Conflict Of Interest Policy

1. General Statement

The Journal for Quality in Public Health (JQPH) is committed to maintaining transparency, objectivity, and integrity throughout the editorial and publication process. A conflict of interest (COI), also referred to as a competing interest, may arise when the professional judgment, research activities, or editorial decisions of an individual could be influenced, or perceived to be influenced, by secondary interests.

Conflicts of interest may be financial or non-financial and may involve personal, professional, academic, institutional, or commercial relationships. The existence of a potential conflict does not necessarily indicate misconduct or invalidate research findings. However, failure to disclose relevant interests may undermine the credibility of the research and the trust of readers.

JQPH therefore requires all authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial board members to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest relevant to their involvement in the submission, peer-review, editorial assessment, or publication of a manuscript.

This policy follows the principles of transparency and responsible publication promoted by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

2. Types of Conflicts of Interest

Conflicts of interest may include, but are not limited to, the following:

2.1. Financial Conflicts of Interest

Financial conflicts may arise from relationships or activities that provide, or may be perceived to provide, financial benefits to an individual or organization. Examples include:

  • Research grants, sponsorships, or other financial support from organizations with an interest in the research findings.
  • Employment, consultancy arrangements, honoraria, or paid advisory positions.
  • Ownership of shares, stocks, or other financial interests in relevant companies.
  • Patents, royalties, licensing agreements, or financial benefits associated with products, technologies, or interventions discussed in the manuscript.
  • Payments for expert testimony, lectures, or other professional activities related to the subject of the research.

2.2. Non-Financial Conflicts of Interest

Non-financial conflicts may arise from personal, professional, academic, or institutional relationships that could influence judgment. Examples include:

  • Personal relationships, family relationships, or close professional associations.
  • Academic rivalry, competition, or disagreements that may affect impartial evaluation.
  • Current or recent supervisory relationships, mentorship, collaboration, or joint research projects.
  • Institutional affiliations or professional responsibilities that may influence the interpretation or evaluation of research.
  • Strong intellectual, ideological, or professional commitments that may affect the objective assessment of a manuscript.

All relevant interests must be disclosed even when the individual believes that these interests have not influenced their judgment.

3. Responsibilities of Authors

All authors are required to disclose any financial or non-financial interests that could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the research, its interpretation, or the reporting of findings.

Authors must provide a Conflict of Interest Statement during manuscript submission. The statement must accurately reflect the circumstances of all authors and must be agreed upon by the author group.

Authors must also disclose the sources of funding and describe the role of the funder or sponsor, where applicable, in the study design, data collection, data analysis, interpretation of findings, manuscript preparation, and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

Financial or contractual agreements must not prevent authors from accessing relevant research data, conducting independent analyses, interpreting results objectively, or publishing findings without inappropriate interference from sponsors.

If no relevant conflict of interest exists, authors must explicitly declare this in the manuscript using the following statement:

“The authors declare that they have no competing interests.”

If one or more authors have relevant interests, these must be clearly and accurately described in the Conflict of Interest Statement. The disclosure must not be omitted merely because the authors believe the interests did not affect the study outcomes.

4. Responsibilities of Peer Reviewers

Peer reviewers are required to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest when invited to review a manuscript.

Reviewers must decline the invitation or notify the editorial office if their relationships, activities, or interests could compromise their ability to provide an objective and impartial assessment.

Potential conflicts may include recent collaboration with an author, employment at the same institution where relevant, supervisory or mentorship relationships, personal relationships, financial interests, academic competition, or other circumstances that could influence the review.

Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of all manuscripts and related materials. They must not use unpublished information obtained during peer review for personal, professional, academic, or financial benefit.

If a potential conflict becomes apparent after the review process has started, the reviewer must immediately inform the editor and follow the editor's instructions regarding continuation or withdrawal from the review.

5. Responsibilities of Editors and Editorial Board Members

Editors, associate editors, and editorial board members must disclose any interests that may affect, or be perceived to affect, their editorial judgment.

An editor must not handle or make decisions regarding a manuscript when a conflict of in