Plagiarism Policy

Plagiarism Policy

Originality, Similarity Screening, and Publication Integrity of NADI: Journal of Health Sciences

NADI: Journal of Health Sciences is committed to maintaining originality, academic integrity, and ethical standards in scholarly publication. All manuscripts submitted to the journal must represent original scholarly work and must appropriately acknowledge ideas, data, text, images, tables, figures, methods, and other materials originating from previously published or unpublished sources.

All submitted manuscripts are subject to similarity screening as part of the editorial assessment. The journal applies a maximum overall similarity threshold of 20%. However, similarity percentage is used as a screening indicator and is not, by itself, considered definitive evidence of plagiarism.

Similarity Threshold
≤ 20%
Maximum Overall Similarity Score

A similarity score within this threshold does not automatically guarantee that a manuscript is free from plagiarism or eligible for publication. The editorial team evaluates the similarity report substantively, including the location, source, pattern, and nature of matched material.

1. Originality Requirement

Authors submitting manuscripts to NADI: Journal of Health Sciences must ensure that their work is original and has not been copied, reproduced, translated, duplicated, or substantially derived from the work of other authors without appropriate acknowledgement.

Authors are responsible for properly citing and referencing all sources used in the manuscript. Direct quotations, adapted materials, data, concepts, instruments, figures, tables, and other intellectual contributions originating from another source must be acknowledged according to appropriate scholarly conventions.

2. Similarity Screening

Manuscripts submitted to the journal are subject to similarity screening before proceeding through the publication process. Screening may be conducted during the initial editorial evaluation and may be repeated when considered necessary.

The similarity screening is intended to identify:

  • Unattributed copying of text or ideas.
  • Inappropriate paraphrasing.
  • Duplicate or redundant publication.
  • Excessive reuse of previously published material.
  • Potential self-plagiarism.
  • Translation plagiarism.
  • Substantial textual overlap with one or more sources.
  • Other patterns of inappropriate similarity requiring editorial investigation.

3. Maximum Similarity of 20%

NADI: Journal of Health Sciences applies an overall similarity threshold of no more than 20% for submitted manuscripts.

Similarity Result Editorial Treatment
≤ 20% The manuscript may proceed to further editorial assessment when the matched content is appropriately cited and no substantive plagiarism, inappropriate duplication, or other integrity problem is identified.
> 20% The manuscript does not meet the journal's similarity threshold and may be returned to the authors for substantial revision or rejected when the similarity indicates plagiarism, excessive duplication, or another serious publication-integrity concern.

Important: A manuscript with an overall similarity score below 20% may still be rejected when substantial continuous text, ideas, data, figures, tables, or other material from a particular source has been reproduced without proper attribution. Conversely, the similarity report must be interpreted carefully because legitimate quotations, references, technical terminology, standardized methodological expressions, and other properly acknowledged material may contribute to the similarity score.

4. Similarity Is Not the Same as Plagiarism

A similarity score measures textual matching between a submitted manuscript and materials available in the comparison database. It does not automatically establish whether plagiarism has occurred.

The editorial team therefore examines the similarity report in context. Particular attention is given to the source of matching material, the length and continuity of matching text, appropriate citation and quotation, reuse of previously published work, and whether the similarity affects the originality and integrity of the manuscript.

5. Forms of Plagiarism

The journal recognizes that plagiarism may occur in different forms. The following practices are inconsistent with the publication standards of NADI: Journal of Health Sciences.

Form Description
Direct Plagiarism Reproducing words, sentences, paragraphs, data, or other material from another source without proper acknowledgement.
Self-Plagiarism Reusing substantial portions of an author's own previously published material without appropriate disclosure, citation, or justification.
Mosaic Plagiarism Combining phrases or structures from existing sources with minor wording changes while retaining the original source's substantive expression without proper acknowledgement.
Inappropriate Paraphrasing Rewriting another author's work with limited changes while failing to acknowledge the original source appropriately.
Translation Plagiarism Translating material from another language and presenting it as original work without appropriate citation.
Accidental Plagiarism Failure to cite or acknowledge a source appropriately because of incorrect referencing, inappropriate paraphrasing, or other unintentional errors. Authors remain responsible for correcting such problems.

6. Duplicate and Redundant Publication

Authors must not submit a manuscript that has already been published or is simultaneously under consideration by another journal. Submitting substantially the same research to more than one journal constitutes a serious publication-integrity concern.

