Definition

Plagiarism is the use of another person's words, ideas, data, images, or work without proper acknowledgment. The journal treats the following as plagiarism: verbatim copying, close paraphrasing without citation, patchwriting from several sources, reuse of the author's own published text without disclosure, duplicate or redundant publication, translation plagiarism, and use of AI-generated text without disclosure.

Translation plagiarism

The journal publishes in English and Filipino. A translation of a work already published in another language, presented as a new work without disclosure and permission, counts as duplicate publication.

Screening

Every submission goes through similarity checking with Crossref Similarity Check (iThenticate) or an equivalent tool at editorial screening and again before publication.

Thresholds

As a guide, the journal expects an overall similarity index below 20 percent, with no single source above 5 percent, excluding references, properly quoted and cited text, and standard method descriptions. The editor reads each similarity report in full. A low score does not clear a manuscript, and a high score alone does not lead to rejection.

Actions

Minor overlap with proper citation leads to a request for revision. Substantial unattributed copying at submission leads to rejection. Plagiarism found after publication leads to correction or retraction under the journal's corrections policy and notification of the authors' institution. Repeat offenses lead to a ban on submissions of up to three years.

Theses, preprints, and conference papers

The journal welcomes manuscripts derived from theses, dissertations, preprints, and conference presentations. Authors cite the earlier version and declare the origin in the cover letter. Disclosed overlap with the author's own thesis or preprint does not count as plagiarism.