Author Guidelines

Authorship Criteria

The following actions may be credited to authors, based on the CRediT Authors and the guidelines of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE):

  • Conceptualization (study design, formulation of research questions and objectives);
  • Methodology (research methodological design);
  • Data management (data and metadata management, data preservation for initial and future use);
  • Data collection (conducting experiments and applying data collection procedures such as surveys/interviews, for example);
  • Statistical analysis (designing and conducting statistical analysis);
  • Data analysis (interpreting results and assigning meaning based on pre-established theoretical frameworks);
  • Funding acquisition (obtaining financial resources);
  • Project administration (guidance, supervision, or coordination);
  • Resources (provision of materials, equipment, and software);
  • Software (programming, software development; design and implementation of computer code and support algorithms; testing of code components);
  • Validation (responsibility for assessing the reproducibility of the research);
  • Data visualization (visual organization, creation of tables, charts, and other graphical elements);
  • Writing (drafting the original manuscript);
  • Reviewing (critical revision of the original manuscript and approval of the submitted version).

However, some of these contributions are mandatory for an individual to be credited as an author. To be considered an author, one must have contributed to at least one of the following:

  • Conceptualization;
  • Data analysis;
  • Methodology;
  • Project administration;
  • Writing;
  • Reviewing.

This information must be included in the "Authorship Statement", in the Title Page document.

Acknowledged Contributions:

Individuals or institutions who contributed to the research but do not meet authorship criteria may (and should) be acknowledged in the appropriate section of the "Authorship Statement" on the Title Page document.

AI Contributions:

The journal does not recognize Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an author of manuscripts. While AI technologies may support specific stages of research and writing, any and all uses of AI in the creation or preparation of a manuscript must be disclosed by the authors in the Authorship and Originality document, and each case is subject to editorial review. Authors are fully responsible for the accuracy of the content and for its connection to the use of AI tools.

When declaring the "use" or "non-use" of AI in research or manuscript preparation, authors must specify, in detail, any AI contribution to the following phases:

  • Conceptualization: Describe how AI was used in the design of the study, if applicable;
  • Methodology: Describe the use of AI in research methods;
  • Data: Describe the use of AI in data collection and/or interpretation;
  • Manuscript preparation: Indicate which phases (e.g., writing, reviewing, translation) involved AI, and describe how it was used;
  • If AI was used: Specify the type of AI (AI or AI-assisted technology) and the purpose of its use.

Copyright

Manuscripts that are accepted and published remain the property of the authors, under the management of the journal. Total or partial submission of the manuscript to another journal is prohibited. Authors are solely responsible for the content of their articles. Translation of the article into another language is not permitted without written consent from the Editor and consultation with the Scientific Editorial Committee.

Ethical Principles for Authors

  • Participation: Do not accept authorship for a paper in which you did not substantially contribute (e.g., in design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, drafting, or revision);
  • Communication: Notify the editorial team of any issues, from authorship omissions to manuscript details;
  • Originality: Ensure that all submitted work is entirely original and has not been previously published;
  • Citation: Authors must ensure that all borrowed ideas, in their artcles, are properly cited and referenced; otherwise it constitutes plagiarism, which is unacceptable;
  • Truthfulness: Guarantee that all information provided in the manuscript is accurate.
  • Reporting standards: Research should be described in sufficient detail to allow replication.
  • Single publication: Ensure the manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere.
  • Transparency: Disclose any potential financial or material conflicts of interest.
  • Notification: Inform the editorial team of any significant errors or inaccuracies, either during editing or after publication.