Publication Ethics

Author(s) duties
Authors should present an objective discussion of the significance of their research work as well as sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work. Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable. Authors also must ensure that their work is entirely original, and therefore wherever and whenever the work and/or words of others are used, all instances must be appropriately acknowledged. Plagiarism in all its forms constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. Authors should not submit articles describing essentially the same research to more than one journal. The corresponding author should ensure that there is a full consensus of all co-authors in approving the final version of the paper and its submission for publication. Some articles (especially Reviews) may contain figures, tables or text taken from other publications, for which Focus is an Open Access Journal does not hold the copyright or the right to re-license the published material. Please note that the author(s) should inquire with the original copyright holder (usually the original publisher or authors), whether or not this material can be re-used.

Editor(s) duties 
Editors evaluate manuscripts exclusively on the basis of their academic merit. The editor does not use unpublished information in the editor's own research without the express written consent of the author. Whenever ethical complaints are filed concerning a submitted manuscript or published paper, editors must take reasonable action to ensure that proper compliance with ethical standards is restored. 
The editor should evaluate the manuscripts initially without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, citizenship, etc. Submitted information and ideas must be kept confidential and cannot be used for personal advantage or gain. Editors should pass the final acceptance only after discussion with the other managing and co-editors and reviewers based on the compliance, originality, and quality of the article. It is the duty of editors to correct the articles if demand comes from authors. If needed, other appropriate action should be taken at the time of processing of the article. The editor should address and take sufficient steps about ethical complaints to the published data and/or methodologies. Further communications should be made to the corresponding authors.

Reviewer(s) duties
All manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviews should be conducted objectively, and observations should be formulated clearly with supporting arguments so that authors can use them for improving the paper. Any appointed reviewer who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript, or is otherwise aware that a prompt review will be impossible, should notify the editor and step down from the review process. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.

Others
Focus is an Open Access Journal publication ethics and publication malpractice statement are mainly referring to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). The present statement is committed to ensuring publication ethics and quality of articles intended for publication in Focus is an Open Access Journal. Conformance to standards of ethical behavior is therefore expected of all parties involved: authors, editors, reviewers, and publishers. Suggested information for COPE: (1) Guidelines for the Board of Directors of Learned Society Journals; (2) Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing; (3) Code of Conduct of Journal Publisher. Detailed information about COPE, please visit http://publicationethics.org/