Sometimes after the publication of the article, you need to change the final version. This change is made after careful consideration by the journal's editorial team and with the support of other Red Flower Publications staff to ensure that any necessary changes are made in accordance with the policies of the Red Flower Publications and the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Any necessary changes are accompanied by a post-publication notice, which is permanently linked to the original article. These changes may take the form of Correction notices, Expression of Concern, Retraction and, in rare cases, Removal.
The purpose of linking the notices after publication with the original article is to ensure the integrity of any changes and transparency of scholarly records. Note that all post-publication notices are accessible free of charge from the date of publication.
Each article published by Red Flower Publications is the final, definitive and citeable version in the scholarly record. Recognizing published articles in this way helps to ensure that they are accurate, complete and citable. It is our policy, where possible, to maintain the integrity of the final version, in accordance with the guidelines of the STM Association:
“The articles published as a record version should remain in force, precise and unchanged to the maximum extent possible.”
STM Guidelines on Preservation of the Objective Record of Science
What should I do if my article contains errors?
If authors find errors in published articles, they should notify us as soon as possible, especially errors that affect the interpretation of data or the reliability of the information presented. The author is responsible for ensuring that consensus is reached between all co-authors listed before any correction is made to the article.
If you believe that a correction is necessary for an article after reading the guidelines, please contact the editorial team of the journal or contact us.
Post-publication notices to ensure the accuracy of the scholarly records
Correction notice
When correcting errors and omissions in the interpretation of the article may impact, a Correction notice will be issued, but the integrity of the original research or discoveries may remain intact.
Whenever possible, all authors of the original article should write and approve a correction notice. In very rare cases, where an error occurred during the publication process, the journal may be required to make a correction without the author's direct input. However, if this happens, the journal will make the best effort to notify the authors.
Please note that correction requests may be subject to a comprehensive review and that, if a question is raised, you may need to provide more information before approval of the correction.
Red Flower Publications uses two types of correction notices: a corrigendum is usually issued for errors introduced by the author and an Erratum is usually issued for errors introduced by the publisher.
The corrective notice should provide clear details of errors and changes made to the final version published. Under these circumstances, Red Flower Publications will:
- Issue a separate correction notice electronically linked to the corrected version.
- Paginate and make the correction notice available in the online edition of the journal.
- Make the correction notice free to view.
Retractions
Retractions will be issued if major errors (such as methods or analyses) invalidate the conclusions of the article, or if research or publications are inconsistent (e.g., research without ethical approval, fabricated data, manipulated images, plagiarism, duplicate publication, etc.).
The decision to retract an article will be made in accordance with Red Flower Publications Policy and COPE Guidelines. This decision will be followed by a full investigation by the editorial staff of Red Flower Publications in collaboration with the editorial team of the journal. Authors and institutions can request the retraction of their articles if they believe that their reasons meet the retraction criteria.
Retraction are issues to correct scholarly records and should not be interpreted as penalties for the authors.
The COPE guidance can be found here.
Retractions will be considered in cases where:
- There is clear evidence that the findings are not reliable because of misconduct (e.g., data fabrication or image manipulation) or honest errors (e.g., miscalculation or experimental errors).
- The findings have been published elsewhere before without proper reference, permission or justification (e.g. cases of redundant or duplicate publication).
- The research constitutes plagiarism.
- The editor no longer confidence in the validity or integrity of the article.
- There is evidence or concern about the authorship of the sale.
- Evidence of compromised peer review or systematic manipulation.
- Evidence of unethical research, or evidence of a violation of editorial policy.
- The authors deliberately submitted fraudulent or inaccurate information, or violated the warranty provided in the Author Publishing Agreement (APA).
When an article is retracted, Red Flower Publications will:
Expressions of concern
In some cases, an Expression of Concern may be considered if there are serious concerns (such as research or publication misconduct), but the results of the investigation are inconclusive or the investigation will not be completed for a considerable period of time due to various complexity. This could be due to ongoing institutional investigations or other circumstances outside the control of the journal.
When the investigation is completed, a notice of retraction or correction may follow the expression of concern, in addition to the original article. All of these will remain part of the permanent publication records.
Expression of Concerns will be considered in the following cases:
- There is inconclusive evidence of authors' research or publication misconduct, but the nature of the concerns warrants a notification to the reader.
- There are legitimate concerns that the findings are unreliable or that there may be inconsistencies, but there is limited cooperation from the author's institutions in investigating the concerns raised.
- An investigation into alleged misconduct related to publication that are not fair, impartial, or conclusive.
- An investigation is under way, but no solutions will be available for considerable time and the nature of the concerns warrant that readers be notified.
Expression of Concern will be linked to the published article with which it is associated.
Article removal
Article Removals are issued in rare circumstances where problems cannot be solved by a cancellation or Retraction Notice. Red Flower Publications may consider removing a published article under very limited circumstances:
The article contains information that could pose a serious risk of harm if it is implemented or followed.
- Article contains material that violates the privacy rights of participants in the study.
- The article is defamatory or violates other legal rights.
- An article may be ordered by a court.
If an article is removed from Red Flower Publications Online, a notice of removal will be issued in its place.
