Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy
Jurnal Biolokus recognizes the importance of the ethical and responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted tools in scholarly publishing. This policy outlines the journal’s requirements for authors, reviewers, and editors to ensure transparency, academic integrity, originality, confidentiality, and accountability throughout the publication process. It is adapted from the principles and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and Elsevier.
1. For Authors
Use of AI Tools
Authors may use generative AI and AI-assisted tools to support manuscript preparation, including summarizing literature, identifying research gaps, organizing content, generating ideas, and improving language clarity and readability. Such tools must not replace human critical thinking, scientific expertise, original intellectual contributions, or the authors’ interpretation of research findings.
Authors must carefully review, verify, and edit AI-generated outputs to ensure accuracy, completeness, impartiality, and originality. Authors remain fully responsible for all content submitted for publication, including content produced or modified with AI assistance. AI tools must not be used to fabricate or falsify data, results, references, or research findings.
Authors must also ensure that the use of AI tools does not compromise data privacy, confidentiality, intellectual property, copyright, or publication rights.
Disclosure of AI Use
Authors must disclose the use of generative AI and AI-assisted tools in preparing their manuscripts, including tools used for text generation, image creation, data analysis, coding assistance, or translation. The disclosure must be included in a “Declaration of the Use of AI” section in the manuscript and specify the name of the AI tool, its version (where available), and the purpose of its use. Authors remain fully responsible for reviewing and verifying AI-generated outputs and for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the published content.
Examples of disclosure statements:
“During the preparation of this work, the author(s) used ChatGPT to enhance the clarity of the writing. After using this tool, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take full responsibility for the content of the publication.”
Failure to disclose AI use when required may constitute a breach of publication ethics and may result in editorial action, including rejection or retraction of the article.
Authors who did not use any AI tools in preparing their manuscripts are not required to include a declaration. However, they may voluntarily include the following statement:
“The author(s) affirm that no artificial intelligence (AI) tools were used in the writing, analysis, or preparation of this manuscript.”
AI and Authorship
AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors, nor cited as authors. Authorship is limited to human contributors who meet the journal’s authorship requirements and can take responsibility for their contributions. All listed authors remain accountable for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the submitted manuscript.
Use of AI in Images, Figures, and Artwork
AI tools may be used to support the creation of explanatory images, such as flowcharts, decision trees, timelines, schematic conceptual illustrations, and experimental workflow diagrams, provided that their use is transparent and subject to human oversight.
When AI tools are used to create such images, authors must disclose the tool used, its version where available, and how it was used in the image caption, in addition to the general AI declaration in the manuscript.
AI tools must not be used to fabricate research results, invent or alter underlying data, or generate figures that do not faithfully represent the underlying data and research methods. Data visualizations may be produced with AI assistance only when they are directly derived from the underlying data and generated through reproducible methods clearly described in the Methods section.
AI tools must not be used to create or alter primary research images representing observed or experimental data that were not directly obtained in the research. General-purpose generative AI image tools must not be used to create graphical abstracts. The use of AI in cover artwork may be permitted only with prior approval from the journal and the relevant publisher, where applicable, and with all necessary permissions and attributions secured.
Authors are responsible for the accuracy, originality, attribution, and integrity of all images submitted for publication.
2. For Reviewers
Submitted manuscripts and all related materials must be treated as confidential. Reviewers must not upload submitted manuscripts, any part of them, or associated confidential materials into AI tools, as this may compromise authors’ confidentiality, intellectual property, and data privacy rights.
AI tools must not replace reviewers’ independent scholarly judgment or critical evaluation. Reviewers may use AI tools only in a supportive capacity, such as improving the language and structure of their review reports or conducting background literature searches, provided that confidentiality is maintained and human oversight is exercised.
For such supportive uses, reviewers must use private AI tools that do not retain, reuse, share, or use submitted content to train or improve AI models beyond what is necessary to provide the service. Reviewers must verify the privacy policy and terms of service before using any AI tool.
Reviewers must disclose AI use in their review reports, including the tool used and the purpose of its use. Basic spelling and grammar checks do not require disclosure. Reviewers remain fully responsible for the accuracy, fairness, integrity, and confidentiality of their evaluations.
3. For Editors
Editors are responsible for the editorial assessment and decision-making process. AI tools may support certain editorial tasks but must not replace editors’ critical thinking, independent evaluation, or final decisions. Editors remain fully accountable for editorial decisions and their communication to authors.
Editors may use private AI tools in a supportive capacity for appropriate tasks, such as improving the language or structure of decision letters or conducting background literature searches, provided that manuscript confidentiality is maintained and human oversight is exercised.
Editors must not upload submitted manuscripts or any part of them to external AI tools outside the journal’s authorized editorial systems. Any use of AI must respect authors’ confidentiality, intellectual property, and data privacy rights.
Compliance with This Policy
The editorial team may request clarification or additional information when AI use is suspected to be undisclosed or inconsistent with this policy. Depending on the nature and severity of the case, the journal may request revisions, reject a manuscript, issue a correction, retract a published article, or notify the authors’ affiliated institutions when warranted. Suspected violations will be assessed by human editors in accordance with the journal’s publication ethics procedures and relevant COPE guidance.
Jurnal Biolokus will periodically review this policy to reflect developments in AI technology and scholarly publishing ethics. Authors, reviewers, and editors are expected to comply with the current policy.
indexed by :
