Editorial Policy

Aims and scope
Sections
Peer review process(double-blind)
Transparency and best practices in scholarly publishing
Editorial code of ethics
Originality check
Copyrights
CrossMark policy
Privacy Statement
Publishing fees
Digital preservation
Digital object identifier
Errata and retractions
Claims process
Advertising policy

1. Aims and scope

Psicoespacios is a biannual open access electronic publication, whose main objective is the dissemination of scientific work in psychology and interdisciplinary dialogue with other social and human sciences. The journal serves as a channel for the expression of peer-reviewed research papers, publishing both theoretical and applied papers.

Established in 2006 to support the training process of the Institución Universitaria de Envigado, the journal seeks to advance the scientific knowledge of psychology and its social impact, and position itself in the academic field to promote the evolution and growth of this profession.

Psicoespacios is aimed at teachers, researchers and students of psychology and other professions in the social and human sciences interested in this field of knowledge. Submissions are permanent based on a continuous publication system, presented in two annual issues, where each issue includes a minimum of six (6) and a maximum of ten (10) articles derived from research.

2. Sections

Research 

Texts that provide research results for the first time and whose writing and publication follow specific standards, accepted by the international scientific community, which guarantee the effective communication of scientific information worldwide. Its structure includes introduction, methods, materials, results, conclusions, and references.

Review or meta-analysis

Documents that analyze, systematize, and integrate the results of published and unpublished research to report on progress and development trends. They are characterized by a careful bibliographic review of at least 50 references.

 Reflections

Texts reporting research results from an analytical or critical perspective, on a specific topic, using original scientific sources.

3. Peer review process (double-blind)

Submission of a paper to the journal does not guarantee approval. Submissions undergo an editorial process that takes place in several phases. All papers undergo an initial screening by the Editorial Committee, which determines whether they are relevant for publication. If the paper meets the thematic and formal requirements of the journal, it will be sent for peer review by experts in your field, preferably independent of the journal, for an in-depth academic evaluation. If the expert insights of the referees are favorable, the production process begins in order of submission.

Peers are experts in their area of knowledge, chosen by the journal or suggested by the researchers, who give written insights on the relevance and validity of the content to improve the paper. Reviewers must guarantee the confidentiality of the information reviewed and, therefore, may not copy or use data or important aspects of its content. Their evaluations must be clear and substantiated. In case of suspected misconduct on the part of the author(s), they must inform the editor confidentially. During the review, peers will report any conflicts of interest, advise the editor and, if necessary, withdraw from the process.

The evaluation process is double blind to avoid any conflict of interest. The authors do not know the identity of the reviewer (anonymity is essential) and, likewise, the reviewers do not know the identity of the authors.

Peers are selected by the Editorial Committee and their evaluation must follow the established format. Although authors may suggest referees, the final decision on referees will be made by the Editorial Committee of the journal.

The reviewers will look for the following aspects:

  • Appropriateness of title, objectives, hypothesis, method, results, and discussion.
  • The theoretical background is relevant.
  • Quality writing.
  • References are up to date and relevant.
  • Follow APA citation guidelines.
  • The research meets conceptual novelty, and its contributions are relevant to the field of knowledge.

If the recommendations of the two reviewers clearly differ, it is up to the Editorial Committee to make the final decision. The results of the academic peer review process will be final in all cases.

The result of the evaluation may be: 1) 1) may be published without modifications; 2) may be published with modifications of form; 3) may be published with modifications of content; 4) may be published with modifications of form and content; 5) corrections of form and content must be submitted for re-evaluation; and 6) may not be published.

4. Transparency and best practices in scholarly publishing

The journal Psicosespacios follows and ensures compliance with the Principles of Transparency and Best Practices in Academic Publishing of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA) and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME).In this way, the journal guarantees to maintain integrity, ethics and quality in its editorial practices. 

Open Access Policy

The journal Psicoespacios is an open access journal, which means that all content is freely available to the user or his/her institution without the need to pay or register, from the moment of publication in this electronic edition, based on the principle that making research freely available to the public favors the global exchange of knowledge.

Users may read, download, copy, distribute, print, search or link to the full texts of the articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without requesting prior permission from the publisher or the author. The concepts and opinions expressed in the published articles are the sole responsibility of the authors. Publication in this journal is free of article processing charges and does not impose any costs on the authors.

