Research Ethics Regulations

Enacted: March 1, 2006
Revised: January 19, 2007
Revised: March 5, 2012
Revised: March 13, 2020
Revised: June 13, 2025
Revised: September 4, 2026

Chapter 1. General Rules

Article 1. (Purpose)
This regulation aims to present research ethics and integrity to be observed by setting the standards and disciplinary actions for research misconduct in the publications of the Journal of the Korean Society of ITS and the results from research services conducted by the Korean Society of Intelligent Transport Systems(hereafter, referred to as “Institute”).

Article 2. (Scope and Basic Principles)
① This regulation applies to papers submitted to and published in the Journal of the Institute and research results from research services conducted by the Institute.
② Researchers(authors), editors, and reviewers must comply with research ethics to ensure research integrity and fairness in the research and publication process.

Article 3. (Research Ethics Committee)
① If a misconduct problem is raised with respect to the papers or research results of this Institute, the research ethics committee is formed and held when necessary to deliberate and decide on the matters set forth in these regulations.
② The president of the Institute designates one of the vice presidents as the chairman of the research ethics committee, and the chairman of the research ethics committee convenes and chairs the research ethics committee.
③ The research ethics committee chairman appoints up to 5 members including the editor-in-chief and experts in related fields as members of the research ethics committee. However, authors and principal investigators of papers that are subject to deliberation can not become members of the committee.

Chapter 2. (Research Misconduct)

Article 4. (Scope of Research Misconduct)
Research misconduct refers to forgery, falsification, plagiarism, improper authorship, duplicate publication, and other acts that undermine research integrity.

Article 5. (Forgery and Falsification)
Forgery and falsification encompass the following acts of intentionally presenting figures, photos, etc. of data or results used in research differently from the truth.
① Forgery refers to the act of falsely making non-existent data or research results.
② Falsification refers to the act of distorting research contents or results by artificially manipulating research process or modifying or deleting data.

Article 6. (Plagiarism)
① Plagiarism refers to the act of deliberately describing academic ideas, opinions, expressions, research results, etc. that have already been published through all textual media such as domestic and foreign academic journals, papers presented at academic conferences, research reports, master's and doctoral dissertations, books, magazines, and internet, etc. without proper citation.
② Plagiarism is also applied when the researcher is the same as the author of an already published thesis or research report (self-plagiarism).
③ However, academic knowledge or research results that have already been universalized and used in academia are not regarded as plagiarism even if they are described without citation.

Article 7. (Improper Authorship)
① Improper authorship refers to the act of not granting authorship, without justifiable reasons, to a person who has contributed to the research contents or results.
② Improper authorship also refers to the act of granting authorship to a person who has not contributed to the research contents or results for reasons such as gratitude or courtesy.

Article 8. (Duplicate Publication)
① Duplicate publication refers to an academic act of using the same or similar academic works or previous research results in another academic journal or publication without the permission of the editor of the first published journal or the copyright holders, or without proper citation of sources.
② Papers published in domestic or foreign academic journals can not be duplicated.
③ Differences from the existing papers are judged based on the following criteria. 1. In terms of research purpose, method, scope, data, results, and logic development method, at least 2 or more items must be significantly different from existing papers.
2. Use of another language is not acknowledged as distinction.

Article 9. (Other Research Misconduct)
① Intentionally interfering with an investigation into one's own or another person's research misconduct or causing harm to a person who reports research misconduct is regarded as research misconduct.
② Other acts that seriously deviate from the range generally accepted in each academic field are regarded as research misconduct.

Chapter 3. Research and Publication Ethics

Article 10. (Author's Responsibilities)
Authors shall be responsible only for research that they have actually conducted or contributed to, and shall be recognized for their achievements accordingly.

Article 11. (Author's Qualifications)
① In order to become an author of this Institute journal, all of the following conditions must be satisfied. 1. Substantial contributions in the idea of research and the acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data.
2. Write or revise a paper about the important intellectual content of the research.
3. Final approval of the final version of the paper to be published.
4. Agree to take responsibility for all aspects of the research so that any issues related to accuracy or integrity in any part of the research can be properly investigated and resolved.

Article 12. (Authorship and Order of Authors)
① The authors and order of authors of papers or other publications must accurately reflect the degree of contribution to the research regardless of relative position.
② It can not be justified to become an author or be recognized as the first author simply because of a particular position.
③ It also can not be justified to exclude a person who has contributed to research or writing from the co-authors or co-researchers.
④ Small contributions to research or writing should be appropriately acknowledged in footnotes, prefaces, acknowledgments, etc.

