Editorial policies

Below, you will find the Editorial Policies of the Brazilian Journal of Health Research (RBPS). These guidelines aim to ensure transparency, integrity, and equity in all stages of the editorial process, from manuscript submission to final publication. We recommend a careful reading to understand the principles, responsibilities, and commitments that guide our editorial practices.

Journal Management and Structure

The RBPS operates under an independent editorial model, supported by an efficient infrastructure to ensure continuous operations and uphold the quality of the publication process.

  • Editorial independence: The journal is managed independently by the Health Sciences Center of the Federal University of Espírito Santo, and all editorial decisions are made autonomously, based solely on scientific merit.
  • Team training and development: The Editorial Board and staff receive ongoing training, including regular workshops and online sessions on best publishing practices, editorial software usage, and the resolution of ethical dilemmas.
  • Management processes: The journal employs editorial management systems to monitor and organize all stages of submission, peer review, and publication, ensuring transparency and efficiency.

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Prevention Statement

RBPS is dedicated to promoting integrity and transparency across all stages of the scientific publication process. This Publication Ethics and Malpractice Prevention Statement (PEM Statement) adheres to the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and Scopus evaluation criteria.

 

Ethical Oversight

The RBPS ensures that all published research complies with the highest ethical standards, particularly in studies involving humans, animals, or vulnerable populations.

  • Ethical approval: Authors must obtain approval from a recognized Ethics Committee before initiating studies involving humans or animals, in line with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and other international guidelines. This information must be explicitly stated in the manuscript.
  • Informed consent: For studies involving human participants, documented informed consent is mandatory. The journal also requires strict adherence to preserving participants' anonymity and privacy.
  • Research involving vulnerable populations: Additional ethical justifications are required for studies involving vulnerable populations, including detailed explanations of the benefits and safeguards for participants’ rights.

 

Authorship and Contribution Policies

The RBPS follows authorship practices based on ICMJE criteria, ensuring transparency and fair attribution of intellectual contributions.

  • Authorship criteria: Authorship is granted to individuals who have made significant contributions to the research, including study design, data collection, data analysis, results interpretation, and manuscript drafting or final approval. All authors must approve the final version of the manuscript submitted to the journal.
  • Contribution declaration: During submission, each author must detail their specific contributions to the study in line with COPE and ICMJE standards. Contributions such as technical supervision, financial support, or language editing, which do not meet the criteria for authorship, should be acknowledged in the acknowledgments section.
  • Authorship conflict resolution: In the event of authorship disputes, the Editorial Committee will mediate the conflict in accordance with COPE guidelines. This process involves discussions with the authors and, if necessary, institutional representatives to ensure a fair and ethical resolution.

Complaint and Appeal Process

The RBPS maintains a transparent and accessible mechanism for addressing complaints and appeals, offering authors and readers a robust channel to voice concerns or queries.

  • Right to appeal: Authors who disagree with an editorial decision may formally appeal by providing detailed justifications. Appeals are reviewed by an independent editor, and a response is provided within 30 days.
  • Complaint handling: Complaints regarding editorial conduct, journal content, or editorial team members may be submitted to the Editor-in-Chief, who will impartially review each case and provide a detailed response.
  • Decision clarification: The Editorial Board is committed to offering clear and substantiated explanations for all decisions, fostering constructive and transparent communication.

Allegations of Scientific Misconduct

The RBPS addresses any allegation of misconduct with rigor and discretion, following a specific procedure to handle complaints submitted by authors, reviewers, or members of the academic community.

  • Types of misconduct: The journal considers practices such as plagiarism, data manipulation, falsification or fabrication of results, simultaneous submission to other journals, and inappropriate citation manipulation as forms of scientific misconduct.
  • Investigation procedure: Upon receiving an allegation, the Editorial Committee initiates a thorough investigation, adhering to COPE principles. Investigations are conducted confidentially, and all involved parties are notified of the process's steps.
  • Corrective actions: When misconduct is confirmed, the journal will take corrective measures, including publishing corrections, retractions, expressions of concern, or removing content as applicable. Sanctions against authors may include temporary or permanent restrictions on future submissions.

Conflict of Interest Policies

Transparency regarding conflicts of interest is a priority for RBPS to maintain objectivity and credibility in published work.