Changing the title, author order, language, wording, or presentation of a previously published manuscript does not make the work a new and original publication when the underlying scientific content is substantially the same.

7. Reuse of Authors' Previous Work

Authors may refer to their own previously published research when scientifically necessary, but previous work must be cited and distinguished clearly from the new contribution presented in the submitted manuscript.

Excessive reuse of previously published text, data, results, figures, tables, or analyses without transparent disclosure may be treated as self-plagiarism or redundant publication.

8. Similarity Screening Procedure

Step Stage Action
1 Submission The manuscript is submitted through the journal's online system.
2 Similarity Check The manuscript is examined using similarity-detection software as part of the editorial screening process.
3 Report Evaluation The editorial team assesses the overall percentage together with individual matched sources and patterns of overlap.
4 Editorial Assessment The Editor determines whether the matched material is legitimate, properly acknowledged, requires revision, or constitutes a potential ethical violation.
5 Editorial Action The manuscript proceeds to peer review, is returned for revision, is rejected, or is investigated further depending on the findings.

9. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors bear primary responsibility for the originality and integrity of their manuscripts. Before submission, authors should carefully review the manuscript to ensure that all borrowed ideas, text, data, figures, tables, and other materials are properly acknowledged.

  • Use original scholarly language wherever possible.
  • Cite all sources accurately and consistently.
  • Use quotation marks and citations when direct quotations are necessary.
  • Avoid inappropriate paraphrasing.
  • Cite relevant previous publications by the same authors.
  • Disclose related or overlapping publications where relevant.
  • Do not submit the same manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously.
  • Cooperate with editorial requests for clarification or revision regarding similarity concerns.

10. Responsibilities of Editors and Reviewers

Editors evaluate similarity reports and determine appropriate editorial action based on the nature, extent, location, and context of the matched material rather than relying solely on a numerical similarity score.

Peer reviewers are also encouraged to alert the Editor when they identify substantial similarity, duplicated data, unattributed ideas, previously published figures, or other potential plagiarism that may not have been sufficiently identified during the initial screening process.

11. Editorial Actions for Similarity and Plagiarism

Finding Possible Editorial Action
Acceptable Similarity The manuscript may continue to editorial assessment and peer review when the similarity is legitimate and appropriately acknowledged.
Correctable Similarity The manuscript may be returned to the authors for rewriting, improved paraphrasing, citation correction, or other necessary revision.
Similarity Above 20% The manuscript may be returned for substantial revision or rejected depending on the nature and extent of the overlap.
Serious Plagiarism The manuscript may be rejected and further publication-ethics procedures may be initiated when appropriate.

12. Plagiarism Identified After Publication

Allegations of plagiarism involving an article that has already been published will be evaluated according to the journal's publication ethics procedures. The journal will assess the available evidence and may request clarification or supporting information from the authors.

Depending on the nature and seriousness of the problem, post-publication action may include correction, clarification, publication of an appropriate notice, expression of concern, or retraction.

When an article requires retraction, the scholarly record and relevant metadata will be preserved and the publication will be clearly identified as retracted rather than simply removed from the journal archive.

13. Artificial Intelligence and Originality

The use of generative Artificial Intelligence or AI-assisted technologies does not transfer responsibility for originality from the authors. Authors remain fully responsible for ensuring that AI-assisted content does not contain plagiarism, fabricated citations, unattributed material, inaccurate information, or inappropriate reproduction of copyrighted content.

Use of AI tools must comply with the journal's policy on Artificial Intelligence and must be disclosed when required.

Plagiarism Policy Summary

Originality → Similarity Screening → Editorial Evaluation → Decision
Maximum Similarity 20%
Assessment Method Similarity report and substantive editorial evaluation
≤ 20% May proceed when no substantive plagiarism or inappropriate overlap is identified
> 20% Revision or rejection depending on the nature and extent of similarity
Serious Plagiarism Rejection or appropriate publication-ethics action
Post-Publication Case Correction, notice, expression of concern, or retraction as appropriate

NADI: Journal of Health Sciences maintains a maximum similarity threshold of 20% while recognizing that responsible plagiarism assessment requires substantive editorial judgment. The journal therefore does not determine originality solely from a numerical similarity score and reserves the right to request revision or reject a manuscript whenever inappropriate textual overlap, unattributed intellectual content, duplicate publication, or other violations of publication integrity are identified.

Publication Ethics Reference

Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)

https://publicationethics.org/