Article 13. (Participation of Minors and Related Persons in Joint Research)
① If a principal investigator or co-researcher involves a minor under the age of 19, the spouse of the principal investigator, a direct ascendant or descendant of the principal investigator or his/her spouse, or a relative within the fourth degree of kinship(hereafter, referred to as a “related person”) in research activities, the relevant forms prescribed in the manuscript submission regulations must be completed and submitted to the editor-in-chief for approval.
② If improper authorship, false description of research contributions, or other research misconduct is confirmed in a research paper involving a related person without the approval under Paragraph 1, the research ethics committee determines it to be research misconduct and notifies the institutions of the authors and the related person of the relevant facts.

Article 14. (Submission of Papers and Use of Previous Research Results)
① Submitted papers can not be simultaneously submitted to other academic journals such as Korea Citation Index(KCI), candidate journals of KCI or overseas academic journals.
② It must be clearly stated when the papers presented at academic conferences, etc. or a part of them are submitted as they are or with modifications and supplements.
③ It must be clearly stated when the research report or a part of it is submitted as it is or with modifications and supplements.
④ The author of the degree thesis must be included when a doctoral or master's thesis or a part of it is submitted as it is or with modifications and supplements.
⑤ Manuscripts that have been rejected for publication by this Institute can not be resubmitted.

Article 15. (Editorial Board Responsibilities)
The editorial board takes full responsibility for determining whether or not to publish submitted papers, and must respect the author's personality and independence as a scholar.

Article 16. (Handling of Papers)
Editors must treat papers submitted for publication fairly based on the quality of the paper and the submission regulations, regardless of the author's gender, age, affiliated institution, any prejudice or personal acquaintance.

Article 17. (Examination Request)
Editors should request the evaluation of the submitted paper from reviewers with professional knowledge and fair judgment in the relevant field after excluding reviewers belonging to the same institution. When requesting a review, editors should try to ensure an objective evaluation as much as possible by avoiding reviewers who are too close to the authors or too hostile. However, if an objection is raised by the authors, a third-party expert in the field may be consulted.

Article 18. (Private)
Editors should not disclose information about the authors or the contents of the paper to anyone other than the reviewers until the publication is decided.

Article 19. (Review)
Reviewers must faithfully review the papers requested by the editorial board(committee) of the journal within the period set by review regulations and notify the review results to editorial board(committee). If it is judged that he or she is not the right person to review the paper then notify the fact to the editorial board(committee) without delay.

Article 20. (Review Principles)
Reviewers must fairly evaluate the paper based on objective standards: regardless of personal academic beliefs or personal relationships with the authors. Papers should not be rejected without sufficient evidence or merely because they conflict with the reviewer's own point of view or interpretation, and should not be evaluated without being properly read.

Article 21. (Review Result Description)
Reviewers must respect the personality and independence of authors as professional intellectuals. For areas that require supplementation, the reason for this should be explained in detail. Use polite and soft expressions as much as possible and refrain from demeaning or insulting expressions to the authors.

Article 22. (Confidentiality)
Reviewers must keep the confidentiality of the paper to be reviewed. It is not advisable to show the paper to others or discuss the contents of the paper with others unless you are specifically seeking advice for paper evaluation. In addition, the contents of the paper must not be cited without the consent of the authors before the paper is published.

Article 23. (Definition and Principles of Generative AI Use)
① Generative AI refers to artificial intelligence technologies or services that can generate or transform new content such as text, images, code, audio, video, data, and figures.
② Authors may use generative AI as a supplementary tool in the research and paper preparation process. However, authors have final responsibility for the core ideas of research, research design, data analysis and interpretation, verification of results, conclusions, and academic judgment.
③ Generative AI can not be listed as an author or co-author because it can not take responsibility for the research.
④ When using generative AI, the accuracy and sources of generated content, copyright infringement, and possible violations of research ethics must be directly checked and verified.

