Chapter 1. Overview

Article 1. Purpose

The Korean Society for Marine Environment and Energy (KOSMEE) is an academic organization that aims at developing academic studies and preserving marine environment by making contributions to theoretical, practical, and technical research, development, dissemination, and invigoration of the marine environmental engineering and energy field.
This Code of Ethics in Research (Hereinafter the “Code of Ethics”) prescribes the principles and standards of research ethics to be abided by in the process of playing the above-mentioned roles of the members of the KOSMEE (Hereinafter the “Members”).
The Members shall acknowledge the value of research and share research results by faithfully complying with the research ethics in performing academic research and presenting research papers. The Members intend to fulfill their social responsibilities, promote their own status and pride, and contribute to the relevant technological and industrial development.

 

Article 2. Basic Spirit

(1) We shall recognize that we have a responsibility to contribute to the improvement of quality of life and welfare of humans, and also to environmental conservation in using our knowledge and technologies.

(2) We shall perceive that honesty, integrity, and accuracy in our research activities are essential for ensuring reliability, and we pursue such a principle to carry out all research activities.

(3) We shall maintain pride and dignity as professionals contributing to human welfare and enhancement through new knowledge creation and technology development.

Chapter 2. Author’s Research Ethics

Article 3. Scope of Fraudulent Acts in Research

The fraudulent act in research considered in the Code of Ethics (Hereinafter the “Fraudulent Act”) refers to the following: forgery, falsification, plagiarism, illegal indication of authors of a paper, duplicate research, duplicate publication, formal misrepresentation, improper writing in the proposal, undertaking, result reporting and presentation of research, or the disturbance of investigation into illegal acts, or harmful acts towards informants.

 

Article 4. Definition of Fraudulent Acts in Research

① Committing forgery is an act making non-existent data or research result falsely.

② Falsification refers to distortion of research details or results by artificially manipulating research materials, equipment, and processes or arbitrarily modifying and deleting data.

③ Plagiarism refers to an act using others’ ideas, research details/results without legitimate approval or citation, and plagiarism is defined according to the following:

1. (Plagiarism of an idea) Plagiarism of an idea refers to an act not acknowledging the achievement of a creator/an initiator, using part of it or superficially correcting it, and thus illegally using his/her idea (explanation, theory, conclusion, hypothesis, metaphor). An author has an ethical responsibility to identify the source of an idea through footnote or reference citation. Also an author shall not use others’ ideas that he/she came to know via peer review of others’ research proposals and submitted manuscripts for his/her own research.

2. (Plagiarism of original text) The plagiarism of an original text refers to an act copying part of others’ texts, mathematical expressions, figures, tables, and pictures without revealing the authors.

3. (Mosaic plagiarism) Mosaic plagiarism is an act not revealing the original author and source, while he/she uses others’ texts, mathematical expressions, figures, tables, and pictures by combining part of them, adding or deleting some details, or replacing synonyms.

4. (Self-plagiarism) Self-plagiarism refers to an act not revealing the source, while using the author’s own past publications.

④ Unlawful indication of a paper author refers to an act not awarding a paper author qualification to a person who made a scientific or technological contribution without a legitimate reason in terms of research details or results, or awarding a paper author qualification to a person who did not make a scientific or technological contribution.

⑤ Duplicate research is an act releasing the same research result by performing two or more research tasks with research with the same details.

⑥ Duplicate publication refers to an act releasing a paper with the same details to two or more scholarly journals, and duplicate publication is defined according to each of the following:

1. If main details are the same as the paper of an author him/herself that were already published, and if the author uses slightly different vision or point of view on the main text of the author’s paper published later, or the author includes slightly different analysis on the same data that were already published, all these correspond to duplicate publication.

2. Releasing the achievement at the initial stages in terms of research stage in a symposium first, and then submitting a paper that promoted completeness to the journal is allowed. However, the information on the symposium where the initial stage achievement was released through the journal-published paper shall be provided through footnote or reference.

⑦ Formal misrepresentation refers to an act committing misrepresentation on the educational background, career, and research achievements and results of the author him/herself.

 

Article 5. Improper Writing Acts

① Citation of improper source

② Distortion of reference

③ An act to rely on an abstract, while citing the published paper

④ An act partially revealing the source, while intensively adopting from one source

⑤ An act to reuse an original text

⑥ An act publishing by dividing a paper into several papers, whereas the research results should have been published with one paper, for the purpose of swelling research achievements

 

Article 6. Prohibition of Distortion of Reference

① As for reference, only the literature directly related to the details of the paper shall be included.

② Only the literature favorable to the author’s own data or theory shall not be included unfairly in the reference, and the author has an ethical responsibility to cite the literature conflicting the author’s own point of view.

