Author responsibilities
1. Authors must state that their manuscripts are their original work and that they did not plagiarize (see COPE discussion on plagiarism). The form to be signed can be downloaded here.
2. Authors must declare that their manuscript has not been published before, and it is not currently being considered for publication elsewhere.
3. Authors must certify that all the relevant permissions were obtained.
4. Authors must report any conflicts of interest.
5. Authors must mention all sources of funding.
6. Authors must mention all sources used in the creation of their manuscript.
7. Authors must report any error they discover in their manuscript.
Editorial Board Responsibilities
1. The Editorial Board must keep information pertaining to submitted manuscripts confidential.
2. The Editorial Board must disclose any conflicts of interest.
3. The Editorial Board must evaluate manuscripts only for their intellectual content, with no regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political views of the authors.
4. The Editorial Board is responsible for making publication decisions for submitted manuscripts.
5. The Editorial Board will check the manuscripts using anti-plagiarism software (Quetext) and any form of plagiarism will be dealt with according to the COPE Code of Conduct
Reviewer Responsibilities
1. Reviewers will carry out the review process according to the single-blind method and following the criteria mentioned in the review form.
2. Reviewers must notify the Editorial Board of Materiale şi Cercetări Arheologice of any conflicts of interest.
3. Reviewers must keep information pertaining to the manuscript confidential.
4. Reviewers must bring to the attention of the Editorial Board any information that may be reason to reject the publication of a manuscript.
5. Reviewers must evaluate a manuscript only for its intellectual content, with no regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political views of the authors.
Misconduct
If conflicts between a published article and the ethical principles of the journal are suspected, they should be reported to the Editorial Board at iab.redactie@gmail.com. Published articles may be retracted in accordance with the COPE Retraction guidelines.
GenAI Policy – Use of Generative AI Technology
- Use of AI in Writing
GenAI (e.g., ChatGPT, DeepSeek, and others) may be used only to improve the readability and clarity of language. It is not permitted for the creation of scientific content, results, interpretations, or conclusions. Authors must supervise, review, and edit — and are fully responsible for the content.
- Mandatory AI Use Declaration
Any use of GenAI must be clearly disclosed in the manuscript, immediately before the references, with a statement such as:
“The authors used [name of AI tool] for [the purpose for which the AI tool was used]. The final content was reviewed and approved by the authors, who take full responsibility for it.”
- GenAI Cannot Be an Author
AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors and cannot be cited as such. Authorship implies intellectual responsibility and the ability to approve the manuscript — qualities held only by human beings.
- Policy on Images and Figures
The generation or modification of images using AI is not allowed, including adding, moving, or deleting elements. Only minor adjustments (brightness, contrast, color balance) are permitted, as long as they do not remove or obscure information.
- Methodological Exception for Imaging
If AI is used as part of the research method (e.g., AI-triggered biomedical imaging), it must be described in detail in the “Methodology” section: model, version, manufacturer, etc. Manuscripts may include the original data for verification.
- Prohibition of AI in Illustration Development
GenAI may not be used to create illustrations without prior editorial approval, verification of usage rights, and proper source citation. This exception is directly related to the last point. In case of suspicions regarding the originality of the illustration, the journal reserves the right to use image forensic tools or specialized software to analyze submitted illustration in order to identify any potential irregularities in the images.
- Policy for Reviewers
Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts and reports. They are not permitted to upload them into any AI tool — not for clarity, nor for analysis — as this may violate the authors’ rights and confidentiality.
- Policy for Editors
Editors must follow the same rules as reviewers: no uploading of manuscripts, reports, or editorial decisions into AI tools. Editorial decisions and communications must remain entirely human-driven.