Authorship and Contribution Guidelines

The Global Journal of Education, Finance and Management (GJEFM) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of transparency and integrity in authorship. These guidelines ensure that credit is assigned fairly and responsibly in accordance with ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) criteria and COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) best practices.

1. Authorship Criteria

To qualify as an author of a manuscript published in GJEFM, each contributor must meet all four ICMJE authorship requirements:

1. Substantial Contribution

An author must have made significant contributions to one or more of the following:

  • Study conception or design

  • Development of the theoretical framework

  • Data collection, acquisition, or case compilation

  • Data analysis, interpretation, or computational modeling

  • Literature review and synthesis

2. Drafting or Critically Revising the Work

The contributor must have:

  • Drafted substantial portions of the manuscript OR

  • Critically revised it for intellectual content

3. Final Approval

Every listed author must:

  • Review and approve the final manuscript version

  • Agree to its submission for publication

4. Accountability

Authors must:

  • Accept responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of the entire work

  • Respond to questions related to any part of the manuscript

  • Ensure proper investigation if issues arise

Failure to meet any of these criteria disqualifies a contributor from authorship.

2. Contributors Who Do NOT Qualify for Authorship

The following contributions alone do not justify authorship:

  • General supervision or administrative oversight

  • Providing funding or institutional support

  • Purely technical editing or proofreading

  • Data entry or statistical software assistance

  • Providing study materials, equipment, or access

  • Routine data collection without intellectual input

  • Project coordination or logistical support

Such individuals may be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section with their permission.

3. Corresponding Author Responsibilities

The Corresponding Author acts as the primary contact with the journal and ensures:

  • All contributors meet authorship criteria

  • Accurate reporting of author names, order, and affiliations

  • All authors have approved the manuscript

  • Compliance with ethical guidelines

  • Submission of required statements:

    • Conflict of interest declarations

    • Funding information

    • Data availability

    • Ethical compliance documentation

The Corresponding Author must remain available for post-publication communication.

4. Author Contribution Statement (Mandatory)

GJEFM requires a detailed CRediT-based Taxonomy statement outlining the specific contributions of each author.

The standard 14 CRediT roles include:

  1. Conceptualization

  2. Methodology

  3. Software

  4. Validation

  5. Formal Analysis

  6. Investigation

  7. Resources

  8. Data Curation

  9. Writing – Original Draft

  10. Writing – Review & Editing

  11. Visualization

  12. Supervision

  13. Project Administration

  14. Funding Acquisition

Example Format:

Author A: Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal Analysis, Writing – Original Draft
Author B: Data Curation, Investigation, Visualization
Author C: Writing – Review & Editing, Supervision, Funding Acquisition

This statement appears before References in the final manuscript.

5. Changes to Authorship After Submission

Changes to the author list (addition, removal, or order changes) after initial submission require:

  • A written request from the Corresponding Author

  • A signed agreement from all existing authors

  • A signed agreement from any newly added authors

  • A detailed justification for the change

The Editorial Board reserves the right to decline authorship modification requests that appear unethical or unjustified.

No authorship changes are allowed after acceptance unless formally approved under exceptional circumstances.

6. Ghostwriting, Guest Authorship & Gift Authorship

GJEFM prohibits unethical authorship practices:

❌ Ghostwriting

Uncredited writing or analysis performed by an unnamed contributor.

❌ Guest Authorship

Listing authors who contributed minimally or not at all (often due to seniority).

❌ Gift/Honorary Authorship

Adding individuals to increase perceived prestige or comply with informal expectations.

Detected violations will lead to rejection or retraction following COPE guidelines.

7. Group Authorship

When the work is produced by a research group or consortium:

  • The group name may be listed as an author

  • Individual contributors must be identified

  • A designated representative must approve the final manuscript

8. Transparency and Accountability

Upon request, authors must be able to provide:

  • Raw data

  • Methodological details

  • Ethical approvals

  • Documentation verifying contributions

Failure to comply may lead to withdrawal or retraction.

9. Dispute Resolution

Authorship disputes must be resolved internally among the authors' institutions.
The journal does not adjudicate authorship disagreements.

If unresolved, the journal may:

  • Pause the review process

  • Inform institutional authorities

  • Follow COPE dispute resolution procedures

10. Acknowledgements

Non-author contributors may be acknowledged for:

  • Technical assistance

  • Editing or language support

  • Administrative coordination

  • Funding bodies

  • Data providers

Acknowledged individuals must consent to being named.