Publication Ethics Principles
Publication Ethics can be defined as a self-regulatory mechanism that insists on integrity on behalf of authors, reviewers and publishers to establish higher standards of editorial processing. Ethical standards for publication exist to ensure high-quality scientific publications, public confidence in scientific findings, and respect for people's opinions.
• Honest researchers do not plagiarise.
• They do not misattribute sources.
• They do not hide objections they cannot refute.
• They do not distort opposing views.
• They do not destroy or hide data.

Peer-reviewed studies are studies that support and actualize the scientific method. At this point, it is of great importance that all parties involved in the publication process (authors, readers and researchers, publisher, referees and editors) comply with ethical principles. Kocaeli Journal of Theology adheres to national and international standards in research and publication ethics. It complies with the Press Law, the Law on Intellectual and Artistic Works, and the Directive on Scientific Research and Publication Ethics of Higher Education Institutions. Kocaeli Journal of Theology has adopted the International Ethical Publishing Principles published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA). It is also committed to abide by the decisions of the Turkish Editors' Workshop.
• Press Law (National Legislation)
• Law on Intellectual and Artistic Works (National Legislation)
• Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive (National Legislation)
• Transparency and Best Practice Principles in Academic Publishing (International Criteria)
• Turkey Editors' Workshop Decisions (National Criteria)

Replay
Republishing is the publication of the same article or substantially similar articles in more than one journal. The editor sends back such an article without reviewing it. The editor may then impose an embargo for a certain period of time on the author attempting to republish, announce this in the journal in which the author has previously published (perhaps simultaneously with the editor of the journal that published the previous article), or all of these measures together.

Simultaneous submission of the same work to more than one journal
Authors may not submit the same article to more than one journal at the same time. If the editor learns of the possibility of simultaneous submission, he/she reserves the right to consult with the other editor(s) receiving the manuscript. In addition, the editor may return the manuscript without review or reject the manuscript without considering the reviews, or may take this decision in consultation with the other editor(s) involved and decide not to accept submissions from authors for a certain period of time. He/she may also write to the authors' employers or take all of these measures together.

Suicide Prevention Control
Plagiarism is presenting the ideas, methods, data, practices, writings, forms or works of others as one's own work in whole or in part without citing the authors in accordance with scientific rules.
Kocaeli Theology Journal screens all submitted articles to prevent plagiarism. The studies submitted for review are checked for plagiarism using Turnitin & Ithenticate software. The similarity rate is expected to be less than 20%. The main measure of similarity is the author's compliance with the rules of citation and citation. If the similarity rate is 1%, but citation and quotation are not done properly, plagiarism may still be in question. In this respect, citation and quotation rules should be known and carefully applied by the author: ISNAD
Plagiarism, duplication, pseudo-authorship/ denied authorship, research/data fabrication, article slicing, sliced publication, copyright infringement and concealment of conflict of interest are considered unethical behaviours. All articles that do not comply with accepted ethical standards are removed from publication. This includes articles containing possible irregularities and non-conformities detected after publication.

Forgery
To produce data that is not based on research, to edit or change the work presented or published on the basis of unreal data, to report or publish them, to show a research that has not been done as if it has been done.
Falsifying research records and data obtained, showing methods, devices and materials that were not used in the research as if they were used, not evaluating data that do not comply with the research hypothesis, manipulating data and/or results to fit the relevant theory or assumptions, falsifying or shaping the results of the research in line with the interests of the persons and organisations supported.

Protection of Personal Data of Participants
Kocaeli Theology Journal requires that all research involving personal or sensitive data or materials relating to human participants that are not legally available to the public be subject to formal ethical review.
Addressing Allegations of Research Misconduct
Kocaeli Theology Journal adheres to COPE's Ethical Toolkit for a Successful Editorial. The editors of Kocaeli Theology Journal will take measures to prevent the publication of articles in which plagiarism, citation manipulation, data falsification, data fabrication, and other research misconduct occur. In no case will the editors of Kocaeli Theology Journal knowingly allow such misconduct to occur. In the event that the editors of Kocaeli Theology Journal become aware of any allegations of research misconduct related to an article published in their journal, they will follow COPE's guidelines regarding allegations.

