The Review of Korean Studies Code of Ethics for Research Publication

Article 1 (Purpose) This Code of Ethics establishes standards for research ethics and procedures related to research misconduct for researchers publishing through The Review of Korean Studies (RKS), the English-language journal of the Academy of Korean Studies.

Article 2 (Tasks and Composition of the RKS Research Ethics Committee)

① The Ethics Committee is composed of one Chairperson (internal) and four members (two internal, two external), appointed by the President of the Academy. Current and past members of the RKS Editorial Board are excluded.

② The Chairperson and committee members’ mandate is two years.

③ The Managing Editor of the Editorial Board also supports the Ethics Committee.

④ Ethics Committee meetings require a quorum of majority attendance, and decisions require a two-thirds vote. Meetings are closed, and may require attendance or statements from related parties as needed.

⑤ The Ethics Committee oversees and decides on the following matters.

1. Establishing and managing policies related to research ethics and integrity
2. Procedures for processing and reviewing ethics violation allegations
3. Procedures for investigations, verdicts, approvals, and re-evaluations
4. Informant protection and remediation for subjects of investigations
5. Research integrity verification process and related follow-up procedures
6. Other items presented by the Chairperson

Article 3 (Research Misconduct)

① The following cases constitute plagiarism.

1. Submitting a work previously published, of the author or of another person, without giving appropriate credit through citations, footnotes, or other appropriate annotations.
2. Using public or non-public primary sources or other intellectual property without proper acknowledgement of the source or permission from the owner.

② The following cases constitute duplicate publication.

1. Publishing one’s own work that has already been published in a different journal in the RKS.
2. Using five or more consecutive sentences from one’s own work published in a different

journal without proper citations.

③ The following are also considered research ethics violations.

1. Fabricating data or research results
2. Falsifying research content or findings by modifying or omitting data, procedures, or

results

3. Failing to give authorship credit to someone with academic contribution to the

research results, or improperly listing an undeserved author, whether due to

reciprocity or seniority

4. Other cases that significantly violate the scope of generally accepted research activities

Article 4 (Assessment and Processing of Allegations)

① Upon receiving an allegation of plagiarism or duplicate publication from an identified or anonymous informant, the Editor-in-Chief must immediately notify the Ethics Committee Chairperson, who will then call an Ethics Committee meeting.

② The Ethics Committee must determine investigators and initiate the investigation within 15 days of receiving notification of the allegation. The investigators will conclude their investigation within 60 days, which may be extended once by 15 days.

③ The Ethics Committee Chairperson and Committee members serve as ex-officio investigators, and 1-2 external investigators with expertise and experience related to the allegation may be added to the investigation committee.

1. Prior to initiating an investigation, the Ethics Committee will recuse ex-officio investigators with conflicts of interest. The Managing Editor will notify the informant and subject of the confirmed investigators, of which the informant and subject may each request to recuse up to one investigator.
2. An investigation committee is always comprised of five investigators, and additional external investigators must be appointed if any ex-officio investigators are recused from the investigation.
3. Ex-officio investigators may recuse themselves prior to the initiation of an investigation.

④ The Ethics Committee must act to preserve the rights and interests of informants and subjects of investigations.

1. The Committee will follow procedures to protect the identity of informants, and ensure

minimal infringement of subjects’ rights and dignity until the investigation is

concluded.

2. The Ethics Committee must offer equal opportunity to both the informant and subject

to voice objections and statements. The obligation to appear before the Committee

differs; while informants or witnesses may choose to submit written statements,

subjects must appear in person. Authors must also agree to submit related materials

and provide copies of submitted materials.

⑤ Findings from the investigation are evaluated by the Ethics Committee and communicated to the related parties within ten days. Related parties with objections may request a repeal within seven days, upon which the Ethics Committee will reassess within seven days and re-notify within five days.

Article 5 (Sanctions)

① If the level and nature of the research misconduct is deemed to be severe, the Ethics Committee may recommend withdrawal of the related published article. If the Editorial Board decides to withdraw the article, the Editorial Board and Ethics Committee must issue a joint retraction statement in the RKS and also notify related parties.

② The Ethics Committee may recommend that the Editorial Board impose sanctions of one to three years on authors who have committed research misconduct.

Article 6 (Miscellaneous)

① All records related to investigations will be managed by the Managing Editor and kept for ten years.

② All details related to investigations are to be kept confidential, and all personnel directly or indirectly involved with an investigation have the responsibility to not disclose any information obtained through the investigation. The Ethics Committee may decide to disclose certain materials if deemed necessary for a justifiable reason or the common good.

③ Funds for the operations and investigations of the Committee are disbursed according to the budget.

④ Other items not specified in these guidelines are governed by the Academy’s Code of Research Ethics, related guidelines of The Korean Studies Quarterly and the National Research Foundation of Korea.