Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer

Psychosomatic Medicine and General Practice

Editorial Policy of the Professional Journal

Editorial Policy

1. Aim and Scope of the Journal

The journal “Psychosomatic Medicine and General Practice” is a peer-reviewed scientific periodical aimed at publishing the results of contemporary research in the fields of psychosomatic medicine, general medical practice, psychiatry, clinical psychology, and related medical disciplines.

The journal supports an interdisciplinary approach and promotes the integration of medical and psychological knowledge into clinical practice.


2. Types of Manuscripts

The journal considers the following types of submissions:

  • Original research articles

  • Systematic reviews and meta-analyses

  • Literature reviews

  • Case reports

  • Short communications

  • Editorials and commentaries

  • Educational materials

  • Conference abstracts


3. Language of Publication

Manuscripts are accepted in Ukrainian and English. All submissions must include an abstract in English, regardless of the language of the main text.


4. Publication Frequency

The journal is a quarterly scientific publication and issues four volumes per year (one issue per quarter).


5. Criteria for Article Acceptance

The decision on publication is based on:

  • Scientific novelty and relevance

  • Methodological rigor

  • Reliability of results

  • Compliance with the journal’s scope

  • Adherence to ethical research standards

  • Compliance with manuscript formatting requirements

The Editorial Board reserves the right to reject manuscripts that do not meet the journal’s scientific or ethical standards.


Publication Ethics Policy

Research parameters, study conditions, and researcher qualifications must fully comply with:

  • Directive 2001/20/EC and Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council

  • Regulations (EC) No 1901/2006 and No 1902/2006

  • ICH GCP

  • Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine

  • Laws of Ukraine “On Psychiatric Care,” “Fundamentals of Health Care Legislation of Ukraine,” “On Personal Data Protection”

  • Declaration of Helsinki

  • WHO recommendations for Ethics Committees reviewing biomedical research

  • Code of Ethics of the Ukrainian Physician

  • Code of Ethics of the Scientist of Ukraine

Research Ethics

  • Research involving humans must be approved by an Ethics Committee.

  • Participants must provide informed consent.

  • Animal studies must comply with international standards.

  • Personal data must be protected in accordance with GDPR and Ukrainian legislation.


International Ethical Standards

The journal adheres to the principles and recommendations of:

  • COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics)

  • WAME (World Association of Medical Editors)

  • FAIR Principles

  • DORA (San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment)

  • ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors)

  • Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines

COPE

The journal follows COPE recommendations regarding:

  • Publication ethics for editors, authors, and reviewers

  • Procedures for handling misconduct

  • Retractions and corrections

  • Prevention of plagiarism

Core documents followed:

  • Core Practices

  • Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers

  • Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing

  • Flowcharts for handling misconduct

https://publicationethics.org/


FAIR Principles

The journal supports:

  • Findability

  • Accessibility

  • Interoperability

  • Reusability


WAME

The journal applies WAME recommendations regarding:

  • Authorship ethics

  • Conflict of interest

  • Protection of personal data

  • Transparency in research funding

https://wame.org/


DORA

The journal:

  • Does not use journal impact factor as the sole quality criterion

  • Evaluates articles based on scientific merit

  • Does not manipulate citation metrics

  • Encourages disclosure of a broad range of scholarly contributions

https://sfdora.org/


ICMJE

  • Authorship recommendations

  • Clinical trial registration standards (when applicable)


TOP Guidelines

  • Open data

  • Open materials

  • Open analytic methods

  • Study preregistration (when applicable)

Authors are encouraged to deposit research data in open repositories and provide DOIs.


Statement of Transparency

The journal adheres to the highest standards of transparency and regularly updates its policies in accordance with international recommendations.


Responsibilities of Authors

Originality

  • Authors guarantee originality

  • Previously published materials are prohibited

  • Proper citation is required

  • Self-citation must be justified

Authorship

  • Only individuals who made substantial contributions qualify as authors

  • All co-authors must approve the final version

  • Changes in authorship require consent of all authors

Conflict of Interest

  • All potential conflicts must be disclosed

  • Funding sources must be indicated

  • Commercial interests must be declared


Responsibilities of Reviewers

Objectivity

  • Reviews must be objective and constructive

  • Personal criticism is unacceptable

  • Evaluation is based solely on scientific criteria

Confidentiality

  • Manuscripts are confidential

  • No discussion with third parties

  • No use of unpublished ideas

Conflict of Interest

  • Conflicts must be disclosed

  • Suspected plagiarism must be reported

Timeliness

  • Reviews must be completed within deadlines


Responsibilities of the Editorial Board

Fairness

  • Decisions based solely on scientific quality

  • No discrimination

Confidentiality

  • Manuscript information is restricted

  • Personal data are protected

Conflict of Interest

  • Editorial members do not handle conflicting submissions

  • Editorial board member submissions undergo enhanced review

Retraction

Retractions follow COPE recommendations.

Anti-Predatory Policy

The journal:

  • Does not guarantee publication for payment

  • Does not offer ghostwriting

  • Does not sell authorship

  • Does not artificially increase citations