👥 Authorship Policy
GSC Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences (GSCBPS) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and accountability in scientific publishing. Authorship should accurately reflect the individuals who have made substantial intellectual contributions to a research study and who accept responsibility for the integrity, accuracy, and reliability of the published work.
This Authorship Policy outlines the journal's requirements for determining authorship, identifying corresponding authors, acknowledging contributors, managing authorship changes, and resolving authorship disputes. The policy is intended to promote ethical research practices while ensuring that appropriate credit is given to all eligible contributors.
All authors submitting manuscripts to GSCBPS are expected to read, understand, and comply with this policy before manuscript submission.
📖 Principles of Authorship
Authorship should be based on meaningful intellectual contributions to the research rather than on academic position, institutional affiliation, funding support, or professional status. Every listed author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the content of the manuscript.
Individuals who do not meet the journal's authorship criteria should not be listed as authors but may be acknowledged appropriately for their contributions.
✅ Authorship Criteria
To qualify as an author, an individual should normally satisfy all of the following criteria:
- ✅ Made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, data collection, data analysis, or interpretation of the research.
- ✅ Participated in drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content.
- ✅ Reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript before submission.
- ✅ Agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the published work and to cooperate in resolving questions related to its accuracy or integrity.
Meeting only one of these requirements is generally not sufficient for authorship.
🚫 Contributions That Alone Do Not Qualify for Authorship
The following activities, when performed independently, do not normally justify authorship:
- ❌ Providing financial support only.
- ❌ General supervision of a research group.
- ❌ Administrative assistance.
- ❌ Technical assistance without intellectual contribution.
- ❌ Language editing or proofreading only.
- ❌ Routine data collection without participation in study design or interpretation.
- ❌ Providing laboratory space, equipment, or routine resources alone.
Individuals who contribute in these ways may be acknowledged in the manuscript, provided their permission has been obtained where appropriate.
👨💼 Responsibilities of the Corresponding Author
The corresponding author serves as the primary contact between the journal and all co-authors throughout the submission, peer-review, publication, and post-publication processes.
The corresponding author is responsible for:
- 📧 Ensuring that all eligible contributors are included as authors.
- 📄 Confirming that all authors have reviewed and approved the submitted manuscript.
- 📝 Managing communication with the Editorial Office.
- ⚖️ Ensuring compliance with the journal's ethical policies.
- 🔍 Coordinating responses to reviewer comments.
- 📚 Verifying the accuracy of author names, affiliations, and contact information.
👥 Order of Authors
The sequence of authors should be determined collectively by all contributing authors before manuscript submission. The order should accurately reflect the relative intellectual contributions of each author according to the conventions of their discipline or mutual agreement among the research team.
GSCBPS does not prescribe a universal method for determining author order. Responsibility for establishing and approving the authorship sequence rests entirely with the authors.
🤝 Equal Contribution
Where two or more authors have contributed equally to the research, authors may indicate equal contribution by including an appropriate statement in the manuscript at the time of submission.
Such statements should be agreed upon by all authors before submission and accurately describe the nature of the shared contribution.
🙏 Acknowledgements
Individuals who contributed to the research but do not satisfy the journal's authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately rather than listed as authors.
Examples include:
- 🙏 Technical assistance.
- 📊 Statistical consultation.
- 📝 Language editing.
- 🔬 Laboratory support.
- 💰 Funding acquisition.
- 🏢 Administrative assistance.
- 📚 General supervision.
Authors should obtain permission from acknowledged individuals before including their names in the manuscript.
🔄 Changes to Authorship
Requests to add, remove, or rearrange authors after manuscript submission should be exceptional and must be supported by an appropriate explanation.
Any request for an authorship change should include:
- 📄 A written explanation describing the reason for the requested change.
- ✍️ Written confirmation from all listed authors agreeing to the proposed modification.
- 👤 Written consent from any author being added or removed.
The Editorial Office may request additional documentation before approving an authorship change. Requests received after publication will be evaluated in accordance with the journal's publication ethics policies and may require the publication of a formal correction where appropriate.
⚖️ Authorship Disputes
GSCBPS expects authorship issues to be resolved by the authors and their institutions before manuscript submission. The Editorial Office is not responsible for determining individual contributions or resolving disputes regarding authorship ownership.
If an authorship dispute arises during editorial assessment or after publication, the journal may suspend the review or publication process until the matter has been resolved by the authors or the relevant institution.