 

Article 7. Reuse of Original Texts

① The reuse of original texts refers to using part of the texts, mathematical expressions, figures, tables, and pictures that were used in the author’s other writings as they are

② In reusing texts, standard citation practices such as using quotation marks or proper rephrasing shall be complied with proper sentence replacement, and the author shall not breach the relevant copyright.

 

Article 8. Other Improper Writing Acts

Each of the following corresponds to improper writing acts:

① An act not reporting or not letting the readers know about important relevant evidence inconsistent with the author’s data or point of view

② An act citing a research with methodological or statistical defects or other types of defects as the basis of proving evidence

③ An act intentionally distorting or ambiguously describing research method including sample design so that other authors cannot reproduce the research results

Chapter 3. Publication Ethics

Article 9. Author’s Responsibilities and Obligations

① A corresponding author or a lead author shall be responsible for paper data and author indication overall, and also shall have a responsibility to supervise co-author’s research.

② Authors shall acknowledge their own author qualification, agree to the order of authors, and understand the relevant responsibilities, when submitting a paper.

 

Article 10. Author’s Qualification Criteria

① Authors shall be decided according to the academic and technical contributions to research details or results. The following items shall all be satisfied to become an author, and if even one of the following is not met, the person is called a contributor:

1. An author shall make a practical contribution to the concept or design of research, or contribute to the obtainment, analysis, and interpretation of research data in substantial part.

2. Authors shall participate in writing a paper on research results, and shall make critical corrections on important academic part.

3. Authors shall approve the final version of a paper before it is published.

4. An author shall properly examine the problems related to the accuracy and integrity of research, and shall agree to being responsible for all parts of the research.

② The order of author indication shall comply with consultation among the authors, and it shall be fairly decided by reflecting research contribution.

③ Any researchers equipped with the author qualification described in Article 10.1 hereof shall not be excluded in the author list without their consent.

④ Any person who did not make academic and technical contributions to research details or results shall not be included in the author list due to the indication of appreciation or respectful treatment. However, concerning the contribution details including data collection or input, or translation into another language, the relevant details can be described in the relevant note or footnote.

 

Article 11. Indication of Paper Author’s Organization

The organization of a paper author shall be indicated as the organization at the time of performing the experiment and writing concerned.

 

Article 12. Citation Method and Principle

① Authors can cite part of others’ texts as they are or by translating them in their own writings through such methods as introduction, reference, and comment.

② Authors shall be accurate in indicating the sources and reference list. Authors shall check all the factors of citation (author’s name, volume, issue, page, and publication year) of the journal from the original papers, not relying on the secondary sources. However, such a citation can be conducted by revealing it as re-citation in the inevitable case.

③ Authors shall cite the cited writing in such a rational way that the cited writing can be clearly differentiated from the writing citing it based on the principle of good faith.

④ Authors shall cite published writings, and any non-disclosing data obtained through personal contact shall be cited with the consent of the researcher concerned.

⑤ If an author inevitably needs to cite the Web data, the date when the author read the data by connecting the Website shall be indicated alongside the accurate Website address.

⑥ Authors shall indicate the source, when they introduce theories or ideas contained in their released paper by translating them.

⑦ An author shall write a paper so that readers can clearly know which idea is his/her and which idea came from the referenced source.

⑧ If the research to be cited was released in an academic conference at the initial stage, and if it was published as a paper of a scholarly journal, the author shall cite the paper of the journal.

 

Article 13. Citation Method of General Knowledge

① When using others’ ideas or information, the source shall be revealed; however, if it is generally noticed knowledge or if it is data that readers recognize, it shall be excluded from the revelation of the source.

② Whether which concept or fact is general knowledge is not clear, it is desirable to cite it.

Chapter 4. Ethical Regulations that an Editor Need to Abide by

Article 14. An editor shall be fully responsible for deciding whether to publish the submitted paper, and shall respect the author’s personality and independence as a scholar.

 

Article 15. An editor shall fairly handle the submitted paper to be published on the scholarly journal based on paper’s quality level and the paper submission regulations, irrelevant of bias and personal affinity, as well as the author’s gender, age, and organization.

 

Article 16. An editor shall request the evaluation of a submitted paper to screening judge having expertise and a fair judgment ability. Upon screening request, the editor shall make an effort for objective evaluation, if possible, by avoiding a judge having good acquaintance or hostility with the author. However, if severe difference exists between the judges on the same paper, the editor can receive advice from a third party expert.

 

Article 17. An editor shall not disclose any information of the author or the details of the paper to anyone except the judges until the publication of the submitted paper is decided.

