Conflicts of Interests

Dialogues in Humanities and Social Sciences (DHSS) is committed to maintaining the integrity, transparency, and credibility of the scholarly publication process. To support these principles, the journal requires authors, editors, and reviewers to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that may influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the preparation, review, editorial handling, or publication of a manuscript.

A conflict of interest exists when professional judgment concerning a primary interest—such as the validity of research, the integrity of peer review, or editorial independence—may be affected by a secondary interest, including financial gain, personal relationships, academic competition, institutional affiliation, political or ideological commitments, or other personal considerations.

Disclosure by Authors

Authors must disclose any financial, institutional, professional, or personal relationships or circumstances that could influence the conduct, interpretation, or presentation of their research. Such disclosures must be made at the time of manuscript submission and, where appropriate, acknowledged in the published article.

Examples of conflicts of interest may include, but are not limited to:

  • receipt of research grants, funding, honoraria, consultancy fees, or speaker fees related to the submitted work;

  • employment, advisory roles, or other professional relationships with an organization that may benefit from or be affected by the publication of the manuscript;

  • ownership of stocks, shares, patents, or other financial interests in entities connected to the research;

  • personal, academic, or professional relationships that may affect the objectivity of the work; or

  • any other interest that a reasonable reader might consider relevant to the interpretation of the manuscript.

Where no conflict of interest exists, authors must explicitly state:

“The author(s) declare that there is no conflict of interest.”

Author Responsibilities

As part of the submission process, authors are required to confirm that:

  • all sources of financial support for the research have been appropriately acknowledged;

  • any commercial, financial, institutional, or personal relationships relevant to the submitted work have been disclosed;

  • no agreement with a sponsor or funding body restricts the authors’ ability to publish the findings independently, including both positive and negative results;

  • all conflict-of-interest declarations have been provided in accordance with the journal’s submission requirements; and

  • the manuscript includes a conflict-of-interest statement where required.

The Declaration of Conflict of Interest should be included in the manuscript after the Acknowledgements section (if any) and before the Funding Statement, Notes, and References.

Disclosure by Editors and Guest Editors

Editors and guest editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest arising from personal, professional, financial, or institutional relationships with the authors, the subject matter, or the funding sources of the research. In such cases, the manuscript will be reassigned to another editor to ensure an independent and unbiased editorial decision.

Editors must also avoid using unpublished information disclosed in a submitted manuscript for their own research or professional advantage.

Disclosure by Reviewers

Peer reviewers are expected to disclose any conflict of interest that may compromise, or appear to compromise, their ability to provide an objective and impartial review. Reviewers should decline invitations to review manuscripts where such conflicts exist, including cases involving close personal or professional relationships with the authors, direct academic competition, collaborative involvement, or financial or institutional interests related to the manuscript.

Reviewers must treat all manuscripts as confidential documents and must not use information obtained through peer review for personal, professional, or financial benefit.

Editorial Oversight

Where a conflict of interest is disclosed, the editorial team will assess its relevance and determine whether it should be formally declared in the published article or whether additional editorial action is required. Failure to disclose a relevant conflict of interest may result in editorial action, including rejection of the manuscript, publication of a correction, or retraction of the article where appropriate.

DHSS expects all participants in the publication process to uphold the highest standards of transparency and ethical responsibility in relation to conflicts of interest.