Correction and Retraction

JACOBS is committed to maintaining the integrity and completeness of the scholarly record. When errors or problems are identified in a published article, the journal acts promptly and transparently, following the COPE Retraction Guidelines and ICMJE recommendations.

Types of Post-Publication Notices

Notice When it is used Initiated by Effect on the article
Erratum An error introduced by the journal during production (for example, in layout, metadata, or typesetting) that affects the publication record. Journal Article corrected; notice published and linked.
Corrigendum An honest error made by the authors that affects part of the article but not its overall findings or conclusions (for example, a wrong value in a table or a missing affiliation or funding statement). Authors or journal Article corrected; notice published and linked.
Expression of Concern Inconclusive evidence of misconduct or unreliable data, or an investigation that is under way and will take time. Editor-in-Chief Article remains unchanged; notice published and linked until the matter is resolved.
Retraction Clear evidence that the findings are unreliable because of major error or misconduct; plagiarism; duplicate publication; unethical research; or compromised peer review. Editor-in-Chief, with or without the authors' agreement Article remains online, marked "RETRACTED"; retraction notice published and linked.
Removal Rare cases in which the article is defamatory, infringes legal rights, is subject to a court order, or poses a serious risk to health or privacy if followed. Publisher, on legal advice Text removed; metadata and a notice explaining the removal remain.

Procedure

  1. Request or discovery. Authors, readers, or editors report a potential error to the Editor-in-Chief at journal.nalatama@gmail.com with a description and supporting evidence.
  2. Assessment. The Editor-in-Chief evaluates the report, consults the authors, and, where necessary, the reviewers or the authors' institution.
  3. Decision. The editor decides which type of notice, if any, is appropriate.
  4. Publication of the notice. The notice is published online as soon as possible, normally within 30 days of the decision, and is also included in the next issue. It has its own DOI, cites the original article, states the reason, and identifies who initiated it.
  5. Updating records. The original article is linked to the notice, and the metadata are updated with Crossref and indexing services.

Retraction Principles

  • The purpose of retraction is to correct the literature, not to punish authors.
  • Retracted articles are not deleted. They remain accessible with a clear watermark and a link to the retraction notice, so that the record is preserved.
  • Retraction notices are freely available and clearly state the reasons for retraction.
  • When only one part of an article is unreliable and the rest remains valid, a correction is preferred over retraction.

Withdrawal of Manuscripts Before Publication

  • Authors may withdraw a manuscript during review by sending a written request, signed by all authors and stating the reasons, to the editorial office. The manuscript must not be submitted elsewhere until the withdrawal is confirmed.
  • After acceptance, withdrawal is considered only for serious reasons, such as the discovery of a fundamental error.
  • After publication, an article cannot be withdrawn; it can only be corrected or retracted according to this policy.