Conflict of Interest

The Journal of Epidemiology and Public Health (JEPH) is committed to maintaining transparency, integrity, and public trust throughout the research, peer-review, and publication processes. The journal follows the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) regarding the disclosure of financial and non-financial relationships, activities, and interests that may influence, or be perceived to influence, the conduct, interpretation, or reporting of research.

1. Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest by Authors

Authors are encouraged to use the official ICMJE Disclosure of Interest Form, which can be downloaded from the ICMJE website. Alternatively, at a minimum, authors must provide an explicit statement declaring whether any financial or non-financial conflicts of interest exist in relation to the submitted manuscript.

If no conflicts of interest exist, authors must state:

“The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest related to this work.”

If relevant conflicts of interest exist, authors must disclose their nature and provide sufficient details to ensure transparency.

All authors must disclose any financial and non-financial relationships, activities, or interests that are directly or indirectly related to the content of their manuscript and that may influence, or be perceived to influence, their work. Such relationships may involve for-profit or not-for-profit organizations, institutions, or other third parties whose interests could be affected by the manuscript's content.

Disclosure is intended to promote transparency and does not necessarily indicate bias or inappropriate influence. When uncertain whether a relationship, activity, or interest should be disclosed, authors are encouraged to disclose it.

Relevant interests may include, but are not limited to:

• Financial relationships: Employment, consultancy, honoraria, research grants, speaker fees, travel support, stock ownership, stock options, patents, royalties, and paid expert testimony.

• Institutional and organizational relationships: Affiliations, sponsorships, or other relationships with organizations that may benefit or be disadvantaged by the publication.

• Non-financial interests: Personal relationships, academic competition, professional affiliations, intellectual commitments, or other interests that could influence, or be perceived to influence, professional judgment.

Disclosure is not limited to financial support for the study being reported. Authors should disclose relevant relationships with organizations whose products, services, policies, or interests relate to the manuscript, even when a particular product or organization is not explicitly mentioned in the manuscript. For example, authors reporting research on hypertension epidemiology should disclose relevant relationships with manufacturers of antihypertensive medications.

All authors are responsible for ensuring that their disclosures are complete and accurate. The corresponding author should coordinate the collection and submission of disclosure information on behalf of all co-authors. The journal may request individual ICMJE Disclosure of Interest Forms or other supporting documentation when necessary.

2. Funding and Sponsor Involvement

Authors must clearly identify all sources of financial and material support for the research, including grants, institutional funding, equipment, medications, and other resources that facilitated the conduct of the study or preparation of the manuscript.

The funding statement must specify the role of the funding source or sponsor, if any, in the study design; data collection, analysis, and interpretation; manuscript preparation; and the decision to submit the manuscript for publication. Any restrictions imposed by the sponsor concerning data access, analysis, interpretation, or publication must also be disclosed.

If the funder had no involvement in these activities, authors should explicitly state this in the manuscript. Authors should retain sufficient independence to access the study data, interpret the findings, and publish the results without inappropriate sponsor interference.

Disclosure of conflicts of interest is separate from the funding statement. Authors must therefore report relevant relationships and activities even when they are unrelated to direct funding of the submitted study.

3. Disclosure by Peer Reviewers

Peer reviewers must disclose to the editor any financial, professional, personal, or other relationships or activities that could influence, or be perceived to influence, their assessment of a manuscript.

Reviewers should decline an invitation to review, or withdraw from the review process, when a potential conflict of interest could compromise their impartiality. Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of the manuscript and must not use unpublished information obtained during peer review for personal or professional advantage.

4. Disclosure by Editors and Editorial Staff

Editors, editorial board members, and editorial staff involved in manuscript evaluation must disclose relevant relationships or activities that could influence their editorial judgment.

Editors must recuse themselves from handling or making decisions on manuscripts when a conflict of interest exists or could reasonably be perceived to exist. In such cases, the manuscript should be assigned to an independent editor who has no relevant conflict of interest.

Editorial staff involved in editorial decisions must also disclose relevant interests and refrain from participating in decisions where their impartiality may be compromised. Information obtained through editorial responsibilities must not be used for personal, financial, or professional gain.

The journal will take appropriate precautions when handling manuscripts submitted by editors, editorial board members, or other individuals involved in editorial decision-making to ensure an independent and impartial review process.

5. Conflict of Interest Statement in Published Articles

All manuscripts must include a Conflict of Interest Statement. Authors must explicitly declare either the existence of relevant conflicts of interest or the absence of conflicts.

If no relevant conflicts exist, authors may use the following statement:

“The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest related to this work.”

If relevant conflicts exist, authors must describe the nature of the relationships, activities, or interests and identify the relevant parties where appropriate.

The journal may publish the disclosure statement and request additional documentation when necessary to ensure transparency. Disclosure statements should be sufficiently clear to enable readers to assess the relevance of the declared interests to the published work.

6. Editorial Assessment and Non-Disclosure

The existence of a conflict of interest does not automatically disqualify a manuscript from consideration for publication. Editorial decisions will be based on the manuscript's scientific merit, originality, relevance, methodological rigor, and compliance with ethical and publication standards.

However, failure to disclose relevant relationships or activities, particularly when intentional, may constitute research or publication misconduct. The journal reserves the right to request clarification or supporting documentation, delay editorial processing, reject a manuscript, or take appropriate corrective action in accordance with its publication ethics procedures when disclosure requirements are not met.

The Journal of Epidemiology and Public Health (JEPH) expects all authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial staff to uphold these principles to protect the integrity and credibility of the scholarly publication process.