Conflict of Interest

Journal of Language Education, Linguistics, and Culture is committed to transparent and responsible scholarly publishing. Authors, reviewers, editors, and other individuals involved in the publication process are expected to disclose interests that could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, their professional judgment, research conduct, peer review, or editorial decisions.

Definition of Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest, also known as a competing interest, arises when financial, professional, institutional, personal, or other relationships may improperly influence, or appear to influence, an individual’s objectivity in conducting, evaluating, or publishing scholarly work. The existence of a competing interest does not automatically indicate misconduct. However, failure to disclose a relevant interest may undermine confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the publication process.

Types of Competing Interests

Type Examples
Financial interests Research funding, grants, employment, consultancy fees, honoraria, stock ownership, patents, royalties, or other financial relationships relevant to the work.
Personal relationships Family relationships, close friendships, personal disputes, or other relationships that could affect impartial assessment or decision-making.
Academic and professional interests Collaborations, supervisory relationships, competition, professional rivalries, or shared projects that may affect the assessment of a manuscript.
Institutional interests Affiliations or institutional commitments that may influence the interpretation, evaluation, or publication of research findings.
Intellectual commitments Strong academic or theoretical positions that could reasonably affect impartial evaluation of competing research approaches or findings.
Other relevant interests Any additional circumstance that a reasonable reader, reviewer, or editor might consider relevant to the objectivity of the work.

Responsibilities of Authors

All authors must disclose relevant competing interests at the time of manuscript submission. Disclosures should be accurate, sufficiently detailed, and directly related to the submitted work where applicable. Authors must:

  • Declare relevant financial and non-financial competing interests.
  • Disclose funding sources and the role of funders in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, and publication decisions.
  • Identify relevant employment, consultancy, intellectual property, or commercial relationships.
  • Ensure that all co-authors have been informed of relevant disclosures.
  • Update the editorial office if a relevant competing interest becomes apparent during review or after publication.

If no relevant competing interests exist, authors should provide a clear declaration, such as: “The authors declare that they have no competing interests.”

Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers must evaluate manuscripts objectively and maintain confidentiality throughout the peer-review process, as set out in the Peer Review Process. Reviewers must:

  • Declare any financial, personal, institutional, or professional relationship that could affect impartiality.
  • Decline an invitation when a competing interest prevents a fair and independent review.
  • Inform the editor promptly if a potential conflict becomes apparent after accepting a review invitation.
  • Not use unpublished information obtained through peer review for personal or professional advantage.

Responsibilities of Editors

Editors must ensure that editorial decisions are based on scholarly merit, relevance, originality, methodological quality, and compliance with publication ethics. Editors must:

  • Disclose competing interests that could affect editorial judgment.
  • Recuse themselves from handling manuscripts when an actual or significant perceived conflict exists.
  • Assign an independent editor when necessary.
  • Ensure that reviewers are selected fairly and that the peer-review process remains independent.
  • Protect confidential information and avoid preferential treatment.

Disclosure and Management Procedure

Stage How it works
Disclosure Authors submit competing-interest declarations and relevant funding information with the manuscript.
Editorial assessment The editorial team evaluates whether the disclosed interests could affect the review or publication process.
Risk management Appropriate measures may include reassignment, independent review, additional disclosure, or other safeguards proportionate to the circumstances.
Record and follow-up Relevant declarations and editorial decisions are documented. Additional information may be requested if circumstances change.

Publication and Disclosure Statements

Relevant competing interests should be disclosed in the manuscript or in the accompanying submission declarations. Where appropriate, the journal may publish a competing-interest statement alongside the article; the wording should accurately reflect the information provided by the authors, for example: “The authors declare that they have no competing interests relevant to the publication of this article,” or, for funded work, “This research was supported by [name of funding body] under grant [grant number].” Authors must replace the bracketed information with accurate details. Statements must not be used to conceal relevant interests or funding relationships.

Failure to Disclose and Editorial Action

If a relevant competing interest is omitted, inaccurately reported, or discovered after submission or publication, the journal may request clarification or supporting documentation. Depending on the circumstances, the journal may require a corrected declaration, reassignment of editorial responsibilities, additional independent assessment, or publication of a correction under the Correction, Retraction, and Withdrawal Policy. Serious cases involving deliberate misrepresentation may be handled under the Allegations of Misconduct policy. Editorial action will be proportionate to the circumstances and based on the available evidence; the existence of a competing interest alone does not establish misconduct.

Journal of Language Education, Linguistics, and Culture is committed to transparent disclosure and impartial editorial decision-making. Authors, reviewers, and editors share responsibility for identifying and managing competing interests to preserve trust in scholarly communication and the integrity of the published record. This policy should be read together with the Publication Ethics Statement.