Policy on corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern

The journal Kapitari, through its Editor-in-Chief, Editorial Committee, and Scientific Committee, may issue corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern regarding published articles, in accordance with the guidelines and flowcharts of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

These actions will be taken when necessary to safeguard the integrity, reliability, and transparency of the scholarly record, and will be applied considering the type, severity, scope, and consequences of the identified inaccuracy, error, or misconduct.

All notices resulting from this policy will be public, transparent, accessible, will have persistent identifiers (DOI), and will be integrated into the Crossmark system, so that readers can clearly identify the updated status of the content.

Expressions of Concern

An expression of concern will be published when there are reasonable indications of serious problems with a published article, but the investigation is not yet complete or there is insufficient evidence to issue a definitive correction or retraction.

Expressions of concern may be issued, among other cases, when:

  • There are well-founded suspicions of research or publication misconduct.
  • Additional information is being awaited from the authors or an institution.
  • The investigation process has been prolonged for justified reasons.

In these cases:

  • A notice titled “Expression of Concern: [article title]” will be published, linked to the original article.
  • The notice will clearly and concisely describe the reasons for the concern.
  • The original article will remain accessible, with a visible indication of its status.
  • Once the investigation is complete, the expression of concern will be removed or replaced with a correction or retraction, as appropriate.

Errata (errors attributable to the journal)

A notice of errata will be published when it is necessary to correct an error or omission attributable to the journal, detected after publication, that may affect the academic record, understanding of the article, or reputation of the authors or the journal, without compromising the scientific integrity of the content.

In these cases:

  • The article will be corrected.
  • A visible note will be added at the end of the article indicating the existence of an erratum.
  • A separate erratum notice will be published, clearly identified and linked to the corrected article.
  • The erratum notice will be paginated and will have its own DOI.

Corrections (Errors Attributable to the Authors)

A correction notice will be issued when it is necessary to correct an error or omission attributable to the authors that affects the publication record or its correct interpretation, without invalidating the main conclusions of the article.

In these cases:

  • The article will be corrected.
  • A visible note indicating the correction will be added to the end of the article.
  • A separate correction notice will be published, linked to the corrected article.
  • The correction notice will be paginated and will have its own DOI.

Retractions

A retraction notice will be published when an article is found to contain serious errors or misconduct that invalidate its conclusions in whole or in part, or when the integrity of the research or publication has been compromised.

Retraction will be considered, among other cases, when:

  • There is clear evidence that the findings are unreliable due to substantial errors or misconduct (fabrication or manipulation of data, images, or results).
  • Significant plagiarism or self-plagiarism is identified.
  • Redundant or duplicate publication is confirmed without adequate justification.
  • There is fraudulent authorship or serious authorship disputes.
  • Compromised peer review is detected.
  • Serious violations of research ethical standards are evidenced.

When the decision is made to retract an article:

  • The published version of the article will remain accessible, with a visible "Retracted Article" watermark.
  • The article title will be modified to: "Retracted Article: [article title]".
  • A separate retraction statement will be published, titled "Retraction: [article title]", signed by the Editor-in-Chief.
  • The retraction statement will be paginated and will have its own DOI.
  • The article status will be updated via Crossmark.

Article Removal

The removal of an article will only occur in exceptional circumstances, when the identified problems cannot be adequately addressed through a correction or retraction.

Removal will only proceed when:

  • The content is clearly defamatory or infringes legal rights.
  • There is a court order requiring its removal.
  • The continued availability of the article poses a serious risk to health or safety.

In these cases:

  • The article's metadata (title, author, DOI) will remain visible.
  • The full text will be replaced with a notice indicating that the article has been removed for legal or safety reasons.
  • The removal will be recorded and communicated in accordance with COPE guidelines.

General Principles

  • All decisions will be made respecting due editorial process, confidentiality, and the right of reply of the parties involved.
  • Kapitari will not remove articles to conceal errors or misconduct.
  • This policy is aligned with the journal's editorial ethics, anti-plagiarism, authorship, and Crossmark policies.