5. Editorial code of ethics

The journal Psicoespacios, seeking to promote the integrity of research, principles and professional responsibilities in scientific and academic publishing, adheres to the Singapore Declaration, as it advocates compliance with standards, methods, documentation and results of research, authorship, acknowledgements, peer review, conflict of interest, communication, reporting and response to irresponsible practices, environment for research and social care.

Likewise, it complies with institutional, national and international intellectual property laws, and its processes and procedures are guided by the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), in its Guide of Best Practices for Editors of Scientific Journals, which promotes ethical practices in the editorial culture and provides all the actors in the process with tools to carry out their work with integrity. It is also guided by the Publication Ethics Resource Kit (PERK), developed by the Elsevier publishing group, seeking to ensure clarity and transparency, both in the publication of submissions and in the associated conflict resolution procedures. 

The Psioespacios editorial team ensures that all actors (editors, peer reviewers and authors) fully follow ethical standards throughout the editorial process. 

Thus, in order to avoid improper conduct in the research, the authors commit themselves to:

  • Not to commit research fraud.
  • Not to experiment inappropriately with or on humans.
  • Avoid serious professional misconduct such as: not respecting copyrights or intellectual property, simultaneous submissions, duplicate publication, conflict of interest, authorship disputes or fragmentation.

For their part, peer reviewers commit themselves to:

  • Declare conflicts of interest or inabilities. 
  • Strictly adhere to the policies of the journal's evaluation process. 
  • Respond to requests and send evaluations on time.
  • To make a methodical and rigorous evaluation, as expected, given the level of expertise of the peer reviewer.
  • Respect the confidentiality of information related to the editorial process.

Finally, the editor and the entire editorial team are committed to: 

  • Guarantee the transparency of the contributions and the evaluation and publication processes.
  • Guarantee the objective dialogue and confidentiality of the parties involved in the editorial process. 
  • Respond promptly and respectfully to questions and notifications.
  • Ensure compliance with international standards of ethics, research and publication in all scientific and editorial processes related to the journal.

Authorship and contribution

Correctly naming authors in a research article ensures that the right people get credit and are responsible for the research. Deliberately misrepresenting a scientist's relationship to his or her work is considered misconduct, which undermines confidence in the reporting of the work itself.

While there is no universal definition of authorship, an 'author' is generally considered to be an individual who has made a significant intellectual contribution to the study. Four criteria must be met to be credited as an author:

  1. substantial contribution to the study: conception and design, acquisition of data, analysis, and interpretation.
  2. Drafting or revising the article for intellectual content.
  3. Approval of the final version.
  4. Agreement to be responsible for all aspects of the work related to the accuracy or completeness of any part of the work.

On the other hand, the following are some general guidelines, which may vary from one field to another:

  1. The order of authorship should be a joint decision of the co-authors.
  2. Individuals who are involved in the study, but do not satisfy the journal's requirements as authors, should be named as contributors. These include: assisting the research by providing advice, providing research space, departmental supervision, or obtaining financial support.
  3. For large multicenter papers, the list of institutions is typically published, along with a statement of individual contributions made.

Three types of unacceptable authorship are considered:

  1. "Ghost" authors, who contribute substantially but are not acknowledged (often paid by commercial sponsors).
  2. "Guest" authors, who make no discernible contributions, but are included to help increase the chances of publication.
  3. Gift" authors, whose contribution is based solely on a tenuous common affiliation to the study.

Plagiarism

One of the most common types of misconduct in publishing is plagiarism: when an author deliberately uses the work of another without permission, credit, or acknowledgment. Plagiarism takes different forms, from verbatim copying to paraphrasing ideas from someone else's work, and can include:

  • Data
  • Words and phrases
  • Ideas and concepts
  • Plagiarism has different levels of seriousness, depending on:
  • How much of someone's work was taken: a few lines, paragraphs, pages, the entire article?
  • What was copied: results, methods, or another section?

It is critical to credit someone else's work (including the advisor's or your own previous work), it should be placed in the context of the area's advancement and acknowledge the findings on which you have built your research.

Simultaneous submission

Authors have an obligation to ensure that their article is based on original, unpublished research. Intentionally submitting work for duplicate publication is considered a breach of editorial ethics.