Article 24. (Disclosure of Generative AI Use)
① If an author uses generative AI in the research and paper preparation process, such as paper writing, organization of research materials, data analysis, code generation, or preparation of tables and figures, and its use substantially affects the research methods, data analysis, results, or major content of the paper, the use and its scope must be stated in an appropriate place in the paper.
② When disclosing the use of generative AI, the name of the tool or service, purpose of use, and scope of use may be included. Specific methods and information to be included shall be separately prescribed in the manuscript submission regulations, etc.
③ In cases where generative AI is used at a limited or supplementary level, such as translation, grammar correction, or format correction, the editorial board may request an explanation of its use when necessary.
④ The editorial board or the research ethics committee may, when necessary, request authors to provide an explanation or relevant materials regarding the scope and contents of generative AI use and the methods of verification.

Article 25. (Responsibilities and Restrictions on Generative AI Use)
① Even when generative AI is used, authors have final responsibility for the originality and accuracy of the paper, proper citation of sources, and compliance with research ethics.
② Editors and reviewers must not enter or upload unpublished manuscripts, research data, review comments, or other confidential information obtained during the editorial or review process into external generative AI services without the approval of the Institute.
③ Even when editors or reviewers use generative AI, they must not rely on generative AI for the evaluation of papers, review comments, or decisions on publication, and the relevant editor or reviewer is responsible for such judgments.
④ If generative AI is used to prepare or submit false data, false citations, manipulated results, or plagiarized content, the provisions on research misconduct under Chapter 2 shall apply according to the nature of the act.

Chapter 4. Verification of Research Misconduct

Article 26. (Report and Verification of Research Misconduct)
① If there is a report on research misconduct, the editor-in-chief should collect the relevant data and verify the credibility of the report.
② When the editor-in-chief confirms the credibility of the report, it is presented as an agenda item to the research ethics committee and submitted for deliberation.

Article 27. (Judgement of Research Misconduct)
① The chairman of the research ethics committee gives the researcher an opportunity to provide a written explanation regarding the proposed agenda prior to deliberation.
② The research ethics committee determines whether there is research misconduct with the attendance of at least two-thirds of the members and the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the members present, and then the period of suspension of paper submission is decided.
③ The president of the Institute notifies the details of the research ethics committee's decision and the reason for it to the researchers.
④ The research ethics committee deliberates and decides within 3 months after recognizing the misconduct occurrence.

Article 28. (Appeal)
① A researcher judged guilty of research misconduct who believes that the research ethics committee's resolution or the reason for it is unreasonable may raise a written appeal only once within 1 month from the date of notification.
② The research ethics committee may review the validity of the appeal and reconfirm or revise the decision.
③ The president of the Institute notifies the decision of the research ethics committee and the reason for it to the researchers.
④ The research ethics committee shall reconfirm or amend the deliberation decision within 3 months after an appeal is raised.

Article 29. (Confidentiality)
① The identity of the person who reported research misconduct must not be disclosed to the public.
② The identity of the researchers should not be disclosed to the public before the final judgment is made for research misconduct or when it is judged not to be a research misconduct.

Chapter 5. Measures and Sanctions

Article 30. (Measures for Research Misconduct)
① If the research ethics committee determines that it is forgery or falsification, in the case of a journal paper, the editorial board cancels the publication of the paper and announces it on the Institute website.
② In the case of plagiarism or duplicate publication of a paper published in the journal, the measures prescribed in Article 31 shall apply.
③ In the case of research reports, the research ethics committee determines sanctions separately depending on the severity of the issue.

Article 31. (Manuscript Similarity Check)
① A manuscript with a similarity rate of 20% or higher in the Manuscript Similarity Check Report submitted at the time of initial submission shall not be accepted for review.
② If the Manuscript Similarity Check Report for the final revised manuscript submitted after a final acceptance decision shows a similarity rate of 20% or higher, the Editorial Committee shall request an explanation or revisions from the authors and reconsider whether to publish the manuscript.

Article 32. (Measures for Simultaneous Submission and Resubmission)
① If the research ethics committee determines that the paper is submitted simultaneously or resubmitted, the editorial board suspends the paper reviewing process.
② In the case of simultaneous paper submission, the decision is notified to the relevant Institute and the authors can not submit papers for 2 years from the time of the final decision.

Article 33. (Notice of Research Ethics Regulations)
To raise awareness of research ethics among members, the research ethics regulations and guidelines shall be notified to all members by e-mail during the first week of every month.

Supplementary Provisions

Article 1. (Alteration and Abolitions of Regulation)
This regulation can be altered and abolished by the resolution of the board of directors.

Article 2. (Effective Date)
This regulation is effective from the date of enactment.