Policy on Ethical Conduct of Research Involving Human Participants and Animals

Jinnah Business Review (JBR) endorses the principles and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). We are committed to ensuring that all research we publish is conducted to the highest ethical standards. This policy mandates that research involving human participants or animals must have been performed with appropriate ethical oversight, informed consent, and respect for the subjects' welfare.

1. Research Involving Human Participants

For any manuscript reporting research involving human participants (e.g., surveys, interviews, experiments, observational studies), authors must comply with the following:

1.1. Ethical Approval:

The research must have been approved by an appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Independent Ethics Committee (IEC). The approval must be obtained before the research commences.

1.2. Informed Consent:

A process of informed consent must have been obtained from all participating human subjects. For research involving vulnerable groups, special care must be documented. The consent process should be clearly described in the manuscript.

1.3. Data Anonymity and Confidentiality:

Authors must explicitly state that all data collected from participants have been anonymized to protect their identities. Confidentiality of non-anonymized data must be maintained in accordance with relevant data protection regulations.

2. Research Involving Animals

For any manuscript reporting research involving vertebrate animals or higher-order invertebrates, authors must comply with the following:

2.1. Ethical Approval:

The research must have been approved by an appropriate Animal Ethics Committee or Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).

2.2. Humane Treatment:

Authors must confirm that the study was conducted in accordance with relevant national and international guidelines for the humane treatment of animals, such as the NIH Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals or the European Directive 2010/63/EU.

3. Mandatory Declaration in the Manuscript

To ensure transparency, all manuscripts reporting such research must include a dedicated "Ethical Declaration" or "Statement of Ethical Approval" section in the manuscript, typically placed before the 'References' section.

This statement must include:

a) The name and location of the ethics committee(s) that provided approval.

b) The protocol number or reference number of the ethical approval.

c) For human subjects research: A statement confirming that informed consent was obtained from all participants.

d) For animal research: A statement confirming adherence to relevant animal welfare guidelines.

Examples of Statements:

For Human Subjects Research:

Ethical Approval: This study was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of [University Name], under approval number [Protocol Number/ID]. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants involved in the study.

For Animal Research:

Ethical Approval: All procedures involving animals were conducted in accordance with the ethical standards of the institution and were approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of [University Name], under protocol number [Protocol Number/ID]. The study was performed in compliance with the [e.g., National Research Council's Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals].

For Research Exempt from Approval:

Ethical Approval: This study was deemed exempt from ethical approval by the [Name of Ethics Committee] of [Institution Name] on [Date]. The exemption was granted because [provide a brief, clear reason, e.g., "the research involved anonymous surveys where the risk to participants was minimal"]. All participants provided informed consent.

4. Submission Compliance

During the manuscript submission process, authors will be required to:

a) Confirm that they have adhered to the ethical standards outlined in this policy.

b) Provide the name of the approving ethics committee and the approval number.

c) Upload the ethical approval letter as a supplementary file, if requested by the editors.

5. Non-Compliance

Failure to provide adequate ethical statements or evidence of approval will result in the manuscript being rejected or, if discovered post-publication, retracted. JBR follows COPE flowcharts for handling cases of suspected ethical misconduct.

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This policy is based on the COPE core practices, specifically those concerning 'Ethical Oversight' and 'Human and Animal Subjects Research'. JBR is dedicated to upholding the welfare of research subjects and the integrity of the scientific record.

For any queries regarding ethical compliance, please contact the editorial office at:

jbr@jinnah.edu.pk