The Journal of Cost Management (J. Cost Manag.) is committed to promoting responsible, ethical, and scientifically sound research practices. All research submitted to the journal must comply with applicable ethical standards, institutional requirements, and relevant national and international regulations.

The journal follows recognized principles and guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and, where applicable, recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) concerning research integrity, ethical oversight, human participants, informed consent, and responsible publication.

1. Ethical Conduct of Research

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their research has been conducted honestly, responsibly, and in accordance with applicable ethical standards. Research must respect the rights, dignity, privacy, safety, and welfare of participants and other individuals involved in the research.

Authors must accurately report their methods, data, findings, and conclusions and must not engage in fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, manipulation, or other forms of research misconduct.

2. Ethical Approval

Where required, research involving human participants, personal data, animals, or other ethically regulated activities must receive approval from an appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB), Research Ethics Committee, or equivalent authority before the research is conducted.

Authors may be required to provide evidence of ethical approval during the submission or review process.

3. Informed Consent

Where applicable, authors must obtain appropriate informed consent from research participants. Consent should be obtained in accordance with applicable ethical and legal requirements.

Where a manuscript contains identifiable information, photographs, case details, or other material that could reveal an individual's identity, appropriate consent for publication must be obtained where required.

4. Human and Animal Research

Research involving human participants must protect their rights, privacy, dignity, and welfare. Research involving animals must comply with applicable animal-welfare standards and minimize unnecessary pain, suffering, or distress.

Authors should clearly describe relevant ethical procedures in the manuscript where applicable.

5. Ethical Reporting

Authors must provide complete and accurate information regarding ethical approval, informed consent, participant protection, funding, conflicts of interest, and other relevant ethical considerations.

Failure to disclose required ethical information may result in additional investigation or editorial action.

6. Unethical Research Conduct

The journal does not accept research involving unethical practices, including but not limited to:

• Research conducted without required ethical approval
• Lack of required informed consent
• Fabrication or falsification of data
• Plagiarism or unauthorized use of another person's work
• Manipulation or misrepresentation of research findings
• Unethical treatment of human or animal participants
• Violation of participant privacy or confidentiality
• Duplicate or fraudulent publication
• Manipulation of authorship or peer review
• Failure to disclose significant conflicts of interest

7. Editorial Right to Reject

The Journal of Cost Management reserves the right to reject any manuscript at any stage of the editorial or publication process if there is evidence or reasonable concern that the research or manuscript does not comply with applicable ethical standards.

A manuscript may be rejected before peer review, during peer review, after acceptance, or, where necessary, after publication if serious ethical concerns are identified. The journal may request additional documentation or clarification from authors or relevant institutions before making a final determination.

8. Investigation of Ethical Concerns

Where ethical concerns arise, the Editorial Office may conduct an appropriate investigation and may request explanations, ethical approval documents, consent documentation, research records, or other relevant information.

The journal may consult appropriate institutional authorities or follow relevant COPE procedures when investigating suspected research or publication misconduct.

9. Post-Publication Ethical Concerns

If serious ethical concerns are identified after publication, the journal may take appropriate action to protect the integrity of the scholarly record, including publishing a correction, expression of concern, or retraction where warranted.

10. Commitment to Ethical Publishing

The Journal of Cost Management expects authors, reviewers, editors, and Editorial Board members to uphold the highest standards of research and publication ethics. The journal will apply appropriate ethical safeguards throughout the editorial and peer-review process and will take reasonable action whenever concerns regarding unethical research or publication practices arise.