Chapter 5. Judge’s Research Ethics

Article 18. A judge shall faithfully evaluate the paper requested by the scholarly journal’s Editorial Commission within the set period, and shall notify the Editorial Commission of the evaluation result. If the editor thinks he/she is not suitable for evaluation of the paper, the editor shall immediately notify the Editorial Commission of the fact.

 

Article 19. An editor shall fairly evaluate a paper under objective criteria, beyond personal scholarly belief or personal acquaintance with the author concerned. The editor shall not fail a paper without specifying adequate grounds or shall not do so on the ground of conflict with his/her own point of view or interpretation. The editor shall not evaluate the screening-target paper without properly reading it.

 

Article 20. A judge shall respect the author’s personality and independence as a professional intellectual. In the screening opinion sheet, the judge shall reveal his/her judgment on the paper, and he/she shall explain the reason in detail on the part that is considered to be necessary. Use polite and soft expressions, and avoid demeaning or insulting expressions, if possible.

 

Article 21. A judge shall keep the secret of the screening-target paper. If the judge does not seek advice for paper evaluation, it is not desirable to show the paper to another person or discuss the details of the paper with others. The judge shall not cite the details of the paper without the author’s consent before the scholarly journal containing the paper is published.

 

Article 22. Unethical Acts in the Editing/Screening Process

① An editor or a judge shall not use specific information that the editor or judge knew from the research proposal or in the process of paper screening without the original author’s consent for directly/indirectly related research.

② Because each of the following acts correspond to the unethical acts in the editing/screening process, the editor or judge shall avoid them.

1. An act to make a request for paper screening that was requested to the judge to a student or a third party

2. An act to discuss the screening-target paper’s details with others

3. An act to damage author’s reputation or of personal attack in the process of screening the submitted paper

4. An act to screen/evaluate a paper without reading it

 

Supplementary Provision

(1) The Code of Ethics shall take effect from November 1, 2007.

(2) (Date of enforcement) The revised Code of Ethics shall take effect from May 29, 2009.

(3) (Date of enforcement) The revised Code of Ethics shall take effect from December 31, 2012.

(4) (Date of enforcement) The revised Code of Ethics shall take effect from March 9, 2020.

 

* This Code of Ethics was established by referring to the following:

- KIEE, Code of Ethics in Research

- Korea University, Code of Ethics in Research to Ensure Research Integrity, 2007-Ministry of Technology and Science, Guidelines to Ensure Research Ethics, 2007

- Seoul National University, Guidelines for Research Ethics

- IEEE Publication Services and Products Board Operations Manual, 2006

- International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals: Writing and Editing for Biomedical Publication

 

 

Enforcement Guidelines for Research Ethics

 

Article 1. Pledge for Cod of Ethics

Any new members of the Korean Society for Marine Environment and Energy (KOSMEE) pledge to comply with this Code of Ethics. The existing members are deemed to pledge to comply with the Code of Ethics when this Code of Ethics takes effect.

 

Article 2. Reporting the Breach of the Code of Ethics

The members shall make an effort to correct other members’ breach of the Cod of Ethics by calling the breaching members’ attention to the Code of Ethics, when they recognize the other members’ breach of the Code of Ethics. However, if the problem is not corrected or a case of clear breach of the Code of Ethics is revealed, it can be reported to the KOSMEE’s Ethics Investigation Committee. Any informant can tip off the breach to the Chairman or Editor in Chief in all possible methods including oral, in writing, telephone, and email methods, and real name tip off is required. The Ethics Investigation Committee shall not disclose the identity of the member who reported the problem to the Ethics Investigation Committee.

 

Article 3. Review and Bring up the Need for Investigation

The Editorial Commission shall judge whether the tipped off an unlawful research act breaches the Code of Ethics. If research integrity is required to be objectively and fairly verified, the Commission shall make a request for setting up Research Ethics Investigation Committee to the Board of Directors.

 

Article 4. Establishment and Term of Research Ethics Investigation Committee

① The board of directors shall decide the establishment of the Research Ethics Investigation Committee (Hereinafter the “Committee”), if the need to establish the Committee is judged to be appropriate.

② The Committee shall organize the Committee with up to 10 members including Vice President, General Affairs Director, and Technical Director within four weeks from the date when the establishment was decided.

③ The Committee President shall be appointed among Vice Presidents by the KOSMEE Chairman, and the Vice President and Administrative Secretary shall be elected in the Committee.

④ The Committee shall carry out investigation within eight weeks from the organizing the Committee, and the term of the Committee members shall expire as the Committee activities end.

 

Article 5. Functions of Research Ethics Investigation Committee

① The Committee shall deliberate and decide each of the following:

1. Matters on the establishment and operation of the research ethics system

2. Matters on receiving unlawful acts tip off and handling

3. Matters on the investigation undertaking and investigation result approval

4. Matters concerned with the handling of research integrity verification results and follow up measures

5. Matters regarding research ethics submitted by the Committee President

 

Article 6. Verification Meeting

① The Committee President shall convene the meeting and shall become the president of the meeting.

