This page outlines the editorial policies that apply to all SERA open press journals. These policies govern authorship, conflicts of interest, corrections, complaints, preprints, and related matters. For publication ethics and malpractice standards, see our Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement. For AI-specific policies, see our AI Transparency Statement.
Authorship
Authorship Criteria
SERA open press follows the ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) criteria for authorship. To be listed as an author, an individual must meet all four of the following conditions:
- Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data
- Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content
- Final approval of the version to be published
- Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work, ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part are appropriately investigated and resolved
Contributors who do not meet all four criteria should be acknowledged in an Acknowledgments section rather than listed as authors.
CRediT Author Contributions
SERA open press uses the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) to document individual author contributions. At the time of submission, authors are encouraged to specify each author's contribution using the following roles:
Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Funding acquisition, Investigation, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Software, Supervision, Validation, Visualization, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing.
Changes to Authorship
Requests to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission must be made by the corresponding author and must include:
- A written explanation of the reason for the change
- Written confirmation from all authors (including any author being added or removed)
Changes to authorship after acceptance require editorial approval and must be documented.
AI and Authorship
AI tools (including large language models, generative AI, and similar technologies) cannot be listed as authors on any manuscript. AI tools do not meet authorship criteria because they cannot take responsibility for the accuracy, integrity, or originality of the work, nor can they be held accountable. Authors must disclose any AI tools used in the preparation of their manuscript. See our AI Transparency Statement for details.
Conflicts of Interest
All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any relationships or activities that could be perceived as influencing their objectivity.
For Authors
Authors must disclose at the time of submission:
- Financial interests (funding, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations)
- Non-financial interests (personal relationships, academic competition, intellectual passions, political or religious beliefs relevant to the work)
If there are no conflicts of interest, authors must include a statement declaring this.
For Reviewers
Reviewers must decline to review manuscripts where they have a conflict of interest. If a potential conflict becomes apparent during the review process, the reviewer must immediately notify the editor.
For Editors
Editors must recuse themselves from editorial decisions on manuscripts where they have a conflict of interest. Such manuscripts will be reassigned to another editor.
Corrections and Retractions
SERA open press is committed to maintaining the integrity of the published record. We follow COPE Retraction Guidelines for all corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern.
Corrections (Errata/Corrigenda)
- Erratum: A correction notice issued when the publisher's error affects the article
- Corrigendum: A correction notice issued when the author's error affects the article but does not alter the fundamental findings
Correction notices are published as separate items, linked to the original article, and the original article is updated to reference the correction.
Retractions
Articles may be retracted when:
- There is clear evidence of unreliable findings due to misconduct or honest error
- Findings have been previously published without proper attribution
- The article constitutes plagiarism
- The research was conducted unethically
Retracted articles remain accessible but are clearly marked as retracted with a linked retraction notice explaining the reason.
Expressions of Concern
When concerns have been raised about a published article but a definitive conclusion has not been reached (e.g., an institutional investigation is ongoing), an expression of concern may be published.
Complaints and Appeals
Complaints
Any individual who believes SERA open press has not adhered to its editorial or ethical policies may submit a complaint to ethics@serapress.com. Complaints are handled following COPE guidance:
- The complaint is acknowledged within 5 working days
- The complaint is investigated by the relevant editor-in-chief or, if necessary, by the publisher
- A response is provided within 30 days
- If the complainant is unsatisfied with the response, the matter may be escalated to COPE (once SERA open press is a COPE member)
Appeals Against Editorial Decisions
Authors may appeal rejection decisions by submitting a written appeal to the journal's editor-in-chief within 30 days of the decision. Appeals must include a substantive, point-by-point rationale explaining why the decision should be reconsidered.
The editor-in-chief will evaluate the appeal and may seek additional expert advice. The decision on an appeal is final. See our Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement for further details.
Data Availability
SERA open press encourages transparency and reproducibility. Authors are required to include a Data Availability Statement in their manuscript, describing how the data supporting the findings can be accessed.
Acceptable statements include:
- Data are publicly available at [repository URL/DOI]
- Data are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request
- Data sharing is not applicable (e.g., no new data were generated)
- Data cannot be shared due to [privacy/ethical/legal restrictions], with explanation
Authors are encouraged to deposit data in appropriate disciplinary or general-purpose repositories (e.g., Zenodo, Figshare, Dryad, or discipline-specific repositories).
Preprint Policy
SERA open press welcomes the submission of manuscripts that have been posted as preprints on recognized preprint servers (e.g., arXiv, SSRN, OSF Preprints, bioRxiv). Posting a preprint does not constitute prior publication and does not preclude submission to a SERA open press journal.
Authors should:
- Disclose any preprint posting at the time of submission
- Update the preprint record upon publication to link to the published Version of Record
- Be aware that preprint posting may compromise double-blind review if reviewers independently identify the preprint (SERA open press does not consider this grounds for rejection)
Simultaneous Submission
Authors must not submit the same manuscript to more than one journal at the same time. If evidence of simultaneous submission is discovered, the manuscript will be withdrawn from consideration or, if already published, may be subject to retraction.
Post-Publication Discussion
SERA open press supports constructive post-publication discourse. Readers who identify errors, have substantive critiques, or wish to comment on published articles may contact the journal's editorial office. The editor will determine the appropriate response, which may include publishing a correction, inviting a formal commentary or response article, or issuing a retraction.
Advertising and Sponsorship
SERA open press does not currently carry advertising. If advertising is introduced in the future, it will be clearly separated from editorial content and will never influence editorial decisions.
Contact
For editorial policy inquiries: editorial@serapress.com For ethics concerns: ethics@serapress.com