Authorship and Contributorship Policy

AL-ĪMĀN Research Journal (IRJ) requires authorship to reflect genuine and substantial scholarly contribution to the research and manuscript.

The journal follows principles of transparency, accountability, and academic integrity in determining authorship and contributorship.

1. Authorship Criteria

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, execution, analysis, interpretation, or scholarly development of the research and manuscript.

An author should have:

  • Made a substantial contribution to the research or scholarly work;

  • Contributed substantially to drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content;

  • Approved the final version of the manuscript before publication; and

  • Agreed to be accountable for the work and to assist in addressing questions concerning the accuracy or integrity of the research.

Individuals who do not meet these criteria should not be listed as authors.

2. Authorship Order

The order of authors should be determined by the authors themselves according to their respective contributions to the research and manuscript.

AL-ĪMĀN Research Journal (IRJ) does not normally determine the order of authors.

All listed authors must approve the submitted manuscript and the order in which their names appear before submission.

3. Corresponding Author

One author should be designated as the corresponding author.

The corresponding author is responsible for communication with the journal during submission, peer review, revision, and publication.

The corresponding author should ensure that:

  • All listed authors have approved the submitted manuscript;

  • All authors have approved the final version;

  • The author list and order are accurate;

  • Appropriate contact information is provided;

  • Any required declarations are submitted; and

  • Communication from the journal is shared with the other authors where appropriate.

The corresponding author does not necessarily have to be the first author.

4. Equal Contribution

Where two or more authors have contributed equally to the research or manuscript, the authors may indicate equal contribution in an appropriate author-contribution statement.

Any such statement should accurately reflect the authors' contributions.

5. Contributorship

Where appropriate, authors may provide a contributorship statement describing the specific contributions of individual authors.

Contributions may include, for example:

  • Conceptualization;

  • Methodology;

  • Investigation;

  • Data collection;

  • Data analysis;

  • Interpretation;

  • Literature review;

  • Writing — original draft;

  • Writing — review and editing;

  • Supervision; and

  • Project administration.

The contributorship statement must accurately represent the actual contributions of each contributor.

6. Contributors Who Are Not Authors

Individuals who have provided limited assistance but do not meet the journal's authorship criteria should not be listed as authors.

Where appropriate, their contribution may be acknowledged in the acknowledgements section, subject to their permission.

Examples may include:

  • Administrative assistance;

  • Technical assistance;

  • Language or proofreading assistance;

  • General supervision that does not meet authorship criteria; or

  • Other limited support that does not constitute substantial scholarly contribution.

7. Gift, Guest, and Ghost Authorship

AL-ĪMĀN Research Journal (IRJ) does not permit:

  • Gift authorship — listing a person as an author despite insufficient contribution;

  • Guest authorship — listing an individual as an author to increase the perceived credibility of a manuscript without an appropriate contribution; or

  • Ghost authorship — omitting an individual who made a substantial contribution that would normally qualify for authorship.

All authorship should accurately reflect the actual scholarly contributions to the work.

8. Changes to the Author List

Any request to add, remove, or change the order of authors after manuscript submission must be made before publication and must include:

  • A clear explanation for the requested change;

  • Written agreement from all existing authors; and

  • Written agreement from any author being added or removed, where applicable.

The journal may request additional information or documentation before approving a change in authorship.

Changes to authorship will not normally be considered after publication unless there is clear evidence of an authorship error or ethical issue requiring correction.

Any post-publication authorship change will be handled in accordance with the journal's publication ethics and correction procedures.

9. Disputes Concerning Authorship

AL-ĪMĀN Research Journal (IRJ) does not normally determine disputes between authors regarding authorship, contribution, or author order.

Where an authorship dispute arises, the journal may request the authors to resolve the matter through their institution or another appropriate authority.

The journal may suspend editorial processing or publication while a significant authorship dispute is being resolved.

Where necessary, the journal may follow relevant publication-ethics guidance when dealing with authorship disputes.

10. Institutional and Research Responsibilities

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their authorship declarations comply with the requirements of their institutions, research organizations, funding bodies, and applicable research regulations.

Where research involves an institution, research group, or collaborative project, authors should resolve authorship arrangements before submission whenever possible.

11. Artificial Intelligence and Authorship

Artificial intelligence systems, generative AI tools, large language models, or other automated tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors of articles published by AL-ĪMĀN Research Journal (IRJ).

AI tools do not meet the requirements for authorship because they cannot accept responsibility for the work, approve the final manuscript, or respond to questions concerning the integrity of the research.

Any substantive use of generative AI in preparing a manuscript should be disclosed in accordance with the journal's Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence and Automated Tools.

12. Author Responsibility

All listed authors are collectively responsible for ensuring that:

  • The submitted work is original;

  • The manuscript accurately represents the research;

  • Appropriate sources are acknowledged;

  • The data and findings have not been fabricated or falsified;

  • The manuscript has not been submitted simultaneously to another journal where prohibited;

  • All authors have approved the submitted and final versions; and

  • Any relevant conflicts of interest, funding, ethical approvals, and other required declarations have been disclosed.

Authorship does not remove the individual responsibility of each author for their contributions to the work.

13. Corresponding Author Contact

The corresponding author should provide a valid and regularly monitored contact email address during submission.

The journal may communicate editorial and publication-related matters through the corresponding author.

14. Acknowledgements

Individuals or organizations that contributed to the research but do not meet the criteria for authorship may be acknowledged where appropriate.

Authors should obtain permission from individuals before including their names in an acknowledgement.

15. Transparency

AL-ĪMĀN Research Journal (IRJ) is committed to ensuring that authorship and contributorship accurately reflect scholarly contributions.

The journal may request clarification or supporting information where authorship or contribution appears unclear or inconsistent with this policy.

Any suspected violation of this policy may be investigated under the journal's Publication Ethics and Research Integrity Policy.

16. Policy Updates

This policy may be updated when necessary to reflect developments in scholarly publishing standards, research ethics, and authorship practices.

Any significant changes will be clearly stated on the journal's website.

Journal:
AL-ĪMĀN Research Journal (IRJ)

Publisher:
Hira Institute of Social Sciences Research & Development