Plagiarism Policy

The Journal of Shipbuilding and Marine Technology (JSMT) maintains a strict policy against plagiarism and is committed to ensuring the originality and integrity of all published research.

Plagiarism in any form is unacceptable and will result in appropriate editorial action.

Definition of Plagiarism

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

  • Copying text, ideas, data, figures, or results from other works without proper attribution

  • Paraphrasing substantial portions of another work without citation

  • Self-plagiarism (reusing significant parts of one’s own previously published work without disclosure)

  • Duplicate or redundant publication

  • Submitting work generated or modified in a way that misrepresents authorship

Similarity Screening

All submitted manuscripts are screened using plagiarism detection software such as:

  • Turnitin

  • iThenticate

The maximum acceptable similarity index is 20%, excluding references and properly cited quotations.

Manuscripts exceeding this threshold may be:

  • Returned to the author(s) for revision, or

  • Rejected, depending on the severity and nature of the similarity.

Levels of Plagiarism and Editorial Actions

1. Minor Overlap

Small portions of text overlap without significant intellectual content.

Action:
The manuscript will be returned to the author(s) for correction and proper citation.

2. Moderate Plagiarism

Significant portions of text, data, or analysis copied without appropriate citation.

Action:
The manuscript will be rejected. The author(s) may be invited to resubmit after substantial revision and clarification.

3. Severe Plagiarism

Substantial copying of another work, including replication of data, results, equations, figures, or research methods without acknowledgment.

Action:
The manuscript will be rejected immediately. The author(s) may be prohibited from submitting future manuscripts to JSMT for a specified period.

Post-Publication Discovery

If plagiarism is discovered after publication:

  • An investigation will be conducted.

  • The article may be corrected, retracted, or removed.

  • The author’s institution may be notified if necessary.

Author Responsibility

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their submissions:

  • Are original works

  • Properly cite all sources

  • Comply with ethical standards

Failure to comply with this policy constitutes a breach of publication ethics.