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class="breadcrumb"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/">Home</a> <a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/resources">Resources</a> <a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/resources/guidelines">Guidelines</a></p> </div> <div class="hero__title"> <a id="main-content"></a> <h1 id="page-title">Editorial board participation</h1> </div> <div class="hero__bottom"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="page-main"> <div class="page-main__row"> <div class="page-main__col"> <main> <section id="content" class="region region-content"> <div id="block-system-main" class="block block-system clearfix"> <div class="content"> <div id="node-49601" class="node-resource node node-resource "> <div class="node-resource__body"> <div class="sidebar sidebar--offset"> <div class="sidebar__body"> <div class="node-resource__fields"> <div class="field field--doi"> <span class="field-label">DOI:</span> <span class="field-item"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220403045832/https://doi.org/10.24318/F3lrGybw">https://doi.org/10.24318/F3lrGybw</a> </span> </div> <div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>These COPE Guidelines provide an overview of editorial board appointment and engagement, roles and responsibilities, and key details to consider during recruitment such as participation on multiple editorial boards.</p> <p>COPE Guidelines are formal COPE policy and are intended to advise editors and publishers on expected publication ethics practice.</p> <div id="file-993096" class="file file-document file-application-pdf"> <h2 class="element-invisible"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/file/993096">Guidance on editorial board participation</a></h2> <div class="content"> <div class="resource-download-inline"> <div class="resource-download-inline__container"> <div class="resource-download-inline__type"> Document </div> <div class="resource-download-inline__description"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/files/editorial-board-participation-cope-guideline.pdf" target="_blank">Guidance on editorial board participation</a> <span class="resource-download-inline__meta">PDF 71 KB</span> </div> </div> <div class="resource-download-inline__shadow"> <div class="resource-download-inline__shadow__inner"></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <h2>Key points</h2> <ul><li>Editorial roles should be clearly defined to include: the number of reviews expected, definitions of review quality and expectations; the level of editorial decisions to be made; and details of decision chains.</li> <li>Appointment terms should be defined with details such as appointment criteria, length of term, renewal terms, and reasons to end the appointment early.</li> <li>Journals should define the types or levels of conflicts of interest that are not permissible for their editors which, if present, should preclude an editor from joining the board or result in an editor’s removal if not resolved.</li> <li>Journals should ask potential editorial board members to provide a list of their potential conflicts of interest</li> <li>When journals recruit editors at any level, they might need to decide whether it is appropriate for any individual to be a member of more than one editorial board at the same time within the same field, with the same levels of decision-making, or article commissioning responsibility.</li> </ul><h3>Related resources</h3> <ul><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/resources/flowcharts/general-approach-publication-ethics-editorial-office">General approach to publication ethics for the editorial office</a> flowchart</li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/news/diversifying-editorial-boards">Diversifying editorial boards</a> article, August 2021</li> </ul></div></div></div><div class="field field--classifications field--short"><div class="field-label">Core practices:</div><div class="item-list"><ul><li class="first"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/competinginterests" title="View all "Conflicts of interest / Competing interests" content">Conflicts of interest / Competing interests</a></li> <li class="last"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/management" title="View all "Journal management" content">Journal management</a></li> </ul></div></div> </div> </div> </div> <details class="revision-log"> <summary class="revision-log__summary"> <h2>About this resource</h2> </summary> <div class="revision-log__col"> <div class="revision-log__doi-meta"> <p><strong>Cite this as</strong></p> <p>COPE Council. COPE Guidelines: editorial board participation — English.<br/><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220403045832/https://doi.org/10.24318/F3lrGybw" rel="nofollow">https://doi.org/10.24318/F3lrGybw</a><br/> ©2021 Committee on Publication ethics (<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220403045832/https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/" rel="nofollow">CC BY-NC-ND 4.0</a>)<br/><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/" rel="nofollow">https://publicationethics.org</a></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Version history</strong></p> <p>Version 1: July 2021.</p> </div> <h3 class="revision-log__subhead">Full page history</h3> <ul class="revision-log__entries"> <li class="revision-log__entry"> <div class="revision-log__date">5 January 2022</div> <p class="revision-log__message"> Added DOI to page. </p> <div class="revision-log__link"> </div> </li> <li class="revision-log__entry"> <div class="revision-log__date">27 July 2021</div> <p class="revision-log__message"> Version 1 published. </p> <div class="revision-log__link"> <a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/node/49601/revisions/69471/view">View revision</a> </div> </li> </ul> </div> </details> </div> </div> </div> </div> </section> </main> </div> </div> </div> <footer class="footer"> <div class="footer__outer"> <div class="footer__row"> <div class="footer__col"> <div class="footer__menu"> <h2>Useful links</h2> <ul class="links menu-site-map"><li class="menu-4141 first"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/become-member" title="">Become a member</a></li> <li class="menu-4140"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/contact-us" title="">Contact Us</a></li> <li class="menu-4137"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/events" title="">Events</a></li> <li class="menu-4139"><a href="/web/20220403045832/https://publicationethics.org/guidance" title="">Guidance</a></li> <li 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