Code of ethics

Best practices statement and ethical standards

The journal takes into account the procedures and ethical standards by Cambridge University Press (https://www.cambridge.org/core/about/ethical-standards), the guidelines for ethical behavior in scientific publications by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) (https://publicationethics.org/guidance/Guidelines), by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICJME) (http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/) and by the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) (http://www.wame.org/policies).

Declaration of good editorial practices and ethical norms

This document has been adapted from the document of Ethical Standards and Procedures prepared by Cambridge University Press, following the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Guidelines for Good Ethical Behavior in Serial Scientific Publications. Also, the document considers the framework of Colombian Constitution and the policies of the Universidad Distrital Franscisco José de Caldas

Editors’ responsibilities

• Act in a balanced, objective, and fair manner without any kind of discrimination on the basis of sexual, religious, political, origin or ethics of the authors, making proper use of the guidelines set forth in the Colombian Constitution in this regard.
• Consider, edit and publish original academic contributions solely on their academic merits without regard to any commercial influence or conflict of interest.
• Receive and follow appropriate procedures to resolve any ethical or conflict of interest complaints or misunderstandings. The editors and the editorial committee shall act in accordance with the regulations, policies and procedures mentioned at the first paragraph of this section. In any case, authors are given the opportunity to respond to possible conflicts of interest.

Any type of complaint must be supported by documentation that prove inappropriate conduct.

Responsibilities of reviewers

• Contribute impartially to the process of evaluating the manuscripts submitted for consideration in the Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal collaborating, in a timely manner, with the improvement of the scientific quality of these original research products.
• Maintain the confidentiality of the data provided by the editors, the editorial board, or the authors, making correct use of such information. It is the editors’ decision to keep or to copy the manuscript in the evaluation process.
• Inform the editor and the editorial board, in a timely manner, when the contents of an academic contribution present elements of plagiarism or substantially resembles other research products published or in the process of publication.
• Report any potential conflict of interest with an academic contribution due to financial, institutional, collaborative, or other relationships between the reviewer and the authors. In such a case, and if necessary, withdraw their services in the evaluation of the manuscript.

Responsibilities of authors

Maintain accurate supporting information and records of data and analysis of data related to the manuscript submitted for consideration by the journal. When the editors or editorial board of the journal require this information (for reasonable motives), the authors should provide or facilitate access to it. When requested, the original data enter a chain of custody that ensures the confidentiality and protection of the information by the journal.

Confirm by means of a letter of originality (pre-established format by the journal) that the academic contribution under review is not being considered or has been submitted and/or accepted in different journal. As said in the content management, when part of the content of this contribution has been published or presented in another means, the authors must acknowledge and cite the respective sources and academic credits. In addition, a copy to the editors and the editorial board must be submitted of any publication that may have overlapping or closely related content to the contribution under consideration. In addition, authors must acknowledge the respective credits of the material reproduced from other sources. Elements such as tables, figures or patents that require special permission to be reproduced must be accompanied by a letter of acceptance of reproduction by the owners of the copyright of the product used.

To declare any potential conflict of interest that may exert undue influence at any time during the publication process.

Carefully review the final design of the contribution, prior to publication in the journal, informing about any errors that may occur and need to be corrected. If significant errors are found, once the scholarly contribution has been published, the authors must notify the editor and the editorial board in a timely manner, cooperating subsequently with the journal in the publication of a statement of errors, appendix, notice, correction, or in cases where it is considered necessary, remove the manuscript from the published issue.

CALJ publishes manuscripts by the same author every two years and only if their content makes different thematic contributions to the previous research project.

Responsibility of Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas

Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas, on whose behalf the Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal is published and in accordance with the provisions of Agreement 023 of June 19, 2012 of the Academic Council, which regulates the Editorial Policy of the University, ensures that the ethical standards and good practices are fully complied with.

Post-publication cases, corrections and procedures for dealing with unethical behavior 

Identification of unethical behavior

Unethical behavior of the authors which the journal is aware or informed of is examined in the first instance by the editors and the Editorial Committee of the journal.

Unethical behavior may include, but not necessarily be limited to, what is stipulated in the Declaration of Good Practices and Ethical Standards of the Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal, the regulations of the Faculty of Sciences and Education and Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas on this matter. It includes data fabrication or plagiarism.