Ethical Violation Notifications
If readers notice a significant error or inaccuracy in an article published in Kocaeli Theology Journal or have any complaints about the editorial content (plagiarism, duplicate articles, etc.), they can send an e-mail to kider@kocaeli.edu.tr. We welcome applications as it will provide an opportunity for us to improve, and we will respond quickly and constructively.

Correction, Retraction, Expression of Concern
Editors may consider publishing a correction if minor errors are detected in the published article that do not affect the findings, interpretations and conclusions. Editors should consider retracting the manuscript if there are major errors/violations that invalidate the findings and conclusions. Editors should consider issuing a statement of concern if there is a possibility of research or publication misconduct by the authors; if there is evidence that the findings are unreliable and the authors' institutions have not investigated the incident; or if the possible investigation seems unfair or inconclusive. COPE and ICJME guidelines regarding correction, retraction or expression of concern are taken into account.

Publication of Studies Based on Surveys and Interviews
Kocaeli Theology Journal adopts the "Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors" and "Code of Conduct for Journal Publishers" principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in order to provide ethical assurance in scientific periodical publishing. In this context, the following points should be complied with in the studies submitted to the journal:
1) For research in all disciplines that require ethics committee approval (ethics committee approval must be obtained, this approval must be stated and documented in the article.
2) In studies requiring ethics committee authorisation, information about the authorisation (name of the committee, date and number) should be included in the method section and on one of the first/last pages of the article; in case reports, information on the signature of the informed consent form should be included in the article.

Special Issue Publication Policy
A special issue can be published once a year upon the request of the Editorial Board. Articles submitted for inclusion in the special issue are first subjected to a preliminary editorial review. Then, they are examined for compliance with the journal's spelling rules and similarity screening is performed to prevent plagiarism. After these stages, they are included in the peer review process using the double-blinding model.

Editorial Confidentiality Obligation
The editors of Kocaeli Theology Journal treat all submitted manuscripts as confidential documents, which means that they will not disclose information about a manuscript to anyone without the authors' permission. During the manuscript review process, the following people have access to the manuscripts: Editors, Referees, Editorial Board Members. The only situation where details about a manuscript may be passed to a third party without the authors' permission is if the editor suspects serious research misconduct.

Allegations-Suspicions of Scientific Misconduct
There are different definitions of scientific misconduct. We address these issues on a case-by-case basis as the Kocaeli Theology Journal follows the guidance established by major publication ethics bodies. If the editor suspects or alleges an ethical violation, they are obliged to take action. This duty extends to both published and unpublished articles. The editor should not simply reject articles raising concerns about possible misconduct. He/she is ethically obliged to follow up on alleged cases. The editor should follow COPE flowcharts when appropriate. Editors should first seek a response from those suspected of misconduct. If they are not satisfied with the response, they should ask the relevant employer or organisation to investigate. The editor should make all reasonable endeavours to ensure that an appropriate investigation into the alleged misconduct is carried out; if this fails, the editor should make all reasonable attempts to insist on a resolution to the problem. This is an arduous but important task.
Kocaeli Theology Journal adheres to COPE's Ethical Toolkit for a Successful Editorial. The editors of Kocaeli Theology Journal will take measures to prevent the publication of manuscripts in which plagiarism, citation manipulation, data falsification, data fabrication, and other research misconduct occur. In no case will Kocaeli Theology Journal or its editors knowingly allow such misconduct to occur. If the editors of Kocaeli Theology Journal become aware of any allegations of research misconduct related to an article published in their journal, they will follow COPE's guidelines regarding allegations.
Reviewers should inform the Editor if they suspect research or publication misconduct. The Editor is responsible for taking necessary action in accordance with COPE recommendations.
Kocaeli Theology Journal is committed to following the COPE flowcharts when faced with allegations of misconduct in the following or similar matters.
• What to do if a rebroadcast is suspected
• What to do when plagiarism is suspected
• What to do if fabricated data is suspected
• What to do when requesting a change of authorship
• What to do if an undisclosed conflict of interest is suspected
• What to do if unfair or gift authorship is suspected
• What to do when an ethical problem is suspected in an article
• What to do when the suspicion of ethical violation is directly notified by e-mail, etc.
• What to do when a suspected ethical violation is announced via social media

