Research Ethics Policy
Research Ethics Policy
1. Governing Framework
This policy is grounded in the principles of COPE, the Declaration of Helsinki, and applicable Ethiopian and international research ethics frameworks. It applies to all submissions, reviewers, and editors.
2. Human Participants Research
All research involving human participants must have received prior approval from a recognized Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Research Ethics Committee (REC). The manuscript must state the name of the approving body and the approval reference number in the Methods section. Informed consent — written where feasible, documented oral consent otherwise — must have been obtained from all participants or their legal guardians.
3. Confidentiality and Anonymization
Authors must ensure that participants cannot be identified from the data reported. Where complete anonymization is not possible (e.g., case studies, oral histories, community-based research), written consent for disclosure must be obtained and confirmed in the manuscript.
4. Dual-Use Research
Research that could potentially be misused to cause harm — including sensitive historical, political, or sociological studies — must include a statement from the authors addressing the risks and steps taken to mitigate them. The Editorial Board reserves the right to seek independent ethical review of any submission that raises dual-use concerns.
5. Use of AI in Research
Authors must disclose in the Methods section any use of AI-based tools in data collection, analysis, or interpretation. If AI was used in manuscript writing or editing, this must be disclosed in the Author Contributions section. The corresponding author assumes full responsibility for the accuracy and integrity of AI-assisted content. See “Policy on Artificial Intelligence and LLMs” for full details.
6. Archival, Secondary, and Community Data
Research drawing on archival records, administrative databases, or data collected by third parties must comply with the terms under which that data was made available. Authors must obtain permission where required and cite the data source in accordance with APA 7th Edition. Community-sourced data must be handled in accordance with “Indigenous Knowledge Policy”.
7. Ethical Review Waiver
For research that does not involve human participants or sensitive data (e.g., purely documentary analysis, secondary analysis of fully anonymized datasets), authors may state 'Ethical review not required' and provide a brief justification. The Editor-in-Chief has the authority to request a formal ethics review if the justification is deemed insufficient.
MANDATORY ETHICS STATEMENT: All manuscripts must include an Ethics Statement in the Methods section regardless of whether formal IRB approval was required. Manuscripts submitted without an ethics statement will be returned without review.