Good Governance is committed to maintaining transparency, objectivity, and integrity throughout the publication process. In accordance with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices, the journal establishes this Conflict of Interest Policy to identify, disclose, assess, and manage actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest involving authors, reviewers, editors, the journal, and the publisher. This policy applies to all manuscripts submitted to the journal and to articles that have already been published.

 

A conflict of interest occurs when financial, professional, personal, academic, institutional, or other relationships could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, an individual's judgment, objectivity, or decisions in the research and publication process. In line with COPE's guidance on conflicts of interest and competing interests, the journal recognizes that conflicts may arise in different forms and must be addressed through clear disclosure and appropriate management procedures.

Examples of potential conflicts of interest include employment, consultancy, research funding, financial support, ownership of shares, personal relationships, professional rivalry, institutional affiliations, academic competition, and other interests that may affect the impartial assessment or publication of a manuscript. These examples are not exhaustive, and any interest that could reasonably be considered relevant to the manuscript should be disclosed.

 

All authors are required to disclose any financial or non-financial interests that may influence the research, its interpretation, or the presentation of the findings. Consistent with COPE's Core Practices on conflicts of interest, disclosures should be sufficiently clear to enable editors and readers to assess whether the declared interests could affect the work.

Authors must disclose relevant sources of funding, sponsorship, consultancy, employment, financial relationships, personal relationships, institutional interests, or other circumstances that may constitute an actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest. Where no relevant conflict exists, authors should include a statement such as: “The authors declare no conflict of interest.”

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors are informed of the disclosure requirements and that the conflict-of-interest statement accurately reflects the interests of all authors. Any material change to the disclosure information must be communicated to the editorial office as soon as it becomes known.

 

Reviewers must evaluate manuscripts objectively and disclose any circumstances that could compromise, or reasonably be perceived to compromise, their impartiality. In accordance with COPE's Core Practices concerning conflicts of interest and peer review, the journal requires conflicts to be identified and managed as part of a transparent and properly administered review process.

Potential conflicts may include close personal or professional relationships with the authors, collaboration or recent co-authorship, direct competition in the same research area, financial interests, institutional relationships, or other circumstances that could affect the reviewer's independent judgment.

Reviewers who identify an actual or potential conflict of interest must notify the handling editor promptly and decline the review when the conflict could compromise their impartiality. The editor will determine whether the reviewer may proceed or whether another independent reviewer should be appointed.

 

Editors and editorial board members must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest relating to a submitted manuscript and must not participate in editorial decisions where their impartiality may be compromised. This approach follows COPE's guidance on conflicts of interest and competing interests, which identifies editors as one of the groups whose conflicts must be covered by journal policies and procedures.

Conflicts may arise from personal relationships with authors, co-authorship, institutional affiliations, financial interests, professional competition, or other circumstances that could influence editorial judgment. An editor who has a relevant conflict must disclose it to the Editor-in-Chief or another appropriately independent editor and withdraw from handling the manuscript when necessary.

When the Editor-in-Chief has a conflict of interest, the manuscript must be assigned to an independent editor who can manage the review and decision-making process without inappropriate influence from the conflicted individual. The conflicted editor must not determine the reviewers, influence the evaluation, or make the final publication decision for that manuscript.

 

Good Governance and its publisher are responsible for establishing and implementing procedures to identify and manage conflicts of interest that may affect editorial independence, peer review, publication decisions, or the credibility of published content. COPE's Core Practices require journals to have clear definitions and procedures for handling conflicts involving authors, reviewers, editors, journals, and publishers, including conflicts identified after publication.

The journal will not allow financial, commercial, institutional, or personal interests to override the independent assessment of a manuscript. Where a conflict involving the journal, publisher, or a person responsible for editorial decisions is identified, the matter will be referred to an appropriately independent person for assessment and management.

 

Conflict-of-interest disclosures must be submitted to the editorial office during manuscript submission or as soon as a relevant interest becomes known. The journal may request additional information or clarification when a disclosure is incomplete, unclear, or insufficient to determine the nature and potential impact of the interest.

The editorial team will assess each disclosure according to its relevance to the manuscript and its potential impact on the integrity of the editorial process. Depending on the circumstances, the journal may require an additional disclosure statement, appoint an independent reviewer or editor, reassign editorial responsibility, or take other proportionate measures to protect the impartiality of the process. These procedures implement the transparency and conflict-management principles set out in COPE's conflicts of interest guidance.

The existence of a disclosed conflict of interest does not automatically mean that a manuscript must be rejected. The journal will consider the nature, significance, and manageability of the conflict before determining an appropriate response. However, failure to disclose a relevant conflict or the presence of an unmanageable conflict may lead to further editorial action.

 

If a conflict of interest is identified after an article has been published, the journal will assess the available information and determine whether the omission or undisclosed interest affects the transparency, reliability, or interpretation of the published work. In accordance with COPE's Core Practices, the journal will address relevant conflicts identified both before and after publication.

Where appropriate, the journal may request an explanation from the authors, publish a correction or additional disclosure, or take further action if the matter raises concerns about research or publication integrity. Any decision will be based on the available evidence and the seriousness of the issue, with the aim of maintaining an accurate and transparent scholarly record.

 

Conflict-of-interest disclosures and related communications will be handled confidentially and accessed only by individuals who need the information to assess or manage the matter. The journal will retain relevant records of disclosures, assessments, and actions taken in accordance with its editorial procedures and applicable requirements.

Information about a conflict may be disclosed when necessary to ensure transparency, explain an editorial action, comply with applicable obligations, or protect the integrity of the scholarly record. Any such disclosure will be limited to information appropriate to the circumstances.

 

Authors, reviewers, and editors are expected to comply with this policy and to provide complete and accurate information about relevant interests. Failure to disclose a conflict, providing misleading information, or refusing to cooperate with a reasonable editorial inquiry may result in appropriate action, depending on the circumstances and the stage of the publication process.

Possible actions include requesting a revised disclosure, replacing a reviewer or editor, suspending the editorial process while concerns are assessed, rejecting a manuscript, or publishing a correction or other editorial notice when an article has already been published. Where concerns extend beyond the journal's remit, the journal may consider contacting the relevant institution or organization in accordance with applicable publication ethics procedures.