Conflict of Interest Policy

The Jurnal Kajian dan Pengembangan Umat, published by the Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Barat, is committed to ensuring transparency, objectivity, and integrity throughout the scholarly publication process. All authors, editors, and reviewers are required to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that may influence their research, manuscript evaluation, or editorial decisions.

 

1. Definition of Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest occurs when personal, professional, financial, institutional, or other relationships may improperly influence, or appear to influence, an individual's judgment, responsibilities, or decisions in the publication process.

Conflicts of interest may include, but are not limited to:

  • · Financial Interests: Employment, consultancy, honoraria, research funding, grants, or other financial relationships that may be affected by the publication.
  • · Personal Relationships: Family relationships, close friendships, personal disputes, or other relationships that could affect impartiality.
  • · Professional or Academic Relationships: Collaboration, supervision, mentorship, competition, or other professional relationships with the authors.
  • · Institutional Interests: Affiliations or responsibilities that may create competing interests in the publication process.
  • · Other Relevant Interests: Any other circumstances that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the objectivity or integrity of the research or its evaluation.

 

2. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors must disclose all relevant conflicts of interest when submitting a manuscript. They must also disclose funding sources and the role of sponsors, where applicable, in the research design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, and decision to submit the work for publication.

If no conflict of interest exists, authors should include the following statement in their manuscript:

“The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest related to this study.”

All disclosures must be accurate, complete, and updated if relevant circumstances change during the editorial process.

 

3. Responsibilities of Editors

Editors must disclose any conflicts of interest that could affect their editorial judgment. An editor who has a conflict of interest involving a submitted manuscript must not participate in its evaluation or publication decision.

In such cases, the manuscript will be assigned to another qualified editor who can handle the submission impartially and independently.

 

4. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers must disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment. They should decline to review manuscripts when personal relationships, professional competition, collaborative relationships, or other circumstances could compromise their impartiality.

Reviewers must evaluate manuscripts objectively and maintain the confidentiality of all information obtained during the peer-review process.

 

5. Editorial Management of Conflicts of Interest

The editorial board will assess disclosed conflicts of interest and determine appropriate measures to preserve the integrity of the publication process. Such measures may include reassignment of editorial responsibilities, appointment of alternative reviewers, additional disclosure statements, or other appropriate actions.

Failure to disclose a relevant conflict of interest may result in further editorial action, depending on the circumstances and the seriousness of the omission.

 

6. Transparency and Publication

Relevant conflict-of-interest disclosures will be published in the article or accompanying statements when appropriate. The journal aims to ensure that readers receive sufficient information to assess the independence, transparency, and credibility of published research.

 

7. Commitment to Publication Ethics

All authors, editors, and reviewers are expected to uphold the principles of fairness, transparency, confidentiality, and academic integrity. The journal manages conflicts of interest in accordance with its publication ethics policies and relevant guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

By submitting or participating in the evaluation of a manuscript, authors, editors, and reviewers acknowledge their responsibility to disclose relevant conflicts of interest and cooperate with reasonable editorial measures to address them.