Plagiarism Policies

SHIELD: Journal of Studies on Human Interaction, Education, and Language Development upholds the highest standards of academic integrity and originality. We are committed to ensuring that all published works represent original contributions to the literature and adhere strictly to ethical guidelines regarding plagiarism and intellectual honesty. This policy outlines our stance on plagiarism, the measures in place to prevent it, and the actions we undertake in cases where plagiarism is detected.

Definition of Plagiarism

Plagiarism occurs when an individual presents someone else’s work, ideas, or expressions as their own, without proper acknowledgment of the source. This includes, but is not limited to, copying text, ideas, images, or data directly from another source without appropriate citation; paraphrasing another person's work without crediting the original source; and claiming credit for research conducted by others.

Our Stance on Plagiarism

SHIELD has zero tolerance for plagiarism. We expect all submissions to adhere to the highest ethical standards of scholarly work. To protect the integrity of the research record, all manuscripts undergo a rigorous screening process for plagiarism before publication.

Plagiarism Detection

To aid in the detection of plagiarism, SHIELD utilizes Turnitin, a leading software tool in the identification of unoriginal content and potential plagiarism. Every manuscript submitted to SHIELD is checked through Turnitin to ensure the originality of the written work.

  • Similarity Index: A manuscript is considered to have potential issues with plagiarism if the Turnitin similarity index exceeds 15%. However, SHIELD recognizes that a higher similarity index may not always indicate plagiarism (e.g., common methodology descriptions, widely used definitions, or bibliographies) and assesses each case on its individual merits.
  • Review Process: In instances where the similarity index exceeds the threshold, the manuscript will undergo a detailed review. The editorial team will assess the context of the matched text to determine whether it constitutes plagiarism.

Actions on Detected Plagiarism

If plagiarism is detected at any stage – before or after acceptance, or after publication – SHIELD takes the following actions, depending on the severity of the plagiarism:

  • For Suspected Plagiarism in Submitted Manuscripts: The corresponding author will be contacted for an explanation. Depending on the author's response and the extent of plagiarism, the manuscript may be rejected, or the author may be asked to rewrite and properly cite the plagiarized portions.
  • For Confirmed Plagiarism: If plagiarism is confirmed, the manuscript will be rejected outright. In cases where plagiarism is discovered after publication, the article may be retracted, and a notice of retraction will be published in the journal.

Author Responsibilities

  • Originality: Authors are responsible for ensuring that their work is entirely original and adequately cites all sources of data and ideas.
  • Citation and Quotation: Direct quotations from the works of others must always be clearly identified as such by being placed in quotation marks and accompanied by a proper citation.

Educating Our Community

SHIELD is dedicated to educating authors, reviewers, and editors about plagiarism and the importance of originality in scholarly publishing. We provide resources and guidance on best practices for citing and documenting sources to foster an environment of ethical publishing.

Reporting Plagiarism

SHIELD encourages readers, reviewers, and editors to report any suspected cases of plagiarism. All reports will be investigated thoroughly and treated confidentially.

For inquiries or to report a case of plagiarism, please contact [shield@journal.venfri.org].