Journal Policies

The International Journal of Counseling and Applied Psychology (IJCAP) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic publishing. The following policies guide the journal’s editorial and publication practices:

1. Open Access Policy

All articles published in IJCAP are open access, available immediately and permanently free of charge to readers. The journal supports the principle that making research openly available fosters greater global knowledge exchange. IJCAP adopts the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are properly credited.

2. Peer Review Policy

  • IJCAP implements a double-blind peer-review process.
  • Each manuscript is reviewed by at least two independent experts in the relevant field.
  • Reviewers are expected to provide constructive, timely, and objective feedback.
  • Final editorial decisions are made by the Editor-in-Chief, based on reviewers’ recommendations and the journal’s editorial standards.

3. Publication Ethics and Malpractice

  • IJCAP follows the COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines.
  • Authors must ensure originality of work, proper citation, and disclosure of conflicts of interest.
  • Reviewers must maintain confidentiality, objectivity, and fairness.
  • Editors must guarantee impartiality, confidentiality, and editorial independence.
  • Plagiarism, data fabrication, duplicate publication, or unethical research will not be tolerated.

4. Plagiarism and Similarity Check Policy

  • All submitted manuscripts are screened using reliable plagiarism detection software (e.g., Turnitin/iThenticate).
  • The acceptable similarity threshold is ≤20%, excluding references and commonly used terms.
  • Manuscripts exceeding this threshold will be returned to authors for revision or rejected outright.

5. Retraction, Withdrawal, and Correction Policy (R-W-C)

  • Retraction: Articles may be retracted for plagiarism, data falsification, duplicate publication, or major ethical violations. Retracted articles remain accessible but marked clearly as “Retracted.”
  • Withdrawal: Manuscripts may be withdrawn before publication with written consent from all authors. Improper withdrawals may result in blacklisting.
  • Correction: Minor errors that do not affect the scientific validity of the paper will be corrected through a formal correction notice.
  • Expression of Concern may be issued during ongoing investigations of ethical concerns.

6. Archiving Policy

IJCAP ensures long-term digital preservation of published articles through Internet Archive Scholar and other indexing databases.

7. Copyright and Licensing Policy

  • Authors retain the copyright of their work.
  • Articles are distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) License.
  • Authors grant the publisher the right to publish and disseminate the article worldwide.

8. Conflict of Interest Policy

All authors, reviewers, and editors must declare potential conflicts of interest. Any financial, institutional, or personal relationship that could influence the work must be disclosed.

9. Data Sharing and Reproducibility Policy

  • Authors are encouraged to provide access to raw data, materials, and methods to promote transparency and reproducibility.
  • When applicable, datasets should be deposited in recognized repositories with appropriate citations.

10. Complaints and Appeals Policy

  • Authors may appeal editorial decisions by submitting a detailed explanation to the editorial office.
  • Complaints regarding ethical issues or editorial misconduct will be handled according to COPE guidelines, ensuring fairness and transparency.