The process of writing, submitting, and reviewing articles for a journal involves multiple individuals who must adhere to international regulations with accuracy and integrity. From a moral standpoint, authors, the journal’s editor-in-chief, the editorial board, and reviewers are required to follow specific guidelines to minimize risks and prevent fraud in the dissemination of knowledge. Below, the ethical considerations for the entire process of writing and publishing a research article in the Interdisciplinary Journal of Civil Engineering (IJCE) are outlined based on international standards and documents.

According to the final decision made by the IJCE editor-in-chief and the editorial board, the following decisions are announced regarding authors’ responsibilities:

1. Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must ensure that their work is entirely original and properly cite or quote the work and/or words of others. Plagiarism in all its forms constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. If an exact sentence of any previous research work has been used in the papers, it must be quoted.
2. Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication: Authors should not submit the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.
3. Acknowledgment of Sources: Proper acknowledgment of the work of others must always be given. Authors should cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work.
4. Authorship of the Paper: Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. Where there are others who have participated in certain substantive aspects of the research project, they should be acknowledged or listed as contributors.
5. Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: All authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflict of interest that might be construed to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial support for the project should be disclosed.
6. Fundamental Errors in Published Works: When an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in their own published work, it is the author’s obligation to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the paper.

The ethical points concerning the reviewers are as follows:

1. Contribution to Editorial Decisions: Peer review assists the editor in making editorial decisions and through the editorial communications with the author may also assist the author in improving the paper.
2. Promptness: Any selected referee who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or knows that its prompt review will be impossible should notify the editor and excuse themselves from the review process.
3. Confidentiality: Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to or discussed with others except as authorized by the editor.
4. Standards of Objectivity: Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate. Referees should express their views clearly with supporting arguments.
5. Acknowledgment of Sources: Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation. A reviewer should also call to the editor's attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published paper of which they have personal knowledge.
6. Disclosure and Conflict of Interest: Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.

Furthermore, the editor-in-chief and the editorial board are required to disclose any conflicts of interest, maintain the confidentiality of submitted articles, and adhere to the peer review process. They are also accountable for the quality of accepted papers and must strive continuously to enhance the quality of published research and uphold the integrity of the IJCE.