Appeals and Complaints Policy

Professional Pedagogics follows the international standards of publication ethics as defined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), as well as the principles of transparency and academic integrity. This policy outlines the procedures for handling appeals against editorial decisions and complaints regarding the publication process.

1. Appeals Against Editorial Decisions

Authors have the right to appeal a rejection decision if they believe it was based on a misinterpretation of facts or procedural errors.

Grounds for Appeal:

  • Substantiated evidence of factual errors by reviewers that significantly impacted the outcome.
  • Evidence of an undisclosed conflict of interest involving a reviewer or editor.
  • Procedural violations by the editorial office (e.g., breach of ethical standards or review protocols).

Procedure:

  • Appeals must be submitted within 30 days of the decision notification.
  • The letter must include a reasoned point-by-point rebuttal of the reviewers' comments without introducing new data into the study.
  • The appeal is reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief or an independent Editorial Board member who was not previously involved in the evaluation of the manuscript.

2. Complaints Policy

This section applies to complaints not directly related to manuscript rejection, such as staff conduct, ethical breaches, or operational issues.

Types of Complaints:

  • Publication ethics violations (plagiarism, data fabrication, redundant publication).
  • Misconduct by editors or reviewers.
  • Significant delays in the peer-review process.
  • Errors in published manuscripts.

Procedure:

  1. Complaints should be sent to the official journal email address.
  2. The editorial office will acknowledge receipt within 5 working days.
  3. An internal investigation will be initiated following COPE guidelines.
  4. If a complaint cannot be resolved internally, it may be escalated to the publisher or an external ethics committee.

3. Finality of Decisions

Decisions made following an appeal or a formal complaint investigation are final. Repeated appeals for the same case will not be considered.