② The meeting shall be decided with a majority of attendance of the registered Committee members and with the consent of a majority of the attending Committee members.

③ The Committee President can replace the decision with deliberation in writing, if the agenda item for deliberation is trivial.

④ The meeting shall not be open to the public, but opinions can be heard by letting the relevant people attend the meeting, if necessary.

 

Article 7. Request for Attendance and Data/Materials Presentation

The Committee may request for attending of an informant, an investigated person, a witness, and a testifier for testimony, and data/material presentation to the investigated person. If they disclaim the attendance, the disclaimer of the testimony right shall be presented to the Committee President.

 

Article 8. Protection of the Rights of Informant and Investigated Person and Confidentiality

① Under any circumstances, the identity of an informant shall not directly/indirectly be disclosed. The name of the informant shall not be included in the investigation result report to protect the informant, if disclosing the name is not necessary.

② Cautions shall be given not to breach the investigated person’s reputation or rights until verification on the unlawful act is completed, and efforts for regaining damaged reputation of the investigated person proven to be free from suspicion shall be made.

③ All matters related to investigation such as tip off, investigation, deliberation, decision, and proposal shall be confidential, and any direct/indirect participants and relevant personnel shall not disclose all information obtained in the investigation and job performing process. However the information can be disclosed through the Committee’s decision, if there is appropriate need to do so.

 

Article 9. Guarantee of Appeal and Defence Rights

The Committee shall equally guarantee the opportunities to state opinions, and appeal and defense rights to both informant and investigated person, and shall inform them of the relevant procedure.

 

Article 10. Judgment

The Committee shall confirm the investigation details and results based on the details of appeal and defense, and notify the informant and the investigated person of them. If agreement is not made between them, voting can be carried out. In this case, decision shall be made with a majority of attendance of the registered Committee members and with a 2/3 of the attending members’ consent.

 

Article 11. Actions on the Result

① The investigation results shall be reported to the KOSMEE Chairman within two weeks after gaining the Committee’s approval.

② The KOSMEE Chairman can take each of the follow up measures, if the investigated person is confirmed to have committed an unlawful act in research prescribed in the Code of Ethics in Research. The decision of the board of directors shall be complied with:

1. Return the submitted paper, and if the paper is already published, delete it or issue the details of withdrawal/cancellation.

2. Restrict the submission of papers

3. Expel the member

4. Accuse to a legal institution

5. Other matters to be decided in the board of directors

 

Article 12. Committee’s Final Report after Verification

① The Committee shall submit the deliberated and decided details and results under Articles 10 and 11 hereto as the final report.

② The final report shall include the following:

1. Details of tip off

2. The suspicious unlawful act and relevant paper that became the investigation target

3. Role of the investigated person and the status of suspicion in the research concerned

4. Relevant evidence and witness

5. The details of appeal and defense of the informant and the investigated person on the investigation results and the handling result

6. The Committee member list

 

Article 13. Storage and Making Public of Records

① Records related to the investigation shall be drawn up in writing, and shall be stored for five years after the end of the investigation.

② Although the final report can be made public after judgment is finished, the information about people’s identity including the informant, Committee members, witnesses, and advisory persons can be excluded from the subject of making public, if the information has a possibility to give disadvantages to those people.

 

Article 14. Miscellaneous

① Any matters not prescribed in this Code of Ethics shall follow the KOSMEE’s regulations, and others shall be decided through discussions at the KOSMEE board of directors.

② For the prevention of unlawful acts for research and education of research ethics, the Code of Ethics shall be widely publicized through KOSMEE’s collection of papers and the journal of KOSMEE.

 

Article 15. Correction of Code of Ethics

The revision procedure of the KOSMEE meeting regulations shall be applied to the correction procedure of the Code of Ethics. If the Code of Ethics is corrected, the members who pledged to comply with the existing Code of Ethics are deemed to pledge to comply with the new Code of Ethics without additional pledge.

 

Supplementary Provision

(1) The Guidelines shall take effect from May 29, 2009.

(2) (Date of enforcement) The revised Code of Ethics shall take effect from March 9, 2020.

 

* The Guidelines were established by referring to the following:

- KIEE, Code of Ethics in Research

- Korea University, Code of Ethics in Research to Ensure Research Integrity, 2007 - Ministry of Technology and Science, Guidelines to Ensure Research Ethics, 2007

- Seoul National University, Guidelines for Research Ethics

- IEEE Publication Services and Products Board Operations Manual, 2006

- International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals: Writing and Editing for Biomedical Publication