Where necessary, the journal may request supporting documentation or institutional investigation before proceeding with editorial decisions.
🚫 Ghost, Guest and Gift Authorship
GSCBPS strongly discourages unethical authorship practices that undermine scientific integrity.
| Practice | Description |
|---|---|
| Ghost Authorship | Excluding an individual who made a substantial contribution from the list of authors. |
| Guest Authorship | Including a well-known individual who made little or no meaningful contribution. |
| Gift Authorship | Granting authorship as a favour or professional courtesy without meeting authorship criteria. |
These practices are inconsistent with responsible scholarly publishing and may result in editorial action.
🤖 Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Authorship
Artificial intelligence tools may assist authors with language improvement, formatting, or preliminary drafting. However, AI systems cannot be listed as authors because they cannot accept responsibility for the integrity, originality, or accuracy of published scientific work.
Authors remain fully responsible for all content submitted to GSCBPS, including any material generated or assisted by artificial intelligence technologies. Where AI tools have been used substantially during manuscript preparation, authors should disclose their use in accordance with the journal's editorial policies.
📜 Responsibility After Publication
All authors continue to share responsibility for the published article after publication. If significant errors, ethical concerns, or inaccuracies are identified, authors are expected to cooperate promptly with the Editorial Office to investigate the matter and implement any necessary corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions.
📌 Authorship Reflects Responsibility
Authorship is both a recognition of scholarly contribution and an acceptance of responsibility for the published work. GSCBPS encourages accurate attribution of contributions, transparent collaboration, and adherence to internationally accepted standards of publication ethics to maintain the integrity of the scientific record.
⚠️ Policy Violations
GSC Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences (GSCBPS) takes authorship integrity seriously. Any suspected breach of this Authorship Policy may be investigated in accordance with the journal's Publication Ethics Policy and established editorial procedures. The Editorial Office reserves the right to request supporting documentation, clarification from authors, or confirmation from the relevant institution where necessary.
Examples of situations that may require editorial investigation include:
- ❌ False or misleading authorship declarations.
- ❌ Undisclosed ghost, guest, or gift authorship.
- ❌ Unauthorized addition or removal of authors.
- ❌ Disputes regarding author contributions.
- ❌ Submission without the knowledge or consent of all listed authors.
- ❌ Falsification of author affiliations or contributor information.
- ❌ Misrepresentation of contributions made by artificial intelligence or third parties.
Where evidence indicates a serious breach of publication ethics, the journal may suspend editorial processing, reject the manuscript, publish corrections, issue an Expression of Concern, retract the article, or notify the relevant institution or funding organization when appropriate.
📋 Author Responsibilities Before Submission
Before submitting a manuscript, all authors should confirm that they have fulfilled the journal's authorship requirements and collectively agree to the submission.
| Author Checklist | Status |
|---|---|
| Substantial intellectual contribution to the research | ✅ |
| Participated in manuscript preparation or critical revision | ✅ |
| Approved the final manuscript | ✅ |
| Agreed to be accountable for the published work | ✅ |
| Reviewed author order and affiliations | ✅ |
| Approved the corresponding author designation | ✅ |
| Disclosed conflicts of interest where applicable | ✅ |
| Read the journal's publication ethics policies | ✅ |
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Who qualifies as an author?
An author is an individual who has made substantial intellectual contributions to the research, participated in manuscript preparation or critical revision, approved the final manuscript, and agrees to be accountable for the published work.
Can funding or supervision alone justify authorship?
No. Providing financial support, administrative supervision, laboratory facilities, or general oversight alone does not normally qualify an individual for authorship.
Can authors be added after submission?
Changes to authorship after submission are considered only in exceptional circumstances and require written agreement from all affected authors together with an appropriate explanation.
Can AI tools be listed as authors?
No. Artificial intelligence systems cannot be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility or accountability for scientific work. Human authors remain fully responsible for all submitted content.
How should contributors who do not qualify as authors be recognized?
Individuals who contributed technical assistance, language editing, funding support, administrative assistance, or similar contributions should normally be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section rather than listed as authors.
What happens if an authorship dispute occurs?
The journal may suspend editorial processing while the authors or their institution resolve the dispute. Additional documentation may be requested before editorial decisions are made.
Can the corresponding author represent all authors?
Yes. The corresponding author is responsible for communicating with the Editorial Office and confirming that all listed authors have approved the manuscript and agreed to its submission.