Jurnal Arbitrer, published by Universitas Andalas, is firmly committed to upholding the principles of academic integrity, originality, and responsible authorship. We follow the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in addressing issues of plagiarism, ensuring fair and ethical editorial handling.

Definition of Plagiarism

Plagiarism is defined as the unattributed use of another person’s work, ideas, text, data, or materials, presented as one’s own original work. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Copying or closely paraphrasing text, ideas, images, or data without proper citation.

• Using significant parts of previously published work (including the author’s own) without transparent acknowledgment (self-plagiarism).

• Submitting identical or substantially similar work to multiple journals simultaneously (duplicate submission).

Policy Overview

To protect the integrity of the scholarly record, Jurnal Arbitrer requires that:

• All submitted manuscripts are original, unpublished, and not under consideration elsewhere.

• Any material (text, figures, tables, data) taken from other sources is properly cited and clearly distinguished using quotation marks or formatting where appropriate.

• Any reuse of previously published materials — even from the authors’ own prior work — is clearly acknowledged, cited, and, where required, accompanied by proper permissions from the copyright holder.

Authors are fully responsible for ensuring the originality of their submissions.

Detection of Plagiarism

Jurnal Arbitrer employs plagiarism detection tools (such as Turnitin) to check submissions. The recommended maximum similarity index is 20%, excluding references and commonly used technical terms.

Editors, reviewers, or readers may also report suspected plagiarism at any stage of submission, review, or post-publication.

Levels of Plagiarism and Editorial Actions

We classify plagiarism cases by severity:

• Minor Plagiarism (small portions copied, minor text overlap, no original data or ideas taken):

  • Editorial action: Author is issued a warning; revisions are required to properly cite or paraphrase the source.

• Moderate Plagiarism (significant sections copied, improper reuse of prior work, or large text overlap without new contributions):

  • Editorial action: Manuscript is rejected; authors may be barred from submitting new manuscripts for up to one year.

• Severe Plagiarism (major copying of original data, results, or figures; submission of work plagiarized in whole or substantial part):

  • Editorial action: Manuscript is rejected; authors may be blacklisted and barred from submitting to Jurnal Arbitrer for five years or indefinitely, depending on the case.

In cases of repeated or egregious misconduct, Jurnal Arbitrer reserves the right to notify the authors’ institutions, funders, or other relevant authorities.

Self-Plagiarism and Redundant Publication

Reusing large portions of one’s own published or submitted work (self-plagiarism) without appropriate citation is not permitted. Acceptable reuse cases (e.g., expanding conference papers into full journal articles) require:

• Proper acknowledgment of the earlier work.

• Clear identification of new contributions.

• Written permission from the original publisher, if applicable.

Simultaneous submission of similar manuscripts to multiple journals (duplicate submission) is unethical and grounds for immediate rejection.

Handling Translated or Reused Content

• Submissions based on work originally published in another language must include full citation of the original publication and require written permission to republish.

• Reuse of historic or landmark papers for educational purposes may be considered with clear labeling and full source attribution.

Maintaining Records and Enforcement

The editorial office keeps a formal record of all plagiarism cases and associated sanctions. Before processing any new submission, the editorial team checks that no banned or blacklisted authors are involved.

Reporting and Appeals

Authors who believe a plagiarism decision was made in error may appeal to the Editor-in-Chief with a written explanation. Appeals will be reviewed by the editorial board, whose decision will be final.

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