Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy

Purpose

The Journal of Managerial Sciences (JMS) recognizes the increasing use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in academic research, writing, editing, data analysis, translation, and scholarly publishing.

JMS permits responsible use of AI tools where such use supports scholarly work without compromising research integrity, originality, transparency, confidentiality, authorship, accountability, or publication ethics.

This policy applies to authors, reviewers, editors, editorial-board members, and other contributors involved in the publication process of JMS.

General Principle

AI tools may assist researchers and authors, but AI cannot be an author, co-author, reviewer, or editor of a JMS publication.

Human authors remain fully responsible for:

  • the originality and integrity of their work;
  • the accuracy and reliability of all content;
  • the validity of research methods and findings;
  • all citations and references;
  • compliance with ethical requirements;
  • disclosure of AI use where required; and
  • the final version submitted for publication.

Use of AI does not transfer responsibility for scholarly work from the human author to the AI system.

Acceptable Use of AI by Authors

Authors may use AI-assisted tools for limited and responsible purposes, including:

  • improving grammar, spelling, punctuation, and language;
  • improving clarity and readability;
  • translation or language assistance;
  • generating suggestions for organization or presentation;
  • assisting with coding or programming, provided that the resulting code is verified by the authors;
  • assisting with data analysis, where appropriate and where the methodology and results are independently verified by the authors;
  • identifying potential research themes or questions; and
  • other forms of editorial or technical assistance that do not replace the authors' scholarly judgment.

Authors must critically evaluate all AI-generated or AI-assisted output before incorporating it into a manuscript.

Disclosure of Generative AI Use

Where generative AI has been used substantially in the preparation of a manuscript, authors should disclose such use in the manuscript or in the submission process, as appropriate.

The disclosure should identify:

  1. the AI tool or system used;
  2. the purpose for which it was used; and
  3. the extent or nature of its contribution.

For example:

AI-Assisted Tool Disclosure: The authors used [name of AI tool] for language editing and improvement of readability. The authors reviewed and verified all outputs and remain fully responsible for the content of the manuscript.

Routine use of basic spelling, grammar, or formatting tools that does not generate substantive scholarly content ordinarily does not require a separate disclosure.

AI-Generated Scholarly Content

Authors must not rely on AI systems as a substitute for their own scholarly analysis, interpretation, or intellectual contribution.

AI-generated content must not be presented as original human scholarship without appropriate disclosure and verification.

Authors are particularly responsible for detecting and correcting:

  • fabricated or inaccurate information;
  • nonexistent or inaccurate references;
  • unsupported claims;
  • misleading interpretations;
  • inappropriate citations;
  • plagiarism or unattributed reproduction;
  • biased or discriminatory content; and
  • factual or methodological errors generated by AI systems.

AI-generated references must be independently verified against the original sources.

Authorship

AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors of articles published by JMS.

Authorship requires human accountability for the work, including responsibility for the research, interpretation, manuscript, and responses to editorial or scholarly queries.

An AI system cannot:

  • take responsibility for a manuscript;
  • approve the final version;
  • disclose conflicts of interest;
  • provide consent to publication; or
  • respond to questions concerning research integrity.

Plagiarism and Originality

The use of AI does not exempt authors from JMS's requirements concerning originality and plagiarism.

Authors must ensure that manuscripts comply with the journal's plagiarism and research-integrity requirements.

AI-generated text, ideas, references, images, code, or other material must not be used in a manner that misrepresents their origin or violates the intellectual-property rights of others.

JMS may use appropriate similarity-detection and other integrity-screening mechanisms as part of its editorial process.

AI and Research Data

Authors must exercise particular caution when entering research data, personal information, confidential information, unpublished manuscripts, proprietary information, or other sensitive material into external AI systems.

Authors must comply with applicable:

  • research ethics requirements;
  • data-protection and privacy requirements;
  • institutional policies; and
  • confidentiality obligations.