Information on unethical behavior should be in writing and accompanied by tangible, reliable and sufficient evidence to initiate an investigative process. All complaints should be considered and treated in the same way until a successful decision or conclusion is reached.

The communication of unethical behavior should first be reported preferably to the editors of the journal, and consequently to the editorial board or the publications committee of the Faculty of Sciences and Education. In cases where the above actors do not provide a timely response, the unethical behavior should be reported to the publications committee of Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas.

Complaints about unethical behavior on the part of the Editors or the Editorial Committee of the journal should be reported to the Publications Committee of the Faculty of Sciences and Education of the Universidad Distrital.

Investigation

The first decision must be made by the editors, who must consult or seek advice from the Editorial Committee, the Scientific Committee and the Publications Committee of the Faculty of Sciences and Education, as the case may be. Evidence from the investigation is kept confidential.

Unethical behavior, which the Editors consider minor, may be dealt with between them and the authors without the need for further consultation. In any event, perpetrators should be given the opportunity to respond to allegations of unethical behavior.

Serious unethical behavior should be reported to the institutions affiliated with the authors or supporting research. The editors, in consideration with the Universidad Distrital, should decide as to whether to involve sponsors, either by reviewing the available evidence or through further consultations with a limited number of experts.

Results (in increasing order of severity, may be applied separately or in combination)

• Inform authors or reviewers where there appears to be a misunderstanding or poor practice of ethical standards.
• Send an official communication to authors or reviewers showing ethical misconduct and serving as a precedent for future good behavior.
• Make a formal notification to the authors by detailing the misconduct based on the evidence of the investigation process.
• Inform the editorial and scientific committees of the journal about such conduct.
• Remove the article from the journal publication and suspend the author for five years, during which period he may not re-publish in the journal.
• Report the case and the result of the investigation to the competent authorities, if the good name of Universidad Distrital is compromised.

Impersonation. The Journal invite its reviewers based on a comprehensive analysis of their curriculum vitae. This involves a review of their academic background, their current lines of research and their most recent publications. Thus, if the reviewer accepts peering the manuscript, it is not acceptable that he or she transfers his responsibility to a third party (e.g., research assistant, a PhD student or another colleague).

Improper use of the contents. The Journal entrust reviewers with unpublished manuscripts which generally contain results of research, novel approaches or valued findings to science and the development of knowledge. In this regard, we ask for special care protecting the data and contents of all manuscripts that the reviewers agree to read. Any unauthorized use of such information is considered a serious fault.

Diligence. The editor relies on the reviewer’s concept to decide about publishing a manuscript, on almost every occasion. The excessive delay delivering a concept generates an overload on the processes of the Journal and can affect the validity of the contents of a manuscript, among other undesirable effects. For this reason, we ask reviewers to meet the deadlines for concept submission that were initially agreed with the editor. In case of any setback, it is important that the reviewer notifies the editor, so a decision can be made about extending the deadline or seeking the concept of a new reviewer.

Retractions and corrections. The Journal follows COPE guidelines to proceed in cases that are likely to involve a correction or retraction of a published text. Withdrawals are made when serious ethical and quality gaps are identified in a manuscript. These cases include data fabrication, plagiarism, among other problems that compromise originality, reliability, and results. Also, authors can request a correction if they notice an unintentional error that could affect the interpretation of their results or if they identified an error in the metadata. Corrections are made when there are fundamental issues affecting the understanding or interpretation of the published manuscript; minor errors do not imply correction (e.g., spelling).

Request or complaints. If a contributor has any request or issue about any journal process, or suspects misconduct in a published manuscript, they should contact the editor directly to the official mailbox: caljournal.ud@udistrital.edu.co. The Journal Editorial Team will review such request and get in touch with the claimer for further inquiry, analysis, solution, or action on the case.

Indexing. The Journal frequently carries out indexing and updating processes of its volumes in , bibliographic bases, databases, repositories, directories and catalogues. It is made to provide the greatest possible access to its contents to the specialized community of applied linguistics in the world and to readers interested in the most relevant scientific discussions in the journal topics.

It is also part of the essential purpose of the Journal to consolidate and maintain itself as a reliable repository of peer-reviewed scientific knowledge, easily accessible, in order to promote an impact on the solution of problems and to contribute to more responsible and conscious professional and social practices around.