The International Journal of Innovative Technologies in Social Science (IJITSS) places great importance on the accurate attribution of authorship and contributorship to ensure the integrity of the research and provide proper recognition of contributions. This policy outlines the criteria for authorship, the responsibilities of authors, and the acknowledgment of contributors who may not meet authorship criteria.

1. Authorship Criteria

In accordance with widely accepted academic standards, authorship should be based on significant intellectual contributions to the research work. To be considered an author, individuals must meet all of the following criteria:

• Substantial Contributions: Authors must have made significant contributions to the conception and design of the study, data acquisition, analysis, interpretation, or development of the research.
• Drafting and Revising: Authors must have been involved in drafting or critically revising the manuscript for important intellectual content.
• Final Approval: All listed authors must approve the final version of the manuscript before submission.
• Accountability: Authors must agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work, ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the research are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Authors who do not meet these criteria should not be included as co-authors.

2. Contributorship

Individuals who contributed to the research but do not meet the authorship criteria should be acknowledged in the Acknowledgments section of the manuscript. These contributions may include:

• Technical support
• Data collection assistance
• Administrative support
• Writing assistance
• Critical feedback on the manuscript

All contributions, regardless of authorship, should be acknowledged transparently, with the explicit consent of those being recognized.

3. Corresponding Author Responsibilities

The corresponding author is responsible for overseeing the submission process and ensuring all co-authors meet the authorship criteria. Additional responsibilities include:

• Communicating with the editorial office and managing communications between co-authors.
• Ensuring that all co-authors are aware of and approve the final manuscript before submission.
• Managing any changes to the author list, which must be approved by all co-authors.

The corresponding author is also responsible for ensuring compliance with the journal's policies and ethical standards.

4. Changes to Authorship

Any changes to the authorship (addition, removal, or reordering of authors) must be approved by all listed authors. Requests for changes must include a clear reason and be submitted to the editorial office, accompanied by confirmation of consent from all authors (including those being added or removed).

IJITSS reserves the right to request further information and may contact the corresponding author’s institution if there is evidence of unethical authorship practices.

5. Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT)

IJITSS encourages the use of the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT) to ensure transparency in authorship and contributorship. The CRediT taxonomy defines and standardizes the following roles:

• Conceptualization: Ideas; formulation or evolution of overarching research goals and aims.
• Methodology: Development or design of the methodology; creation of models.
• Software: Programming, software development, and implementation of the code and algorithms.
• Validation: Verification of the overall replication and reproducibility of the study.
• Formal Analysis: Application of statistical, mathematical, or computational techniques.
• Investigation: Conducting the research and investigation process.
• Resources: Providing research materials, reagents, tools, or software.
• Data Curation: Management of the data produced during the research.
• Writing – Original Draft: Preparation, creation, and/or presentation of the published work.
• Writing – Review & Editing: Reviewing and editing the manuscript, including responses to peer reviews.
• Visualization: Preparation of figures and data presentation.
• Supervision: Oversight and leadership responsibility for the research activity.
• Project Administration: Coordination and management of the research project.
• Funding Acquisition: Securing financial support for the project.

Authors are encouraged to include CRediT role descriptions in the Author Contributions section of their manuscript.

6. Ethical Considerations in Authorship

All authors are expected to adhere to the highest ethical standards in reporting research findings and ensuring the accuracy of their contributions. The following unethical practices are prohibited:

• Ghost Authorship: Excluding contributors who made substantial contributions from the author list.
• Gift Authorship: Including individuals who did not contribute significantly to the research.
• Guest Authorship: Adding authors with the expectation of gaining academic or financial benefits.

Authors should disclose any conflicts of interest and avoid any unethical authorship practices.

7. Disputes and Resolution

Disputes related to authorship or contributorship should be resolved at the institutional level. IJITSS encourages authors to discuss and agree on authorship roles and order before submission to prevent future disputes.

In the event of an authorship dispute during the publication process, the journal may follow the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and request that the involved parties provide a written explanation of the dispute. The editorial board will review the case and, if necessary, involve the authors’ institutions to seek resolution.