Journal Code of Ethics

RESEARCH COORDINATION OFFICE OF THE OCCIDENTAL CAMPUS

CODE OF ETHICS OF THE PENSAMIENTO ACTUAL JOURNAL

Purpose of the code

This code of ethics is designed to regulate editing and publication practices in the Pensamiento Actual journal, in order to promote the quality of the materials published by the Research Coordination Office for the national and international community.

Its main purpose it to work as a guide for authors, reviewers, the editorial team, academic community, and the general public in the appropriate practices for research, favoring the transparency of the review, editing, and publication processes of all materials. In this regard, it seeks to contribute to the continuous improvement of the publication of Pensamiento Actual journal.

Scope of the code

This Code will govern all current publications of the Pensamiento Actual journal, as well as the different materials that could be published from the Research Coordination. Moreover, publication that may arise in the future, according to academic or community needs, will follow this code.

Amendment to the code

The Code of Ethics may be amended only in an ordinary session of the Editorial Committee of the Pensamiento Actual journal.

Guidelines

The editorial team of the Pensamiento Actual journal will govern its publications based on the regulations of the Editorial System for the Dissemination of Research at the University of Costa Rica.

Peer Review

All texts will be subject to a strict revision and correction process. The review of the articles will be carried out by people specialized in the topics presented by the authors and the proofreading will be completed by the authors.

The process involves an initial review by the evaluators, proofreading by the authors, and the final review by the Editorial Team. When any revision or suggestion is not valid for the authors, they may omit it from the proofreading, as long as they properly argue the reasons for the refusal and these are validated by the editor or the Editorial Committee. These processes can be modified according to editorial decision if there is an agreement from the Editorial Committee and the quality of the publications is not affected.

Authors

Regarding the authorship and co-authorship of the works, prior agreement between the participants in the preparation of the texts is recommended, to avoid confusion during the publication process. All the information of the authors (full names, positions, institutional affiliation, contacts) must be provided, in order to promptly inform each of the steps to be followed, as well as the final decision to all those interested in the publication.

The authors accept the regulations set forth in the "Guide for authors" and the journal's use policies, regarding copyright, permissions, use of images, processes of arbitration and peer review, by submitting their documents to the Pensamiento Actual journal.  

Content of publications

Texts related to the thematic descriptors in this journal will be published, as long as they meet the requirements of the journal. In relation to scientific field and controlled laboratory research, these must follow the necessary protocols approved by the academy. Therefore, these protocols must be fully and clearly specified in the methodology of the research.

When the publications are about research results that involve the participation of people, animals, or medical material, it will be necessary to notify the Editorial Committee of the Occidental Campus about the due informed consent of the participants, respect for national or international regulations for the treatment of this type of data or ethical approvals of the relevant organizations. Additionally, funding support will also be requested when they come from another university area.

Inappropriate publishing practices

The following are understood as inappropriate practices, for example, plagiarism, misuse of the information, false authorship of the material, damage to third parties with the publication, lack of informed consent, sending of uncorrected texts for the final version, conflicts of interest, and everything that the Editorial Commission, with valid arguments according to institutional and editorial regulations, values as negative for the image, interests and objectives of the Pensamiento Actual journal, the Research Coordination of the Occidental Campus, and the University of Costa Rica, in general. In the event of any inappropriate conduct for publication, the material will be returned to the authors and the review process will not continue.

In addition to external peer reviews, all written publications will be reviewed using plagiarism detection technology resources, specifically the Turnitin® program.

If any inappropriate publication practice is verified, the material will be returned to the authors with detailed information on the decision of the Editorial Committee. In case that the authors want to correct the work and resend it, the entire review and arbitration process must be started from the beginning. When there is plagiarism of information, the process that the University of Costa Rica has established for this type of situation will be followed.