  • Definition of conflict of interest: The RBPS defines conflicts of interest as any situation that may influence or be perceived as influencing the impartiality of authors, reviewers, or editors. This includes financial, personal, institutional, and academic relationships.
  • Declaration and management of conflicts: All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose potential conflicts of interest at the time of submission or before accepting a review invitation. Undisclosed conflicts, if identified, will be managed by the Editorial Committee, which may assign alternate reviewers or editors to ensure impartiality.
  • Disclosure: Authors’ conflict of interest statements will be published alongside the article to ensure transparency for readers.

Data Sharing and Reproducibility Policy

The RBPS encourages transparency and reproducibility in published studies by promoting data sharing whenever possible.

  • Data availability: Authors are encouraged to deposit their datasets in public repositories and provide details on data access in the article. For clinical and experimental studies, registration on data-sharing platforms is highly recommended.
  • Reporting guidelines: The journal expects authors to adhere to guidelines such as CONSORT, PRISMA, STROBE, or others, as appropriate for the study type, to promote clarity and replicability.
  • Support for reproducibility: The RBPS supports study replication initiatives and encourages authors to share data, code, and detailed methods to strengthen scientific reliability.

Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections

The RBPS values post-publication scientific interaction by allowing and promoting article corrections and discussions.

  • Post-publication discussions: The journal provides space for discussions and letters to the editor addressing relevant topics related to published articles. Readers may submit their letters for editorial evaluation.
  • Corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern: The RBPS follows COPE guidelines to implement corrections and retractions. If an error or misconduct is identified post-publication, the journal will issue the necessary correction or formal retraction, depending on the situation.
  • Commitment to scientific integrity: The journal employs mechanisms to preserve scientific integrity, such as tools for detecting plagiarism and data manipulation. Policies for handling cases of misconduct, including data fabrication and citation manipulation, are rigorously enforced.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility

RBPS reaffirms its commitment to promoting knowledge as a common good, guided by the principles of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA). Recognizing science as a pluralistic field, RBPS strives to ensure representation, fairness, and inclusion in all its editorial practices. Aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), RBPS commits to the following actions:

  • Promoting cultural shifts within the academic community that foster an ethos of inclusion, equity, and representation, contributing to a more just and accessible science;
  • Ensuring broad representation in authorship, editorial boards, and peer review, considering geographical, institutional, gender, racial, and socioeconomic diversity;
  • Encouraging and welcoming submissions from underrepresented and diverse groups, providing space for voices and perspectives often marginalized in science;
  • Promoting the use of respectful and inclusive language in all manuscripts. Inclusive language acknowledges diversity, promotes equality, and avoids discriminatory biases (refer to the APA Guidelines on Inclusive Language);
  • Training editors and reviewers to identify and correct language reflecting biases such as racism, ageism, or sexism. These professionals are expected to proactively foster a respectful and inclusive academic environment;
  • Adopting the SAGER Guidelines (Sex and Gender Equity in Research) and encouraging their application in the preparation and review of manuscripts to systematically and ethically address gender and sex considerations;
  • Recommending key resources such as the SciELO Declaration in Support of Open Science with DEIA, APA resources on Racism, Bias, and Discrimination, and COPE’s positions on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA);
  • Actively including representatives from underrepresented groups and fostering geographical, institutional, and gender diversity within editorial and peer review teams;
  • Monitoring and analyzing diversity indicators such as gender, race, and geographical origin in editorial boards, authorship, and peer review to guide improvements in editorial practices;
  • Collecting diversity and inclusion data to measure, analyze, and manage indicators that promote continuous development of DEIA practices at RBPS;
  • Strengthening communication with all stakeholders (editorial board, reviewers, and authors) to highlight the importance of adhering to DEIA principles for scientific progress;
  • Promoting FAIR Principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable), ensuring that data published by RBPS are widely accessible and reusable.

RBPS recognizes that advancing science requires continuous efforts to build an inclusive and equitable academic environment. Through these actions, the journal reaffirms its commitment to fostering more representative and transformative science.

