Editorial Responsibilities
Editors play a central role in maintaining the quality, integrity, and credibility of the scholarly record. They are responsible for managing the peer review process, ensuring that editorial decisions are fair, objective, timely, and based solely on the scholarly merit of submitted manuscripts. FMDB Editors perform their duties in accordance with the COPE Core Practices, the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, and internationally recognized standards of publication ethics. Editorial decisions are made independently of commercial interests, Article Processing Charges (APCs), sponsorship, advertising, or any external influence.
Initial Editorial Assessment
Upon submission, the assigned Editor conducts an initial assessment to determine whether the manuscript:
Manuscripts that do not satisfy these criteria may be rejected without external peer review (desk rejection).
Editorial Independence and Conflicts of Interest
Editors must perform their responsibilities impartially and maintain complete editorial independence throughout the publication process. Editors should decline to handle a manuscript if any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest exists, including but not limited to:
Where a conflict exists, the manuscript will be reassigned to another qualified editor.
Selection of Peer Reviewers
Editors are responsible for selecting independent experts with appropriate subject expertise to evaluate submitted manuscripts.
Editors should ensure that reviewers:
Editors may invite additional reviewers whenever further specialist expertise is required.
Management of the Peer Review Process
FMDB operates a double-blind peer review system in which the identities of authors and reviewers remain confidential throughout the review process.
Editors oversee the review process by:
Reviewer comments should evaluate, where appropriate:
Editorial Decisions
Editors consider reviewer reports together with their own independent assessment when making editorial decisions.
Possible editorial decisions include:
The final publication decision rests with the Editor or Editor-in-Chief and is based solely on scholarly merit, originality, methodological quality, ethical compliance, relevance to the journal's scope, and the recommendations of independent peer reviewers.
Confidentiality
Editors must treat all submitted manuscripts and related correspondence as confidential documents.
Editors must not:
Ethical Oversight
Editors are responsible for identifying potential ethical concerns, including:
Where concerns arise, Editors will follow the relevant COPE flowcharts and guidance and may request additional information from the authors before making a decision.
Post-Publication Responsibilities
Editors remain responsible for preserving the integrity of the scholarly record after publication.
Where necessary, FMDB will publish:
All post-publication actions are handled in accordance with FMDB's publication ethics policies and relevant COPE guidance.
Editorial Board and Citation Ethics Policy
Editors must maintain editorial independence and must not influence authors' reference lists for personal, institutional, journal, publisher, or bibliometric benefit. Editors must not require authors to cite FMDB publications or publications of editorial board members as a condition of acceptance. Citation recommendations must be based exclusively on legitimate scholarly relevance. Editors should monitor manuscripts for unusually concentrated citation patterns, including excessive references to one journal, publisher, institution, author group, or editorial network. Where unusual citation patterns are identified, the editor may request clarification from the authors and may ask authors to revise references where citations are demonstrably irrelevant or unnecessary. Editors should ensure that editorial board membership represents appropriate institutional, disciplinary, and geographical diversity. Editorial appointments should be based on academic expertise, publication record, subject relevance, editorial experience, integrity, and independence. Editors should disclose and appropriately manage conflicts of interest. Manuscripts submitted by editors, editorial board members, or individuals closely associated with the journal must undergo an independent peer-review process and must not receive preferential treatment.
Editorial Conduct
Editors are expected to:
FMDB expects every Editor to uphold the highest standards of academic integrity and ethical publishing while ensuring that every manuscript receives an impartial, rigorous, and timely evaluation.