Research Institute of Curriculum & Instruction (RICI) Code of Research Ethics

Article 1 (Purpose)

The purpose of this code is to establish research ethics with respectto the research activities conducted by the Research Institute of Curriculum & Instruction (RICI), and to determine matters related to verification of research ethics.

Article 2 (Application scope)

This code shall be applied to the journal published by RICI (Journal of Research in Curriculum & Instruction) and books for research purposes (Ewha Education Series).

Article 3 (Enactment and review)

This code is enacted and modified by the RICI steering committee, and the editorial board will review and verify submitted articles according to the code of ethics.

Article 4 (Research misconduct)

Articles involving misconduct are not to be published, and in case such misconduct is discovered, the articles shall be withdrawn.

1. “Counterfeit” refers to writing an article by fabricating false materials or nonexistent research findings.

2. “Falsification” refers to artificially fabricating research data, equipment, and processes, or to randomly modifying/deleting data to distort the content or results of the study.

3. “Plagiarism” refers to pirating the ideas, research content, and results of others without approval of the original authors.

4. "Improper authorship attribution" means including individuals who did not contribute substantially to the research as authors, or omitting contributing individuals from the author list without due cause.

5. "Redundant publication" means publishing research outcomes that are virtually identical to previously published work without proper disclosure.

Article 5 (Range of authors and contributors)

① Authors must have contributed to planning the research and collecting/analyzing data, or to completing the research by revising important article content, and must ultimately approve publication of the research results.

② Those who provided substantial help tothe research but did not perform the role of an author as provided by Section 1 may have their names included in the Acknowledgements.

Article 5-2 (Use of Generative AI)

① Generative AI cannot be listed as an uthor.

② When authors use generative AI for manuscript drafting, data analysis, translation, or proofreading, they must clearly specify the scope and method of its use within the manuscript.

③ Ultimate responsibility for the content of the manuscript lies with the human author(s).

④ Reviewers and editorial board members must not input manuscript drafts or related materials obtained during the review or editing process into generative AI services.

Article 5-3 (Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest)

① Authors must disclose any conflicts of interest that could influence the research results—such as research funding, financial interests, or employment relationships—at the time of manuscript submission.

② If a conflict of interest exists, editorial board members and reviewers must recuse themselves from the review and decision-making process for the respective manuscript.

Article 5-4 (Co-authors with Special Relationships)

① If an author includes a minor (under the age of 19) or a family member (spouse or relative within the fourth degree of kinship) as a co-author, they must notify the editorial board of this fact and detail each author's specific contribution at the time of manuscript submission.

② In cases falling under paragraph ①, the author must obtain and submit prior consent for the provision of personal information from the special-relationship individual (including their legal representative if the individual is a minor) at the time of submission.

③ If research misconduct is confirmed in a study involving a co-author with a special relationship, the research institute shall notify the relevant institutions (such as schools related to admissions/advancement, or research-related organizations) where the special-relationship individual benefited from the publication.

Article 6 (Protection of research subjects)

① In principle, written informed consent must be obtained from human subjects participating in the research. Information that could identify the research subjects must not be published in any form within the research product.

② For research involving human subjects, it is a principle to conduct the study after obtaining approval or an exemption from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the affiliated institution. Authors must specify the IRB approval number or the fact of exemption at the time of manuscript submission.

③ For research involving humans, animals, or cells, it is recommended to report the research results taking sex and gender factors into consideration.

Article 7 (Obligations of reviewers)

Reviewers shall not disclose the content of reviewed articles.

Article 7-2 (Disqualification and Recusal of Reviewers)

Any person falling under any of the following items shall not participate in the review of the respective manuscript:

1. A person who belongs to the same institution as the submitter (author).

2. A person who has conducted collaborative research with the author within the past three years.

3. A person who is in an advisor-student relationship with the author.

4. Any other person whom the editorial board deems unlikely to conduct a fair review.

Article 8 (Obligations of editors)

The editor-in-chief and editors shall not disclose any content duringthe process of editing and publication of the journal.

Article 9 (Prohibition ofredundant and duplicate publications)

① Articles already published in another journal maynot be published in this journal.

② If the article includes a considerable amount of redundancy with another printed article or book already written by the same author, the editorial board shall review the article and make a determinationon publication. If some parts of the article are already published in an article or abstract presented ata conference, the author must provide notification when submitting the article.

Article 10 (Organization of the research ethics committee)

① The Research Ethics Committee (hereinafter referred to as the "Committee") shall consist of five or more editorial board members, including the Editor-in-Chief.

② When research misconduct is detected, the Committee shall deliberate on the respective matter.

③ The Editor-in-Chief shall serve as the Chair of the Committee.

Article 11 (Examination procedures)

① Meetings may becalled by at least 1/3 of the members in office or the editor-in-chief upon request for examination.

② Members involved in the research subject to the Committee’s examination shall not participate in the examination.

③ The Committee shall makecareful decisions on whether research ethics have been violated. If necessary, the Committee may demand submission of data or elucidation from the researcher in charge of the research.

④ Decisionsregarding violation of research ethics are made by the attendance of a majority and the consent of at least 2/3 of the members in attendance, and the results are reported to the RICI director. The results report must include the list of members, resolution procedures, details of the request for examination, grounds and evidence fordecisions, and explanation and handling procedures forthe researcher subject to examination.

⑤ The Committee’s examination is non-disclosure, and the proceedings of the meetings shall not be disclosed to the public.

⑥ Minutesshall betaken at each meeting and stored.

Article 11-2 (Verification of Research Misconduct)

Investigations into research misconduct shall not be subject to any statute of limitations.

Article 12 (Disciplinary action)

If researchers who submit to the RICI journal violate this code or the general ethical principles of research, they shall be prohibited from submitting their articles to the relevant journal for a period of 3 years. Other related matters shall be determined by the editorial board of the relevant journal.

Article 13 (Follow-up measures)

① The RICI director may review the legitimacy and validity of the examination results, and notify the subject of disciplinary actionin writing or byemail.

② The subject of disciplinary actionmay raise objections in writing or byemail within 15 days of notification.

Article 14 (Consent for compliance with research ethics)

Authors of articles that are accepted for publication must fill out the pledge according to Form 5 and submit it to the editor-in-chief.

Article 15 (Detailed rules of operation)

Matters other than those specified in this code shall be determined by resolution of the steering committee.

Additional Clauses (Amended on June 20, 2009)

1. (Enforcement date) This code shall take effect on September 1, 2007.

2. (Enforcement date) This code shall take effect on July 1, 2009.

Additional Clauses (Amended on January 1, 2025)

These amended regulations shall take effect on the date of promulgation.