Editorial Policy

A. Publication Criteria

1. SHSS considers the publication of a manuscript that:

· has not been published (partially or as a complete) before or is not under consideration for publication elsewhere

· has been submitted keeping in view the aim and scope of the journal and following the author’s guidelines

2. Submission of a manuscript confirms that the author(s) authorise to publish the same.

3. The author submitting the manuscript will be the corresponding author and will be accountable for certifying that the publication of the manuscript has been approved by all the other co-author(s) and after the publication of the manuscript the author’s dispute of any kind will not be considered and IIAS will not be accountable for the same.

4. The corresponding author will be accountable for ensuring that all contributing co-author(s) are well aware of the publication process and the journal’s editorial and peer-review policy and adhere to the terms & conditions of the journal while signing the undertaking on acceptance of the manuscript.

5. Author(s) will confirm that the accepted manuscript has not been submitted for publication anywhere else, in English or any other language without the written approval of the copyright holder.

6. It is mandatory for the author(s) to confirm and certify that no material submitted as part of a manuscript infringes existing copyrights or the rights of a third party.

7. If a submitted manuscript duplicates or is similar to previous work, authors must provide a sound scientific justification and refer to it. Copied or plagiarised submissions are rejected if authors don’t supply passable validation.

8. The manuscript’s language must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. If required, it is the author's responsibility to improve the linguistic quality.

9. The content of the manuscript based on research must meet all relevant research standards/ethics of experimentation and the research’s integrity.

The journals rigorously peer-review submissions and publish manuscripts that are found to be academically/ technically sound.

B. Agreement for Authorship

Submission of a manuscript to SHSS indicates that the author(s) have agreed on the manuscript’s content. One of the authors, indicated as the corresponding author will be responsible for all communications, together with incorporating suggestions given by the reviewer(s). All communications and proofs will be sent to the corresponding author, who will be regarded as a final representative for all author(s) regarding any decision related to the manuscript.

SHSS would not be accountable for any dispute related to the authorship of a submitted manuscript. Before the article is published, the editor should be notified of any changes to the authorship (e.g., adding or removing one author or authors, or changing the order of the author list) through a letter signed by each author. The corresponding author's undertaking will serve as a ‘certificate of final agreement of authorship’ in case no such

communication is made. Any authorship changes made after the final publication will not be accepted. Further, on acceptance of the manuscript for publication, the author(s) will sign an undertaking provided along with the acceptance letter from the Publication Officer.

C. Conflict of interest

Being transparent about competing commitments, interests, or loyalties is important for an author.