Retraction Policy

The SAPS is committed to upholding the highest standards of academic publishing integrity. We recognize the importance of a transparent post-publication policy to address honest errors, ethical issues, or publication misconduct. This policy outlines our procedures for retractions in accordance with the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

A retraction is issued when a published article is found to contain serious flaws or ethical violations that invalidate the findings or render the content unreliable. Retractions may be initiated by the authors, editors, or readers, and are approved by the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board.

Grounds for Retraction:
• Proven plagiarism or duplication of previously published content
• Data fabrication or falsification
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest
• Ethical misconduct in human/animal research
• Major errors that invalidate the research findings
• Manipulation of the peer review process

Retraction Process:
• The article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record but will be marked as "Retracted" on every page, with a linked retraction notice explaining the reason.
• The DOI will remain active and point to both the retracted article and the retraction notice.
• A statement will appear in the relevant issue’s Table of Contents and the article’s metadata will be updated accordingly.