Complaint Procedure
This procedure applies to complaints about content, procedures, or policies that are the responsibility of Kocaeli Theology Journal or our editorial staff. Complaints can provide an opportunity and incentive for improvement and we aim to respond quickly, courteously and constructively.
The complaint must relate to content, procedures or policies that are the responsibility of Kocaeli Theology Journal or our editorial team. Complaints should be emailed directly to kider@kocaeli.edu.tr and will be treated confidentially. The editor responds to complaints immediately. The editor follows the procedure outlined in the COPE flowchart regarding complaints.
Complaints are reviewed by the relevant member of the editorial team and, if not resolved, the following processes are followed:
• If this initial response is considered inadequate, the complainant may request that the complaint be forwarded to a more senior member of the journal.
• If the complainant is not satisfied, the complaint may be forwarded to the editor-in-chief.
• If possible, a full response will be given within two weeks.
COPE publishes a code of practice for editors of scientific journals. This should facilitate the resolution of disputes with editors, journals and publishers, but only after the journal's own complaints procedures have been exhausted.

Appeal Process
We welcome serious objections to the evaluations made by editors and reviewers. If you feel that we have rejected your paper because we misunderstood its scientific content, please send an appeal message to our editorial team at kider@kocaeli.edu.tr. Do not attempt to submit a revised version of your manuscript at this stage. If, after reading your appeal letter, we realise that your appeal is justified, we may invite you to submit a revised version of your manuscript. Your manuscript will then be resubmitted to the external reviewer process. Please include as much detail as possible in the appeal letter. Finally, we can only consider one appeal per manuscript, so please take the time and effort to write the letter in detail to make your appeal clear - you have one chance, so use it well. We have found that prolonged deliberation over rejected papers is often unsatisfactory for both authors and editors, so we do not process multiple appeals for the same paper.

Conflicts of Interest
A conflict of interest arises when professional judgement about a primary interest may be influenced by a secondary interest (such as financial gain or personal competition). We believe that we need to know the authors' conflicting interests in order to make the best judgement about how to handle an article, and that readers need to know them if we publish the article.
Any interest, financial or otherwise, that may cause the person to be conflicted in his or her work, significantly impair his or her objectivity, or provide an unfair advantage in favour of any person or organisation. All sources of financial support received during the conduct of the research and preparation of the manuscript and the role of sponsors in the study should be disclosed. If there is no source of funding, this should also be indicated. Examples of potential conflicts of interest that should be disclosed include consultancies, salaries, grants. Potential conflicts of interest should be disclosed at the earliest possible stage.
Kocaeli Theology Journal has a specific process to ensure that submissions from editors, staff or editorial board members are evaluated impartially. Such submissions are first referred to other journals. If this is not possible, the applicant is suspended from the journal. These submissions are reviewed in a double-blind process.
The editor should not be involved in decisions about manuscripts written by him/herself or by family members. Furthermore, such a paper should be subject to all the usual procedures of the journal. The editor should follow the ICMJE guidelines on disclosure of potential conflicts of interest by authors and reviewers.

Research Ethics Principles
Kocaeli Theology Journal adheres to the highest standards of research ethics and embraces the internationally defined research ethics principles outlined below. The adherence of articles to ethical rules is the responsibility of the authors.
• Integrity, quality, and transparency principles should be ensured in the design, review, and execution of the research.
• The research team and participants should be fully informed about the purpose of the research, its methods, anticipated potential uses, requirements for participation, and, if any, the risks involved.
• Confidentiality of information provided by research participants and the privacy of respondents should be ensured. Research should be designed to safeguard the autonomy and dignity of research participants.
• Research participants should voluntarily take part in the study and should not be under any coercion.
• Participants should be prevented from being harmed. Research should be planned in a way that does not put participants at risk.
• Transparency regarding research independence should be maintained; conflicts of interest should be disclosed if present. • In experimental studies involving human subjects, written informed consent must be obtained from participants deciding to participate in the research. Approval from the legal guardian should be obtained for children, wards, or individuals with certified mental illness.
• If the study is to be conducted in any institution or organization, approval should be obtained from that institution or organization.
• In studies involving human subjects, the "methods" section should indicate that "informed consent" was obtained from the participants and that ethical approval was obtained from the institution where the study was conducted.