Publication Ethics

Authorship and Contributorship
All submissions with multiple authors must include a statement detailing each author’s contribution, preferably using the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) framework. Each author must have played a significant role in the conception, development, or articulation of the manuscript. Changes to authorship are only allowed during the peer-review process and require written justification and approval by the handling Senior Editor.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools
AI tools cannot be credited as authors or co-authors, as they are not legal entities and cannot assume responsibility or accountability for the work. They also cannot manage conflicts of interest or copyright agreements. If AI tools were used in the preparation of a submission, this must be clearly disclosed as outlined in the Author Guidelines (Submission Checklist).

Conflicts of Interest / Competing Interests
All authors must disclose any financial, institutional, or personal relationships that could create potential biases or have inappropriately influenced the content of the work.

Data Sharing and Reproducibility
When a submission is based on empirical data, authors must be prepared—if requested by the handling Senior Editor—to grant limited access to the data, sufficient to assess the validity of the methods used.

Ethical Oversight
The journal is committed to values of diversity, inclusion, and equitable treatment. Authors, editors, and reviewers are expected to uphold these values. Ethical concerns may be brought to the attention of the Editor-in-Chief or the GWS Senior Advisory Board. These bodies will work to clarify the issue and ensure proper documentation of the case.

Inclusive Language
Authors must ensure that their submissions do not reinforce dominant assumptions, stereotypes, or exclusionary language. Inclusive language should be used to address issues such as age, gender, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, disability, or health conditions. Gender-neutral and respectful language regarding personal attributes is expected. This policy also applies to editors, reviewers, board members, and all others involved in the journal’s operation.

Intellectual Property and Peer Review Ethics
The journal values creativity and integrity in scholarly work. It supports open peer review to minimize bias, prevent ghostwriting, recognize all contributors, and discourage unethical practices in academic publishing.

Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections
The journal encourages thoughtful, respectful discourse around published content. Editors may invite commentaries or initiate exchanges in response to published work. Corrections of factual errors will be published when identified. Authors who identify errors in their published work should contact the Editor-in-Chief to request a correction. The original published version remains unchanged, but a correction notice will be issued and linked accordingly.