The Global Journal of Dental Speciality (GJDS) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of scholarly publishing through a transparent, ethical, and rigorous editorial process. The journal's editorial policies are guided by the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), and internationally recognized indexing standards, including those expected by Scopus. The Editorial Office ensures that every manuscript is handled fairly, confidentially, and without bias from submission to publication.

1. Initial Editorial Assessment

All submitted manuscripts undergo an initial editorial screening to determine whether they:

• Fall within the scope of the journal.
• Comply with the journal's submission guidelines.
• Meet minimum standards of scientific quality and originality.
• Include all required submission documents.
• Satisfy ethical and reporting requirements.
• Successfully pass plagiarism screening.

Manuscripts that do not meet these requirements may be returned to the authors before peer review.

2. Manuscript Submission Management

The Editorial Office is responsible for:

• Receiving and acknowledging manuscript submissions.
• Verifying author information and affiliations.
• Ensuring submission completeness.
• Checking manuscript formatting and reference style.
• Confirming submission of ethical approval documents where applicable.
• Verifying ORCID iDs, conflict of interest disclosures, funding information, and author declarations.
• Providing technical assistance to authors during the submission process.

3. Plagiarism Screening

Every manuscript is screened using Turnitin or an equivalent plagiarism detection software before peer review.

The Editorial Office will:

• Evaluate the overall similarity index.
• Investigate potential plagiarism, duplicate publication, self-plagiarism, and text recycling.
• Reject manuscripts involving research misconduct.
• Follow COPE guidelines when handling suspected plagiarism.

4. Peer Review Management

The journal follows a rigorous double-blind peer review process.

Editorial responsibilities include:

• Selecting qualified reviewers with relevant subject expertise.
• Ensuring reviewer independence and confidentiality.
• Monitoring review timelines.
• Maintaining unbiased and objective peer review.
• Requesting additional reviewers when necessary.
• Making editorial decisions based solely on scientific merit.

Editorial decisions include:

• Accept
• Minor Revision
• Major Revision
• Reject

5. Editorial Decision-Making

Editors evaluate manuscripts based on:

• Scientific quality
• Originality
• Methodological rigor
• Clinical relevance
• Statistical validity
• Ethical compliance
• Reporting quality
• Reviewer recommendations

Editorial decisions remain independent of commercial, institutional, or personal interests.

6. Author Communication

The Editorial Office provides continuous support by:

• Acknowledging manuscript receipt.
• Informing authors about editorial decisions.
• Communicating reviewer comments.
• Requesting revisions.
• Answering submission-related inquiries.
• Providing publication updates.

All communication is conducted professionally, confidentially, and promptly.

7. Proofreading and Copyediting

Accepted manuscripts undergo comprehensive editorial processing, including:

• Language editing.
• Grammar and spelling corrections.
• Scientific terminology verification.
• Formatting according to journal style.
• Reference verification.
• DOI and citation checking.
• Layout preparation.
• Final author proof approval before publication.

Only minor typographical corrections are permitted at the proof stage.

8. Issue Compilation and Publication

The Editorial Office is responsible for:

• Scheduling accepted manuscripts.
• Organizing articles into journal issues.
• Preparing tables of contents.
• Assigning page numbers.
• Ensuring metadata accuracy.
• Publishing articles in both online and archived formats.
• Coordinating indexing and digital preservation.

9. Publication Ethics

The journal adheres to the ethical principles established by ICMJE and COPE.

The Editorial Office investigates allegations involving:

• Plagiarism
• Duplicate publication
• Data fabrication
• Data falsification
• Image manipulation
• Authorship disputes
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest
• Citation manipulation
• Ethical approval deficiencies

Appropriate actions may include manuscript rejection, publication correction, retraction, or notification of the relevant institutions.

10. Conflict of Interest Management

Editors, reviewers, and authors must disclose any financial, academic, institutional, or personal conflicts of interest.

Editors with a conflict of interest shall recuse themselves from handling the manuscript, and another editor will be assigned.

11. Confidentiality

All manuscripts, reviewer reports, editorial correspondence, and author information are treated as confidential.

Editors and reviewers must not:

• Share unpublished manuscripts.
• Disclose reviewer identities.
• Use unpublished data for personal benefit.
• Discuss confidential information with unauthorized individuals.

12. Research Integrity

The journal promotes responsible research practices by ensuring compliance with:

• Ethical approval requirements.
• Informed consent policies.
• Clinical trial registration (where applicable).
• Animal research guidelines.
• Human participant protection standards.
• Data transparency and reproducibility.

13. Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern

If significant errors or ethical concerns are identified after publication, the journal may publish:

• Corrections (Errata)
• Corrigenda
• Expressions of Concern
• Retractions

Such actions will be taken in accordance with COPE Retraction Guidelines to preserve the integrity of the scholarly record.

14. Indexing and Publishing Standards

The Editorial Office maintains publishing standards consistent with internationally recognized databases and indexing services by ensuring:

• High editorial quality.
• Transparent peer review.
• Ethical publishing practices.
• Accurate article metadata.
• DOI registration.
• Long-term digital archiving.
• Compliance with international publishing standards expected by major indexing databases, including Scopus.

15. Editorial Commitment

The Editorial Board of the Global Journal of Dental Speciality (GJDS) is committed to maintaining a fair, transparent, timely, and ethical publication process. Every manuscript is handled with professionalism, confidentiality, and impartiality to ensure the publication of high-quality scientific research that contributes to the advancement of dental science and clinical practice.