AI tools should not be used in a manner that compromises the confidentiality, privacy, or security of research participants or research data.

AI Use by Peer Reviewers

Peer reviewers must not upload or submit manuscripts, portions of manuscripts, reviewer reports, unpublished findings, tables, figures, datasets, or other confidential material to publicly accessible generative AI systems.

Because peer review is confidential, reviewers must protect the confidentiality of manuscripts and associated information.

Reviewers may use AI-assisted tools for limited purposes only where such use does not compromise confidentiality and is consistent with the journal's instructions.

Reviewers remain responsible for the substance and accuracy of their review.

AI systems must not be credited as reviewers.

AI Use by Editors and Editorial Board Members

Editors and editorial-board members may use AI-assisted tools for appropriate administrative or editorial purposes, provided that such use does not compromise:

  • manuscript confidentiality;
  • author privacy;
  • reviewer confidentiality;
  • editorial independence;
  • research integrity; or
  • fairness in editorial decision-making.

Editors must not delegate final editorial decisions to AI systems.

All decisions concerning acceptance, revision, rejection, or publication remain the responsibility of authorized human editors.

AI-Assisted Peer Review and Editorial Decision-Making

JMS may use AI-assisted technologies for legitimate editorial-support functions, such as identifying potential plagiarism, detecting unusual patterns, checking references, or supporting administrative workflows.

However, AI-generated assessments must not be treated as a substitute for qualified human editorial judgment.

Any use of AI in editorial processes must be consistent with the principles of fairness, confidentiality, transparency, accountability, and editorial independence.

AI-Generated Images, Figures, and Other Media

Authors should disclose the use of generative AI in creating or substantially modifying images, figures, illustrations, audio, video, or other media submitted with a manuscript.

AI-generated or AI-modified material must not be used to fabricate, manipulate, or misrepresent research evidence.

In particular, authors must not use generative AI to create or alter research images in a manner that changes, conceals, or falsely represents experimental or observational findings.

Fabrication, Falsification, and Misrepresentation

Use of AI to fabricate data, results, participants, quotations, references, research observations, images, or other scholarly evidence constitutes a serious breach of research and publication ethics.

Where AI-generated material results in fabricated or falsified scholarship, JMS may take appropriate action under its research-integrity and publication-ethics procedures.

Copyright and Intellectual Property

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their use of AI tools does not infringe copyright, intellectual-property rights, confidentiality obligations, or other legal rights.

Authors should carefully verify the provenance and permitted use of AI-generated or AI-assisted material before submitting it to JMS.

Editorial Review of AI Use

JMS reserves the right to request clarification from authors regarding the use of AI in a submitted manuscript.

Where there are reasonable concerns regarding undisclosed or inappropriate AI use, the journal may request:

  • an explanation of how AI was used;
  • identification of the AI system or tool;
  • relevant prompts or outputs where reasonably necessary;
  • supporting research materials; or
  • clarification regarding authorship, originality, data, or references.

Failure to provide a satisfactory explanation may be considered in accordance with JMS publication-ethics procedures.

 

Post-Publication Concerns

If substantial undisclosed or inappropriate AI use is identified after publication, JMS may investigate the matter in accordance with its publication-ethics procedures.

Depending on the circumstances, corrective action may include:

  • correction;
  • expression of concern;
  • retraction; or
  • other appropriate editorial action.

Responsibility and Accountability

The ultimate responsibility for all published material rests with the human authors and the authorized editorial team.

AI is regarded as an assistive technology, not an accountable scholarly agent.

JMS therefore expects all contributors to exercise appropriate human judgment, verification, transparency, and ethical responsibility when using AI.

Policy Review

This policy will be reviewed periodically by JMS to reflect developments in Artificial Intelligence, scholarly publishing, research ethics, copyright, data protection, and international publishing standards.

JMS may revise this policy when necessary to maintain the integrity and quality of its scholarly publishing practices.