Authorship Equity Policy

RBPS encourages equitable authorship practices, recognizing the importance of representative and inclusive science. The journal recommends that authors consider gender, race, geographical, and socioeconomic diversity when forming research teams and deciding on co-authorships. Additionally:

  • Authors must clearly describe the specific contributions of each co-author using the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT), ensuring transparency and fairness in authorship attribution;
  • RBPS encourages the involvement of early-career researchers, researchers from underrepresented institutions, and individuals from minority groups in academic collaborations;
  • During the submission process, authors are encouraged to reflect on the diversity of their teams and, when applicable, justify efforts made to promote inclusion.

The journal is committed to monitoring diversity indicators in authorship and implementing measures to promote greater equity in future publications.

Open Science Policy

RBPS adopts Open Science practices to enhance transparency, accessibility, and collaboration in the scientific process. This policy includes:

  • Acceptance of preprints: Manuscripts deposited in preprint repositories may be submitted to the journal, provided that authors disclose the preprint’s location at the time of submission;
  • Data availability: RBPS encourages authors to make research data publicly available in repositories to promote reproducibility and open access;
  • Author contributions: Individual contributions must be described using the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT) to ensure clarity regarding each author's role in the work;
  • Open access: All articles published by RBPS are freely available without access barriers, in line with its commitment to democratizing knowledge;
  • Editorial transparency: Information about the editorial workflow and peer review policies is published on the journal’s website to build trust within the academic community.

RBPS believes Open Science is a critical path to accelerating scientific discoveries and benefiting society as a whole.

Quality Assurance Mechanism

RBPS adopts a set of strategies to ensure the quality of its editorial processes and published content:

  • Double-blind peer review: All manuscripts undergo a rigorous evaluation by independent experts to ensure impartiality;
  • Verification tools: Submitted manuscripts are analyzed using software to detect plagiarism, duplication, or inconsistencies;
  • Editorial training: Editors and reviewers receive regular training on best editorial practices and the use of digital tools;
  • Continuous evaluation: Indicators such as processing time, rejection rates, and author feedback are regularly monitored to improve the editorial process.

This mechanism ensures that RBPS maintains high scientific and editorial standards.

Commitment to Sustainability

RBPS reaffirms its commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by promoting sustainable editorial practices such as:

  • Exclusive digital publication: Since 2012, the journal has been published exclusively in digital format, reducing environmental impact;
  • Sustainable science: Encouraging research related to health and sustainability, including the impacts of climate change and sustainable public health strategies;
  • Sustainable partnerships: Collaborating with institutions that share values of sustainability and social responsibility.

Through these actions, RBPS contributes to building a more sustainable and equitable future.

Policy on Innovative Submissions

RBPS values originality and scientific innovation, encouraging the submission of interdisciplinary studies and works exploring emerging topics in health sciences. This policy aims to broaden the scope of knowledge addressed by the journal and foster advances in underexplored areas.

  • Interdisciplinary works: Manuscripts integrating multiple fields of knowledge are welcome, fostering connections between disciplines such as public health, technology, social sciences, and environmental sciences.
  • Emerging topics: RBPS encourages research in new and developing areas such as artificial intelligence applied to health, digital health, health data science, climate change, and its impacts on health, among others.
  • Innovative methods: Studies employing unconventional methodological approaches or advanced technologies for data collection, analysis, and interpretation will be prioritized.

Authors must clearly describe the innovative scientific impact and contribution of their work to the health field.

Data Policy and Repository Availability

RBPS supports Open Science practices and encourages transparency in scientific research. The journal recommends that authors share the datasets underpinning their analyses whenever possible and indicate the location of these datasets in their manuscripts. The guidelines include:

  • Deposit in public repositories: Authors should deposit their datasets in reliable repositories such as Figshare, Dryad, or Zenodo, providing the corresponding link or DOI in the article.
  • Detailed data description: Manuscripts must include sufficient information for readers to understand the origin, format, and utility of the datasets.
  • Availability and licensing: It is recommended that data be made available under licenses that permit use and reproducibility, aligned with FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable).
  • Exceptions: When data sharing is not possible due to ethical, legal, or privacy restrictions, authors must explicitly justify these limitations.

RBPS believes that data sharing promotes scientific integrity, academic collaboration, and study reproducibility, contributing to advances in health sciences.

