Conflict of Interest

1. Policy Statement

Khatulistiwa Nursing Journal (KNJ) is committed to maintaining the integrity, transparency, objectivity, and credibility of the scholarly publication process. All parties involved in the publication process, including authors, editors, reviewers, and members of the editorial board, are required to disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest that may influence, or be perceived to influence, their research, professional judgment, manuscript evaluation, or publication decisions.

A conflict of interest occurs when financial, personal, professional, institutional, or other relationships may compromise the objectivity and impartiality of research or the publication process.

2. Authors' Responsibilities

Authors must disclose all financial and non-financial interests that could reasonably be perceived as influencing their research or the interpretation of their findings. These may include, but are not limited to:

  • Research funding, grants, sponsorships, or other financial support.
  • Employment, consultancy, honoraria, or other financial relationships.
  • Personal, professional, or institutional relationships that may influence research outcomes.
  • Academic competition or other competing professional interests.
  • Intellectual property interests, including patents or patent applications related to the submitted manuscript.

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors have disclosed any relevant conflicts of interest.

3. Editors' Responsibilities

Editors must evaluate manuscripts objectively and independently based on their scientific quality, originality, relevance, and contribution to nursing and healthcare.

Editors must disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest and must not handle manuscripts when their impartiality may be compromised. In such cases, the manuscript will be assigned to another qualified editor who has no relevant competing interests.

4. Reviewers' Responsibilities

Reviewers must disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest before accepting or conducting a peer review. These may include financial relationships, personal relationships with the authors, institutional affiliations, academic competition, or other circumstances that could affect their impartiality.

Reviewers who identify a significant conflict of interest must inform the editor and decline the review when appropriate. The peer-review process must be conducted fairly, independently, objectively, and confidentially.

5. Disclosure and Management of Conflicts of Interest

All declared conflicts of interest will be assessed by the editorial team. The existence of a conflict of interest does not automatically disqualify a manuscript from consideration. However, appropriate measures will be taken to ensure that editorial decisions remain fair, transparent, and independent.

These measures may include:

  • Assigning the manuscript to an independent editor.
  • Appointing independent reviewers.
  • Requesting additional clarification or disclosure from the authors.
  • Publishing relevant conflict-of-interest statements alongside the article.

Failure to disclose a relevant conflict of interest may result in editorial action, including manuscript rejection or, when appropriate, correction or retraction of a published article in accordance with the journal's publication ethics policies.

6. Funding Disclosure

Authors must disclose all sources of funding for their research, including grant numbers where applicable. They should also explain the role of the funding organization in the study design, data collection, data analysis, interpretation of results, manuscript preparation, and the decision to submit the manuscript for publication, where relevant.

If the research received no specific funding, the authors should include a statement indicating that no specific funding was received.

7. Transparency and Publication

Relevant conflict-of-interest and funding information will be published alongside the article when applicable. Khatulistiwa Nursing Journal (KNJ) reserves the right to request additional information or clarification to ensure transparency and uphold publication ethics.

This policy applies to all manuscripts submitted to KNJ and aims to protect research integrity, editorial independence, and the trust of authors, reviewers, readers, and the wider academic community.