Browse our ethics policies:

Policy on citation manipulation

Citations and references are integral to ensuring transparency, accountability, and reproducibility in scholarly research, thereby reinforcing the robustness of academic work. Authors must ensure that citations are accurate, relevant, and applied judiciously, avoiding excessive or unnecessary referencing.

Citation manipulation constitutes unethical scholarly conduct and may include the following practices:

Self-Citation:

Authors must refrain from excessive self-citation of their previously published works. Citations should only be included when they are directly relevant, substantively contribute to the research, and enhance the scholarly discourse. References must never be added solely to inflate an author's citation metrics.

Coercive Citation:

During peer review, reviewers or editors may suggest additional references to strengthen the manuscript. While legitimate recommendations are acceptable, coercive citation—where inclusion of specific references is imposed as a condition for acceptance or without valid scholarly justification—is unethical.

References suggested during review are not mandatory for acceptance; authors should include only those citations they deem relevant to their research and essential for addressing gaps in the literature.

The jurnal upholds both authorial autonomy and editorial independence. Authors who believe they have been subjected to coercive citation practices should contact the Editor-in-Chief immediately.

Citation Pushing or Stacking:

This occurs when an author, reviewer, or editorial team member deliberately includes irrelevant or superfluous references in a manuscript, review, or decision letter to artificially increase the citation count of a specific individual, group, or journal. Such practices are closely monitored across all JSDIO publications. Any evidence of deliberate citation inflation will be investigated and addressed appropriately.

JSDIO regards citation manipulation as a serious breach of research integrity and will act in accordance with the COPE guidelines. Allegations or evidence of citation manipulation will trigger a formal investigation under the journal's ethical publishing policy.

If an investigation confirms citation manipulation, manuscripts under review may be rejected, and published works may be subject to corrective measures, including the issuance of a post-publication notice. In cases of repeated or deliberate misconduct, the matter may be escalated to the author's affiliated institution for further action.