Simultaneous submission occurs when one person submits a paper to different journals at the same time, and duplicate or multiple publication occurs when two or more articles, without complete cross-referencing, share essentially the same hypotheses, data, discussion and/or conclusions.

This can occur in varying degrees: literal duplication, partial but substantial duplication, or even duplication by paraphrasing. One of the main reasons it is considered unethical is because it can result in 'unintentional double counting or inappropriate weighting of the results of a single study, which distorts the available evidence'.

6. Originality check

All papers sent to Psicosespacios will be analyzed by software to verify text similarities. In case of indications of violations of the codes of ethics and copyright, the procedure established in the COPE organization charts will be followed to resolve cases of suspected malpractice.

7. Copyrights

Authorship

Based on the four criteria of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), Psicoespacios adopts the following definition of an author of a scientific paper:

  • Make substantial contributions to the conception or design of the paper or to the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation of the data of the work.
  • The drafting of the paper or the critical review of its content.
  • Final approval of the version for publication.
  • Be responsible for all aspects of the work, ensuring that all issues relating to the accuracy or completeness of the text are investigated and confirmed.

Only those who meet these four criteria should be listed as authors of a scientific paper. This implies that all co-authors have a shared responsibility for the work, relying on the integrity of the contributions of their collaborators.

Contributors to the paper who do not meet these four criteria cannot appear as authors but should be acknowledged in a footnote with their names and their contribution to the research or paper. 

Authors, and not the journal, are responsible for determining that all persons named as authors meet the four criteria. Authors decide the order of appearance, according to the importance of their contributions. When submitting a paper to the journal, an information form is also filled out, where the authors (in case there is more than one), provide their data in the established order, for which they are responsible. 

Statement and submission 

Papers submitted must be accompanied by a cover letter signed by all authors, stating that the manuscript is original, that it has not been previously published or simultaneously submitted to another journal or media, and that all authors have read and agree with its contents.

The study from which the manuscript is derived must have the informed consents of all participants and the endorsement of the institutional ethics committee. All this should be specified in the methodology section, as well as the respective references, in the case of data or tests provided or designed by other authors. 

Authors are responsible for the content and for their effective participation as authors of the text. 

Once the manuscript is approved, the authors send a letter indicating that the author or authors grant the Institución Universitaria de Envigado the right for their paper and materials to be reproduced, published, edited, communicated and transmitted publicly, in any form or medium, as well as their dissemination and visibility, including making them available to the national and international public, through electronic media, for exclusively scientific, cultural and dissemination purposes, on a non-profit basis.

Copyright and publication rights

With the letter of submission, signed in the submission platform of the journal, the authors declare, under oath, that the manuscript submitted is an original and unpublished work, created by those who submit it and that all the authors mentioned made a substantial creative contribution to the work. They also declare that no identical or substantially similar article of their authorship has been published or submitted for publication in any format or publication medium prior to this application.

In the event that the manuscript is approved for publication, the authors must assign, free of charge, to the INSTITUCIÓN UNIVERSITARIA DE ENVIGADO all of the economic rights to which they are entitled, including, but not limited to, the rights of reproduction, public communication, making available, distribution and transformation, without any limit as to the means by which such reproduction, public communication, making available, distribution and transformation will be carried out, which may be any means known or to be known.

The INSTITUCIÓN UNIVERSITARIA DE ENVIGADO shall be the sole owner of the rights of reproduction, distribution, public communication, making available and transformation of THE ARTICLE, which may reproduce, distribute, communicate and make available to the public in whole or in part, in any format, including, but not limited to, print, pdf, xml, and html, in electronic media, print, Internet, and other media known or to be known. In addition, THE ARTICLE may be included in international indexes and databases.

Additionally, the authors must state that they will hold harmless the INSTITUCIÓN UNIVERSITARIA DE ENVIGADO against any judicial, extrajudicial, administrative or any other type of claim regarding the economic rights of the authors of THE ARTICLE, and will defend the INSTITUCIÓN UNIVERSITARIA DE ENVIGADO against any requirement made regarding the originality, ineditability and economic rights of the authors of THE ARTICLE.

