Editorial Policies

‌Innovative Computing Perspectives (ICP) Editorial Policies‌

1. Overview

Innovative Computing Perspectives (ICP) adheres to the ethical standards outlined by the ‌Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)‌, the ‌IEEE Computer Society Code of Ethics‌, and the ‌ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct‌. Submission of a manuscript to ICP confirms that all authors have reviewed and agreed to its content and that the work complies with ICP’s policies.

2. Ethics and Responsibility

2.1 Ethics Approval

Research involving human participants, personal data, or AI/ML systems impacting human welfare must comply with institutional, national, or international ethical guidelines. Authors must include:

  • A statement confirming ethics approval from an appropriate institutional review board (IRB) or ethics committee, including the committee’s name and approval reference number.
  • For studies exempt from ethics approval, a justification from the relevant ethics committee must be provided.
    Editors reserve the right to reject submissions if ethical standards are not met, and may seek clarification from ethics committees or data governance bodies.

2.2 Data Privacy and Consent

  • ‌Human-Centric Research‌: Studies involving user data collection (e.g., user behavior, personal information) must include informed consent from participants. For minors under 16, consent must be obtained from parents/guardians.
  • ‌Public Datasets‌: Use of publicly available datasets must comply with terms of use and data licenses. Authors must confirm datasets are anonymized and ethically sourced.
  • ‌AI/ML Transparency‌: Research involving AI/ML systems must address potential biases, fairness, and societal impacts. A statement on algorithmic transparency and accountability should be included where applicable.

2.3 Dual Use and Security Implications

Manuscripts describing technologies with potential dual-use applications (e.g., cybersecurity tools, surveillance systems, autonomous systems) must include a risk-benefit analysis. Authors should disclose safeguards to prevent misuse.

2.4 Intellectual Property and Open Science

  • ‌Code and Reproducibility‌: Source code critical to the research must be shared via a public repository (e.g., GitHub, Zenodo) under an open-source license unless restricted by patents or security concerns.
  • ‌Preprints‌: ICP supports open science and permits submission of preprints archived on platforms like arXiv or SSRN.

3. Research Integrity

3.1 Authorship and Contributions

  • Authors must meet ICMJE criteria for authorship. Contributions should be detailed using the CRediT taxonomy.
  • Generative AI tools (e.g., LLMs) must be disclosed in the Methods section and cannot be listed as authors.

3.2 Plagiarism and Originality

  • Submissions must be original and free of plagiarism. ICP uses Crossref Similarity Check to screen manuscripts.
  • Extended versions of conference papers must disclose prior publication and include ≥50% new content.

3.3 Conflicts of Interest

All financial, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence the work must be disclosed. Industry-funded research requires explicit transparency about sponsor involvement.

4. Special Considerations

4.1 AI and Autonomous Systems

  • Research involving autonomous systems (e.g., robotics, self-learning algorithms) must address safety, ethical design, and compliance with frameworks like the EU AI Act or IEEE Ethically Aligned Design.

4.2 Environmental Impact

Computing research with significant energy consumption (e.g., large-scale ML training) should include an environmental impact assessment and strategies for sustainability.

4.3 Inclusive Research Practices

ICP encourages adherence to the ‌FAIR principles‌ (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) and prioritizes studies addressing equitable technology access, digital divides, and bias mitigation.

5. Post-Publication Corrections

  • Errors in published work will be addressed via corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern following COPE guidelines.
  • Authors may appeal editorial decisions by submitting a formal request to the Editor-in-Chief with supporting evidence.

6. Compliance and Enforcement

Violations of these policies may result in manuscript rejection, retraction, or reporting to institutional ethics bodies. ICP is committed to fostering accountability in computing innovation.