Corrections, Retractions, and Article Withdrawal

AHRIE (Applied Health Research, Innovation & Education) is committed to the continuing accuracy, transparency, and integrity of the scholarly record. Editorial responsibility does not end when an article is published.

When errors, omissions, or integrity concerns are identified, AHRIE will take the action most appropriate to the nature, seriousness, and impact of the matter. Editorial actions are intended to correct the scientific literature and inform readers, not to publicly punish the individuals involved.

Reporting errors or concerns

Authors, readers, reviewers, institutions, and other interested parties may report possible errors or concerns involving a published article.

The communication should identify:

• the affected article;

• the specific error or concern;

• its location within the article;

• the evidence or sources supporting the communication;

• any possible effect on the results, interpretation, or conclusions.

Authors are required to notify AHRIE immediately of any significant error discovered after publication and to cooperate in correcting it.

Minor corrections

Typographical, spelling, formatting, or presentation errors that do not alter meaning, data, interpretation, attribution, or conclusions may be corrected directly in the electronic version.

When a change is purely technical and does not affect the scientific content, it may be made without a separate formal notice. Minor corrections will not be used to silently alter results, responsibilities, ethical declarations, or substantive information.

Formal corrections

AHRIE will publish a formal correction when an error or omission:

• affects the understanding or interpretation of the article;

• alters important data, calculations, tables, figures, or references;

• requires updated authorship, affiliation, funding, or conflict-of-interest information;

• requires clarification of an ethical, methodological, or data-availability statement;

• does not invalidate the principal findings and conclusions as a whole.

The correction will:

• be published as soon as reasonably possible;

• have a title clearly identifying it as a correction;

• include the complete citation of the original article;

• explain what was changed and why;

• be electronically linked to the original article;

• be included in indexing mechanisms and metadata;

• state the date of the change.

When necessary, a new version of the article will be published. Earlier versions will be archived and clearly marked as having a more recent version. The recommended citation will refer to the latest version.

Academic disagreement, new interpretation, or changes in scientific knowledge do not in themselves constitute errors. They may be addressed through letters, comments, responses, or new publications.

Expression of concern

AHRIE may publish an expression of concern when significant doubts exist about the integrity or reliability of an article but:

• the available evidence is insufficient for a final decision;

• an institutional or external investigation is underway;

• authors or institutions have not provided sufficient information within a reasonable period;

• the outcome of an investigation is unavailable or likely to be substantially delayed;

• readers may use potentially unreliable information while the matter remains unresolved.

The expression of concern will identify the article, explain the general reasons for concern, and be electronically linked to the affected publication.

When sufficient information becomes available, AHRIE will update the record through a correction, retraction, withdrawal of the expression of concern, or another appropriate editorial notice.

Retraction

An article may be retracted when clear evidence shows that its findings or conclusions are unreliable because of serious error or misconduct.

Reasons may include:

• fabrication or falsification of data;

• deceptive manipulation of images, results, or analyses;

• serious calculation, coding, classification, or methodological errors that invalidate the findings or conclusions;

• substantial plagiarism;

• undisclosed duplicate or redundant publication;

• research conducted without required ethics approvals or consent;

• serious violation of participant privacy, confidentiality, or rights;

• manipulation or fraud in the peer-review process;

• unauthorized use of data or materials;

• serious copyright infringement;

• other circumstances making the publication unreliable or ethically unacceptable.

A retraction may be issued even when some or all authors disagree. The final decision rests with the AHRIE editorial team and will be based on the available evidence.

Retraction notice

A retraction notice will:

• be clearly labelled “Retraction”;

• include the article title and complete citation;

• clearly and objectively explain the reason for retraction;

• identify who requested or issued the retraction;

• avoid defamatory, speculative, or unsupported statements;

• be openly accessible;

• have its own record and publication date;

• be electronically linked to the article in both directions.

The retracted article will remain available as part of the scholarly record, but all visible versions will be clearly marked “Retracted.” It will not be removed or concealed merely to avoid reputational consequences.

Retraction with replacement or republication

When a serious, unintentional error substantially changes the findings or conclusions but the underlying research remains valid, AHRIE may consider retraction with replacement or republication.

The corrected version must:

• undergo renewed editorial evaluation and, when appropriate, peer review;

• explain the changes in detail;

• be linked to the retracted version;

• preserve the transparency and traceability of the record.

Withdrawal of a manuscript before publication

Authors may request withdrawal of a manuscript while it is under evaluation or in production.

The request must:

• be submitted by the corresponding author;

• state the reason for withdrawal;

• have the knowledge and approval of all co-authors;

• acknowledge any editorial commitment or unresolved matter.

The manuscript must not be submitted to another journal until AHRIE formally confirms the withdrawal. A request may be examined further when duplicate submission, an authorship dispute, an institutional conflict, or possible misconduct is suspected.

Withdrawal or removal of a published article

Complete removal of a published article will be exceptional. It may be considered only when:

• a valid court order or legal requirement exists;

• the content seriously infringes legal rights and cannot be corrected by other means;

• continued availability creates a serious and immediate risk that cannot be mitigated through a correction, warning, or retraction;

• it discloses confidential or identifiable information whose continued publication causes unjustified harm;

• other exceptional circumstances require restriction of the content.

When the full text is removed, the title, authors, DOI, metadata, and a public page explaining the general reason for removal will be retained whenever legally possible. This preserves the traceability of the record.

Authorship changes

Authorship errors or disputes will be examined under AHRIE’s editorial policies. An authorship change does not normally require retraction when the scientific content remains valid.

Any post-publication change will require an explanation, agreement from the affected individuals, and, when appropriate, a formal correction.

Editorial procedure

Before issuing a substantive correction, expression of concern, or retraction, AHRIE will:

• collect and assess the available evidence;

• request explanations from the authors when possible and appropriate;

• request data, documents, ethics approvals, or other materials when necessary;

• consult independent specialists when required;

• contact institutions, funders, ethics committees, or other competent authorities when appropriate;

• allow the individuals involved to provide relevant information;

• document the decision and its basis.

A lack of response from the authors will not prevent the journal from acting when sufficient evidence exists to protect the scholarly record.

Independence from institutional investigations

AHRIE does not replace institutions or authorities responsible for formally investigating possible research misconduct. The journal may nevertheless take independent editorial action when necessary to inform readers or correct the literature.

AHRIE will seek the outcome of institutional investigations and update the record when relevant information becomes available.

Metadata and indexing services

Corrections, expressions of concern, retractions, and removals will be communicated, whenever possible, to the relevant indexing, DOI registration, preservation, and database services.

Relationships between an article and subsequent notices will be reflected in the metadata to facilitate identification.