The Malaysian Journal of Soil Science (MJSS) is committed to maintaining the accuracy, integrity, and transparency of the scholarly record. When errors or concerns are identified in published or accepted manuscripts, the journal will take appropriate action in accordance with established principles of publication ethics.
A correction may be issued when a published article contains an error that affects the accuracy of the publication but does not invalidate the scientific findings or conclusions.
Examples include:
Corrections will be published promptly and linked to the original article.
A retraction may be issued when there is clear evidence that the findings or conclusions of a published article are unreliable due to:
Retraction notices will clearly identify the affected article, explain the reason for the retraction, and remain permanently linked to the original publication. The original article will remain accessible as part of the scholarly record but will be clearly marked as retracted.
Where serious concerns have been raised about a published article, but the investigation is ongoing or inconclusive, the journal may publish an Expression of Concern to alert readers while the matter is under review.
Authors may request withdrawal of a manuscript before publication by submitting a written request to the editorial office explaining the reason for withdrawal.
The journal may also withdraw an accepted manuscript prior to publication if evidence of plagiarism, duplicate submission, authorship disputes, ethical violations, copyright infringement, or other forms of misconduct is identified.
Once an article has been formally published, withdrawal will generally not be permitted. Any necessary action will normally be handled through a correction, expression of concern, or retraction.
All allegations of publication misconduct, ethical violations, authorship disputes, plagiarism, or other concerns will be investigated by the editorial office in a fair, confidential, and impartial manner.
Authors may be requested to provide supporting documentation, original data, ethical approvals, or other relevant information during the investigation process.
The Editor-in-Chief retains the authority to determine the appropriate course of action based on the available evidence and the journal's ethical standards.
MJSS is committed to preserving the integrity of the scientific record. Any corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions will be clearly identified and permanently linked to the original publication to ensure transparency for readers and indexing services.
For a complete, Scopus-ready policy framework, MJSS should ideally have the following pages:
With these policies in place, MJSS would present a professional and transparent editorial framework comparable to many established international scholarly journals.