Anti-Plagiarism Policy

General Principles

Argos Journal maintains a firm commitment to academic integrity, intellectual honesty, respect for copyright and best editorial practices. Consequently, the journal rejects all forms of plagiarism, self-plagiarism, redundant publication, misappropriation of ideas, citation manipulation and any other conduct that violates the ethical principles of research and scholarly publishing.

This policy is aligned with the journal’s Code of Ethics and Editorial Practices and with the recommendations and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Originality Verification

All manuscripts submitted to the journal shall undergo a preliminary review using specialised software designed to detect textual similarities and verify academic originality.

The journal establishes a maximum similarity threshold of 15% as a reference parameter. However, this percentage shall not, in itself, constitute an automatic criterion for acceptance or rejection, but rather an indicator that will be analysed and interpreted by the editorial team.

Similarity reports shall be examined comprehensively in order to determine the nature, origin and justification of any detected matches, taking into consideration aspects such as:

  • Properly referenced direct quotations.
  • Bibliographic references.
  • Conventional expressions commonly used within the discipline.
  • Standard methodological descriptions.
  • Legal or regulatory documents.
  • Previously published material reproduced with appropriate authorisation and citation.
  • Other legitimate similarities arising from the academic nature of the work.

Conduct Considered Plagiarism or Academic Misconduct

The journal considers the following practices unacceptable:

  • Total or partial copying of texts without proper attribution of authorship.
  • Misappropriation of ideas, arguments, interpretations, images, tables, graphs or data produced by third parties without appropriate acknowledgement.
  • Translation of third-party works and presentation of such translations as original work.
  • Substantial paraphrasing without reference to the original source.
  • Manipulation or alteration of bibliographic references for the purpose of concealing the origin of a text.
  • Submission of work produced by third parties as if it were the author's own.
  • Undisclosed use of artificial intelligence tools when disclosure is required under the journal’s editorial policies.

Self-Plagiarism and Redundant Publication

The journal also considers self-plagiarism and redundant publication to be inappropriate practices. These are understood as the substantial reuse of previously published texts by the same authors without appropriate reference or academic justification.

Particular attention shall be given to:

  • Duplicate publication of the same work in different venues.
  • Unjustified fragmentation of a single research project in order to generate multiple publications.
  • Extensive reuse of previously published content without explicit indication of its origin.

Procedures for Addressing Suspected Cases

When significant similarities or possible irregularities are identified, the Editorial Board may:

  • Request clarification from the authors.
  • Require corrections or modifications to the manuscript.
  • Request additional supporting documentation.
  • Temporarily suspend the editorial process while an investigation is conducted.
  • Reject the manuscript.
  • Remove the article from the review process.

In the most serious cases, the journal may notify the authors’ affiliated institutions when circumstances justify such action.

Cases Detected After Publication

If plagiarism, self-plagiarism or any other form of academic misconduct is detected after publication, the journal shall initiate an investigation in accordance with the principles of due process, confidentiality and the right to be heard.

Depending on the seriousness of the case, the following measures may be adopted:

  • Publication of corrections or clarifications.
  • Publication of errata.
  • Issuance of an editorial expression of concern.
  • Full or partial retraction of the article.
  • Updating of the corresponding bibliographic records.

Authors’ Responsibility

Authors bear sole responsibility for the originality, authenticity and legitimacy of the content submitted to the journal.

The submission of a manuscript implies explicit acceptance of this Anti-Plagiarism Policy and constitutes a declaration that the work is an original and unpublished contribution prepared in accordance with the ethical principles governing academic research.