliable data, violations of publication ethics, or other problems that substantially undermine the reliability of the article or make its publication unacceptable.

Grounds for retraction may include:

  • proven data fabrication or falsification;
  • significant errors that make the results or conclusions unreliable;
  • plagiarism, self-plagiarism, or substantial improper borrowing;
  • duplicate publication;
  • use of third-party materials without the necessary rights or permissions;
  • serious authorship violations;
  • an undisclosed conflict of interest that substantially affected the research or publication;
  • violation of ethical, legal, or professional requirements;
  • other circumstances that make it impossible to preserve the article in the scholarly literature without retraction.

The decision to retract an article is made by the editorial office after consideration of the circumstances and available materials. Where necessary, the editorial office may request explanations from the authors and consult Editorial Board members, reviewers, external experts, or relevant organizations.

7. Retraction Notice

If an article is retracted, the editorial office publishes a retraction notice.

The retraction notice must:

  • be clearly identified as a retraction notice;
  • contain the title of the retracted article;
  • indicate the authors of the article;
  • be linked to the page of the relevant article;
  • state the reason for the retraction, as far as possible and appropriate;
  • indicate who initiated the retraction, where applicable;
  • be accessible to readers.

Retraction of an article does not automatically mean removal of the published material from the journal website. The retracted article may remain available on the journal website, but its status must be clearly indicated so that readers understand that the article has been retracted.

8. Preservation of the Record of the Published Article

The journal seeks to maintain a transparent record of published materials.

If an article is corrected, accompanied by an expression of concern, or retracted, the relevant information must be linked to the article page and, where applicable, reflected in the article metadata.

The editorial office may update the article page, PDF file, metadata, or other related materials in such a way that the status of the article is clear to readers, indexing systems, and other users.

9. Role of Authors

Authors must cooperate with the editorial office in the consideration of errors, inaccuracies, or possible violations related to a published article.

Authors must:

  • respond to editorial requests in a timely manner;
  • provide necessary explanations;
  • provide data, materials, documents, or clarifications if they are necessary for consideration of the matter;
  • inform the editorial office of any errors discovered in the published article;
  • not obstruct the objective consideration of possible violations of publication ethics.

If authors independently discover a significant error in a published article, they must inform the editorial office as soon as possible.

10. Disagreements Between Authors

If the issue of a correction, expression of concern, or retraction is related to disagreements between authors, the editorial office may request explanations from all parties.

The editorial office does not act as an arbitrator in personal, institutional, or scientific disputes between authors; however, it may take editorial measures if the dispute affects the reliability of the published article, authorship, third-party rights, or compliance with publication ethics.

If the authors cannot provide an agreed position, the editorial office may make a decision based on the available materials, expert opinions, and the journal’s policies.

11. Violations Identified by the Editorial Office

If a possible violation is identified by the editorial office, a reviewer, an Editorial Board member, or another person involved in the work of the journal, the editorial office considers the case according to the same principles as reports received from external persons.

Persons who have a conflict of interest in relation to the matter under consideration must not participate in decision-making on that case.

12. Updating an Article Without a Separate Notice

Minor technical corrections may be made without publishing a separate notice if they do not affect the scientific content of the article, its interpretation, authorship, data, conclusions, or publication status.

Such corrections may include obvious typographical errors, technical formatting errors, minor display problems, or other minor inaccuracies.

Substantial changes that affect the content of the article must be handled through an appropriate correction, expression of concern, or retraction.

13. Appeals

Authors have the right to submit a reasoned appeal if they disagree with the editorial decision on a correction, expression of concern, or retraction.

The appeal must contain a reasoned explanation of the authors’ position and, where necessary, additional materials supporting their position.

Appeals are considered in accordance with the journal’s Complaints and Appeals Policy.

14. Relationship with Other Journal Policies

This policy is applied together with other journal policies, including:

  • Publication Ethics;
  • Peer Review Policy;
  • Authorship and Contributorship Policy;
  • Conflicts of Interest Policy;
  • Plagiarism and Similarity Check Policy;
  • Generative AI and AI-assisted Technologies Policy;
  • Copyright & Licensing Policy;
  • Complaints and Appeals Policy.

If a matter is related to several policies at the same time, the editorial office considers it comprehensively, taking into account all applicable requirements.

15. Responsibility of the Editorial Office

The editorial office is responsible for considering matters related to corrections, expressions of concern, and retractions.

The editorial office seeks to make decisions objectively, fairly, transparently, and with regard to the need to preserve the reliability of the scholarly literature.

The decision to publish a correction, expression of concern, or retraction is made by the journal’s editorial office.

The editorial office reserves the right to update this policy to bring it into line with developments in international scholarly publishing practice and requirements for responsible publication conduct.