NWSA Academic Journals is committed to ensuring that all published scientific work adheres to the highest ethical standards. This commitment is primarily fulfilled under the guidance of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) principles and flowcharts. A. Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) and Ethical Responsibility NWSA Academic Journals strictly adheres to the principles of scientific integrity and transparency. The Journal enforces the following rules regarding the use of Generative AI (GenAI) tools (e.g., Large Language Models – LLMs). 1. Author and Authorship Responsibility • Author Criteria and GenAI: GenAI tools can NEVER be listed as an author or co-author of a manuscript. GenAI cannot assume the responsibility and accountability typically associated with authorship. • Ultimate Responsibility: Regardless of the GenAI output used, the sole and ultimate responsibility for the output’s accuracy, originality, and adherence to scientific standards rests entirely with the authors. 2. Transparency of Use and Mandatory Declaration • Declaration Section: Authors who use GenAI tools must clearly and in detail state this use in the “Acknowledgements” section at the end of the manuscript. • Supportive Use Examples: GenAI tools may only be used for supportive purposes such as language and grammar correction, summarization, or translation. 3. Scientific Misconduct Warning • Using fabricated sources ("hallucinations") generated by AI that cannot be verified will be considered scientific misconduct. • Undeclared GenAI use or GenAI-generated text that constitutes plagiarism will lead to the direct rejection of the manuscript or retraction if published. B. Responsibilities and Policies of Editors • Publication Decision and Responsibility: Editors make the publication decision while considering the scientific validity and scope appropriateness of the manuscript, as well as current legal requirements concerning defamation, copyright infringement, and plagiarism. • Fairness and Impartiality: Manuscripts are evaluated solely on their academic merit, without regard to the personal characteristics of the authors. • Confidentiality and Disclosure: Editors are obliged to keep all manuscript information confidential and must not use unpublished material for their own research without the written consent of the author. Furthermore, they are responsible for protecting the personal data of authors, reviewers, and readers. • Conflicts of Interest (COI): Editors will withdraw from the editorial process in situations of COI that could compromise their impartiality. Editors ensure that the publication process is completed independently and impartially, considering any COIs among the author(s), reviewers, and other editors. • Complaints: Editors are obliged to carefully investigate and respond to complaints from authors, reviewers, or readers in an illuminating and explanatory manner. • Ensuring Publication Integrity: Editors ensure that errors, inconsistencies, or misleading judgments within published works are corrected promptly. C. Responsibilities of Reviewers • Review System: Our journal implements a Double-Blind Peer Review system, where the identities of both the author and the reviewer are mutually concealed. • Objectivity and Constructiveness: Reviewer evaluations must be objective, based on scientific evidence, and avoid personal criticism. • Protection of Confidentiality: Reviewers are obliged to keep documents under review confidential. • Detection of Conflicts of Interest: Reviewers must inform the Editors and withdraw from the process if a COI exists or if they lack sufficient expertise. • Identification of Sources: Reviewers should identify relevant unpublished works that are not cited and inform the Editors if they notice any substantial similarity between the manuscript and other published works. D. Fundamental Ethical Responsibilities of Authors 1. Originality, Plagiarism, and Multiple Publication • Originality and Plagiarism: Plagiarism, including self-plagiarism, is a serious ethical violation. Authors are expected to submit original work. Authors must properly and accurately cite and/or quote other works when utilizing or referencing them. Authors may not submit their work simultaneously to more than one journal. A new submission can only be initiated after the completion of the previous one. Work that has been published and/or rejected by another journal cannot be submitted to NWSA Academic Journals. • Third-Party Material Permission: Authors must obtain the necessary written permission before using any copyrighted material (text, image, data). • Redundant Publication and Licensing: If published, the article will be distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, which protects the author's copyright and grants other users the right to free use and distribution. • Responsibility: The complete responsibility for all ethical, plagiarism, content, legal, and other issues arising from the article's content belongs entirely to the author(s). • Similarity Rate: The maximum acceptable similarity rate for manuscripts is 20%. 2. Authorship and Contribution Statement • Authorship Criteria: Authorship is limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the study. A proposal to change author responsibilities (e.g., adding, removing, or changing the order of authors) for a work that has entered the evaluation process cannot be accepted. • Author Contribution Declaration: The Corresponding Author must clearly declare the specific contributions of all authors in the final section of the manuscript. • Approval: All authors must have approved the final version of the manuscript and consented to its submission for publication. 3. Data, Funding, and Conflict of Interest • Data Access and Retention: Authors must ensure that data remains accessible for at least ten years after publication, provided legal rights and confidentiality are protected. • Conflict of Interest Declaration: Authors must clearly declare all financial or personal COIs (grants, business relationships, personal/ideological ties, etc.) related to their work. 4. Ethics Committee Approvals and Manipulation • Ethics Committee Approvals: In research involving human or animal subjects, the details of the relevant Ethics Committee Approval document must be stated, and compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki must be declared for studies involving human subjects. • Data and Image Manipulation: Data fabrication or image/data manipulation is unacceptable. • Citation Policy and Manipulation: Authors should avoid excessive self-citation or reciprocal citation arrangements that may constitute citation manipulation. E. Publication Misconduct Procedures and Retraction Policy Our journal diligently investigates all suspicions of publication ethics misconduct in accordance with COPE Flowcharts. 1. Investigation and Process: All misconduct claims are handled seriously, an investigation is initiated by the Editor, and evidence is gathered. 2. Categories of Violation and Consequences: • Minor Violations: Resolved through internal methods such as a warning letter. • Serious Violations: May require official notification to the author's/reviewer's employer or funding body. • Ultimate Consequences: Formal Retraction of the work or imposing an embargo (ban) on the individual concerned from contributing for a specified period. 3. Correction and Clarification: • Author Error Correction: Published to correct an author's error. • Journal Error Correction: Published to correct an error by the journal/publisher. • Editorial Expression of Concern: Published to inform the reader while an investigation is ongoing. 4. Post-Publication Author Name Change Policy: Author name changes in published articles (due to reasons such as gender transition, marital status change, etc.) will be made without the need for any formal documentation, correction notice, or notification to other authors, to protect the author's privacy. F. Relationship with the Journal Owner and Publisher The relationship between the Editors and the Publisher is based on the principle of editorial independence. As stipulated by the written agreement between the Editors and the Publisher, all decisions made by the Editors are independent of the Publisher and the journal owner. If you encounter unethical behavior or content beyond the ethical responsibilities mentioned above, please report it via email to nwsa.akademi@hotmail.com. G. Legal Disclaimer Neither NWSA Academic Journals nor any person acting on its behalf can be held responsible for the use of information contained in published articles or for errors that may occur despite careful preparation and control. H. Legal Provisions The Courts of [Samsun, Turkiye] are authorized for all legal disputes arising from this publication ethics statement.