Additional policy details are available in our Instructions to Authors.

Archives of ISPRM upholds the highest standards of editorial integrity, legal compliance, and ethical conduct in scholarly publishing. These policies ensure transparency, accountability, scientific rigor, and protection of the scholarly record.

More specific guidance is provided in the Instructions to Authors and updated periodically in accordance with international best practices (COPE, ICMJE, WAME).

Duplicate Publication, Plagiarism and Fabrication

Archives of ISPRM considers only original manuscripts that have not been published elsewhere, either wholly or substantially, in any language. Submitted work must not be under consideration at another journal. Conference abstracts and presentations to academic societies are exceptions. Submitting the same manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously violates our policy and may result in manuscript rejection or temporary suspension of submission privileges. Serious misconduct may be reported to the author's institution or relevant disciplinary authorities.

Previously Published Material

• Written permission from the original publisher is required for any previously published material, including text, figures, and tables.
• Authors are responsible for obtaining permissions and covering any associated fees.
• The original source must be clearly cited in the text and figure/table legends.
• Permissions must cover all formats (print and digital) without time restrictions.

Plagiarism and Self-Plagiarism

• Plagiarism—presenting others' work as your own—is unacceptable.
• Self-plagiarism—reusing your own previously published content without proper citation—is equally prohibited.
• All authors share responsibility for manuscript integrity, and senior authors should particularly oversee contributions from junior collaborators.
• Any inadvertent errors regarding plagiarism or duplicate publication should be reported to the editorial office promptly.

Investigation and Consequences

• All submissions may be checked using plagiarism-detection software as part of the editorial evaluation.
• Suspected plagiarism is investigated in accordance with COPE guidelines.
• Confirmed cases may result in notifications to authors, institutions, funding agencies, and original publishers.
• Depending on the severity, published articles may receive public statements or be formally retracted.

For guidance on overlapping publications, authors should refer to the ICMJE recommendations.

Misconduct Investigation and Outcomes

Cases of suspected misconduct are handled in accordance with Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines.

Possible outcomes include:

• Author notification and request for explanation
• Reporting to affiliated institutions or funding agencies
• Formal correction, expression of concern, or retraction
• Banning of authors from future submission for defined periods

Severity determines the action taken, and the journal retains full discretion in applying corrective measures.

Preprint Policy

Archives of ISPRM recognizes that preprint servers are an important channel for the early dissemination of research findings. We welcome submissions of manuscripts previously posted on recognized preprint servers, such as medRxiv, bioRxiv, OSF Preprints, or similar platforms.

Preprint manuscripts will be considered for publication if they provide meaningful scientific contributions to the field of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. The editorial team evaluates each submission on its individual merits, including originality, methodological rigor, and relevance to our readership.

Author Responsibilities for Preprinted Manuscripts

• Disclose the preprint server and DOI in the cover letter.
• Update the preprint record upon journal publication to link to the final version.
• Incorporate any improvements based on community feedback before submission.

Posting a manuscript to a preprint server does not constitute prior publication and will not affect consideration by the journal. Manuscripts that have already undergone formal peer review and publication in another journal remain ineligible.

Image Integrity and Data Presentation

Visual elements must be clearly labeled, consistently oriented, and sequentially numbered. Photographs should maintain uniform size, positioning, and lighting conditions. While image editing software may be used for legitimate purposes such as assembling multi-panel figures, removing scanning artifacts, or cropping, manipulation that alters or misrepresents results is strictly prohibited.

Conflict of Interest

Transparency in scientific reporting requires disclosure of all potential conflicts. Each author must disclose funding sources and any financial interests related to the manuscript at submission. Authors must report funding sources, grants and research support, consultancies or advisory roles, paid expert testimony, equity interests, stock options, or patents, royalties or licensing agreements, employment relationships, and honoraria or travel support. This information is mandatory for all submissions.

Correction and Retraction Policy

Archives of ISPRM is committed to maintaining an accurate scholarly record. Published content represents the permanent record and cannot be altered; therefore, necessary changes must appear as formal corrections.

Corrections are published online and in subsequent issues with bidirectional links to the original article. These updates are transmitted to indexing services and databases. We consider corrections that affect the publication record, scientific integrity, or author or journal reputation. Minor errors such as typographical mistakes may not warrant formal correction.

Retractions occur when results are invalid or ethical standards have been breached, including substantiated plagiarism or undisclosed conflicts. All authors must sign retraction statements explaining the error and its impact on conclusions. The Editor makes final decisions on corrections and retractions, consulting authors and independent reviewers when coauthors disagree. Dissenting positions are noted in correction notices.

We follow COPE Retraction Guidelines.

Publication Charges

Archives of ISPRM is a peer-reviewed open access journal. Article processing charges (APCs) are currently waived allowing authors to publish without cost while ensuring global free access to their work. This waiver ensures that every accepted manuscript is made freely and permanently accessible worldwide, without subscription or paywall restrictions, while authors retain full copyright under our open-access license. All editorial, production, and archiving expenses are currently supported by the journal and its partners, ensuring that high-quality research in the field of PRM can reach a global readership without imposing financial obligations on authors.

We will update this policy as we establish additional archiving partnerships to further ensure content preservation.