Conflict of Interest Policy

Transparency & Editorial Integrity

Conflict of Interest Policy

Sinergi International Journal of Economics requires full disclosure of any interests that may affect research, peer review, or editorial decisions.

The journal follows the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the DOAJ Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing. Authors, reviewers, editors, and Editorial Board members must disclose any actual or potential financial or non-financial conflict of interest that could influence, or reasonably appear to influence, research in economics, finance, development, public policy, trade, labor, sustainability, or related fields.

1. What Constitutes a Conflict of Interest?

A conflict of interest is any relationship or interest that could reasonably be perceived as affecting the impartiality, objectivity, independence, or integrity of research, peer review, or editorial decisions.

Financial: research funding, sponsorship, honoraria, consultancy, employment, stock ownership, commercial partnerships, paid expert activity, investment interests, or financial relationships with companies, financial institutions, government agencies, or other organizations. Non-Financial: personal relationships, institutional affiliations, academic rivalry, professional roles, ideological interests, advocacy activities, policy involvement, organizational membership, or editorial responsibilities.
Important: The existence of a conflict does not automatically imply misconduct, bias, or invalid research, but it must be disclosed transparently so that readers, reviewers, and editors can assess its relevance.

2. Responsibilities

Authors
  • Disclose all relevant financial and non-financial interests.
  • Include a Conflict of Interest Statement in the manuscript.
  • Disclose relationships with financial institutions, businesses, government agencies, NGOs, research sponsors, consulting organizations, policy institutions, or other entities relevant to the study.
  • Disclose whether a funder, sponsor, client, institution, or third party influenced study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, or publication decisions.
  • After acceptance, upload the signed disclosure form through Production → Discussion.
If no conflict exists: “The authors declare no conflict of interest.”
Reviewers

Reviewers must disclose conflicts before accepting an invitation and must decline reviews where personal, professional, institutional, financial, competitive, ideological, or collaborative interests could reasonably affect impartiality. This includes recent collaboration with the authors, direct academic competition, involvement with organizations being studied, or financial interests related to the manuscript topic.

Editors & Editorial Board

Editors must disclose conflicts and recuse themselves from handling affected manuscripts. The manuscript will be reassigned to another qualified editor where necessary. Editors must not handle submissions where personal relationships, institutional connections, recent collaborations, commercial interests, policy roles, or other circumstances may compromise or appear to compromise editorial independence.

3. Evaluation & Management

Disclosed conflicts are reviewed confidentially by the Editorial Office. The existence of a conflict does not automatically prevent publication or participation in the editorial process. Appropriate management depends on the nature, relevance, and seriousness of the interest.

✓ Reassigning editors or reviewers ✓ Requesting clarification or additional disclosure ✓ Publishing a disclosure note
✓ Restricting involvement in specific decisions ✓ Independent editorial assessment ✓ Additional ethical review where necessary

If an undisclosed conflict is discovered after publication, corrective action may include a correction, updated disclosure, expression of concern, or retraction, depending on whether the undisclosed interest materially affected the integrity, interpretation, or reliability of the published work.

4. Transparency & Editorial Independence

Conflict of Interest Statements are published with the article. When no conflict is declared, the published article may state: “No conflicts of interest were declared.”

Authors must disclose relevant relationships involving banks, financial institutions, corporations, investment organizations, consulting firms, government bodies, policy organizations, NGOs, trade associations, research sponsors, or other organizations where those relationships may reasonably influence the research.

The Editorial Board and Yayasan Sinergi Kawula Muda maintain editorial independence. Advertising, sponsorship, funding, institutional partnerships, commercial arrangements, financial relationships, or other external interests do not influence editorial decisions or determine article content.

Ethical Guidance & Disclosure Form

This policy is aligned with international principles of transparency and ethical publishing, including guidance from COPE and the DOAJ Principles of Transparency.

↓ Download Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form