This defense includes, but is not limited to, the payment of attorney's fees and legal auxiliaries, fees and rates of conciliation centers, compensations to which it may be condemned or extrajudicial settlements reached with the plaintiffs, plaintiffs or plaintiffs, which shall be at our expense.

Papers published in the journal Psicoespacios are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License which states that:

Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. 

NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. 

 ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. 

8. CrossMark policy

The journal Psicoespacios uses CrossMark to inform its readers of any changes to published articles. CrossMark is an initiative of CrossRef to guarantee a way to locate the official and updated version of a document. Psicospaces recognizes the importance of maintaining the integrity of scholarly records for researchers and libraries, and therefore ensures that its electronic archives always contain reliable content. Selecting the CrossMark icon provides the reader with information about the history of that publication. Content displaying the CrossMark icon is content published on the journal's website.

9. Privacy Statement

Names and e-mail addresses included in this journal will be used solely for the purposes indicated and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other person. 

Personal data included in the Psicoespacios journal are the property of their owners, who authorize their treatment as indicated in the Privacy Policy of the Institución Universitaria de Envigado, available on its website.

10. Publishing fees

The journal Psicoespacios is entirely financed by the Institución Universitaria de Envigado, a public institution of higher education and, therefore, does not charge any fee or value for the reception, processing, editing or publication of the papers included in its issues. 

11. Digital preservation

To preserve and guarantee the availability of published papers, the journal Psicoespacioshas a backup copy in the institutional repository. In addition, the journal's software, and management platform (Open Journal System) follows the information security protocols of the institutional repository of the Institución Universitaria de Envigado, to facilitate access and ensure its digital preservation over time. In addition, all published texts are given a DOI (digital object identifier) to ensure that they can be located and retrieved online. 

In addition, our website is developed under Open Journal Systems (OJS) which is an open source software developed by the Public Knowledge Project (PKP) that has the Portico or CLOCKSS service, through which the PKP Preservation Network (PKP PN) works to digitally preserve OJS journals through the LOCKSS program in order to create permanent archives of the journal, aimed at preserving the original contents and their restoration if necessary, as well as enabling the way for these files to be distributed among libraries and digital repositories.

In addition, in compliance with current legislation on Digital Deposit, backup copies of each edition are sent to the Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia.

12. Digital Object Identifier

The journal Psicoespacios has a digital object identifier (DOI) for each of its published papers, to guarantee permanent access from different operators, protect copyrights and increase visibility and impact. 

13. Errata and retractions

An Errata is, according to the Webster's dictionary, "a list of errors in a printed work discovered after printing and shown with corrections. “In a scholarly publication, this is an error that becomes apparent after publication of the paper, which can be resolved, clarified, and allow the paper to remain valid. 

However, the retraction evidences the existence of substantial errors that affect the results and conclusions of the work and, therefore, justify that the paper be excluded from publication in its entirety.

All errors identified will be analyzed by the editor and the editorial team. In cases of greater complexity, advice may be sought to make the best decision and provide ethical solutions. In all cases, the journal will strive to ensure the prompt correction of errors. 

Errata

All responses to errata will be communicated directly to the sender. Also, the changes will be published in an explanatory note in the next issue of the magazine and through its platform. Retraction notices will indicate which item is being partially modified or withdrawn in its entirety and the reasons for the retraction. 

Any errata or retraction information should be communicated to the journal's e-mailpsiecoespacios@iue.edu.co, stating your case and presenting the necessary information for your argumentation. 

14. Claims process

Any problem or disagreement with the journal, its publications, policies, evaluations, processes, among others, may be communicated directly to the journal's editor at psicoespacios@iue.edu.co, stating the specific situation and the arguments or evidence that support it.

The journal will only receive complaints and claims by e-mail and will have up to five (5) business days to respond. However, depending on the complexity of the situation, the solution to the situation may take longer.

Depending on its nature and complexity, the complaint will be analyzed by the editorial team, the editorial committee or an expert, and decisions will be made considering the guidelines or recommendations established by COPE. The journal may also request additional information to better understand the situation. 

15. Advertising Policy

The journal Psicoespacios is financed solely with public resources from the Institución Universitaria de Envigado. Since it does not receive support from public or private organizations, the magazine's web portal is kept free of advertising outside the work of the institute and the university itself.