Digital Preservation

RBPS adopts rigorous practices to ensure the digital preservation of its content, guaranteeing long-term access to all published articles. To achieve this, it utilizes the LOCKSS (Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe) system, developed by Stanford University, which automatically replicates archives on remote servers. This system ensures the secure and permanent preservation of content, which can be restored if necessary.

Additionally, RBPS is part of the Public Knowledge Project Preservation Network (PKP PN), a digital preservation network specifically designed for journals published using Open Journal Systems (OJS). PKP PN ensures long-term accessibility for journals not affiliated with other digital preservation services. Inclusion in the PKP PN network is simple, requiring the activation of the corresponding plugin in the OJS platform and acceptance of the Preservation Agreement terms.

Readers and authors can verify the RBPS's digital preservation status by clicking on the "ARCHIVAL STATUS" link on its ISSN page, ensuring transparency and reliability in the preservation process. These initiatives reinforce RBPS's commitment to the integrity and longevity of its scientific publications.

Intellectual Property

RBPS ensures respect for intellectual property rights, promoting fair copyright and distribution policies while recognizing authors' contributions.

  • Copyright and licensing: The journal operates under an open-access model, allowing content to be distributed under a license permitting reuse with attribution. Authors retain the rights to their articles and agree to the license upon submission.
  • Anti-plagiarism policy: All manuscripts submitted to RBPS undergo similarity checks to identify plagiarism and self-plagiarism. Overlapping texts with prior publications will be investigated and may result in manuscript rejection.
  • Prior and redundant publication: The use of preprints is permitted, provided they are properly disclosed. Redundant or overlapping publications are discouraged and may be investigated as misconduct.

Generative AI Policy

To ensure transparency and accountability in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies during writing, RBPS adopts the following guidelines: Generative AI cannot be considered an author of a manuscript, and its use must be restricted to improving language and readability, applied cautiously. If the author uses generative AI or AI-assisted technology, they must include a mandatory declaration as outlined in the Author Guidelines.

Privacy Policy

RBPS, maintained by the Health Sciences Center of the Federal University of Espírito Santo, is committed to protecting users’ personal data. This Privacy Policy outlines the collection, use, and storage of data in compliance with Federal Law No. 13,709/2018 (General Data Protection Law – LGPD).

1. Use of personal information
Data provided by users, such as names and email addresses, will be used exclusively for journal activities and services, including communication about new issues, submission calls, and responses to inquiries. RBPS does not share, sell, or disclose personal information to third parties except as required by law.

2. Who should use our website
This website is intended for individuals aged 18 and older. Children and adolescents should not use the website without parental or guardian consent.

3. Data collected and purpose of collection
RBPS collects personal data solely for purposes related to publication and scientific communication. No sensitive data (e.g., racial origin, religious beliefs, political opinions, union affiliations, health, sexual life, or biometric data) will be collected.

4. Cookies and cookie management
Our website uses cookies to improve user experience, remembering preferences and personalizing content. Cookies do not grant access to unauthorized personal information.

  • Disabling cookies: Users may disable cookies in their browser settings, but this action may affect website functionality. Instructions for disabling cookies are available for most common browsers:

5. Data retention period
Personal data is stored only for the time necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this policy or as required by law. After this period, data will be deleted or anonymized.

6. Legal basis for processing personal data
The processing of personal data is based on legal provisions in the LGPD, justifying its use for delivering editorial services and activities. For more information on legal grounds, users can contact RBPS.

7. User rights
Under the LGPD, users have the right to:

    • Confirm and access processed data;
    • Correct incomplete, inaccurate, or outdated data;
    • Anonymize, block, or delete unnecessary or unlawfully processed data;
    • Be informed about data sharing with public and private entities;
    • Revoke consent where applicable.

To exercise these rights, users must submit a formal request, and RBPS may require additional information to confirm identity.

9. Data security
RBPS adopts technical and organizational measures to protect personal data against unauthorized access and security incidents. In the event of incidents, such as third-party attacks, RBPS will take measures to mitigate the impact, notifying users and the National Data Protection Authority as required by LGPD.

9. Changes to the privacy policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated to reflect changes to the website or editorial practices. Updates will be communicated to users.