Artificial Intelligence Policy

Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies Policy

The NUST Journal of International Peace & Stability (NJIPS) recognizes that Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies can support researchers and scholarly publishing. At the same time, their use requires transparency, human oversight, and adherence to principles of research integrity, confidentiality, and responsible scholarship.

This policy provides guidance for authors, reviewers, and editors regarding the appropriate use of Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the publication process. NJIPS may update this policy as AI technologies, ethical standards, and scholarly publishing practices evolve.

For Authors

Use of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies in Manuscript Preparation

Authors may use Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies to support aspects of manuscript preparation, such as improving language and readability, organizing content, generating ideas, or assisting with the development of the manuscript. However, such tools must not replace the authors’ own critical thinking, scholarly judgment, analysis, interpretation, or intellectual contribution.

Authors remain fully responsible and accountable for the content of their manuscripts, including any material produced or assisted by AI tools. Authors must carefully review and verify all AI-generated or AI-assisted content for accuracy, completeness, originality, potential bias, and appropriate attribution. Particular care should be taken when AI tools generate references or citations, as these may be inaccurate or fabricated.

Authors must also ensure that the use of AI tools does not compromise the confidentiality, privacy, intellectual property, or other rights associated with their research or the work of third parties.

Disclosure of AI Use

Authors must transparently disclose the use of Generative AI or AI-assisted technologies when such tools have made a substantive contribution to the preparation of the manuscript.

The disclosure should identify:

the name of the AI tool or service; the version of the tool, where applicable; the purpose for which it was used; and the nature or extent of the AI-assisted contribution.

The disclosure should be included in the manuscript under an appropriate section, such as Acknowledgments or Methods, depending on the nature of the use.

Routine use of standard software for basic spelling, grammar, or punctuation checks does not ordinarily require disclosure. However, where an AI tool makes substantive changes to the wording, structure, organization, analysis, or content of the manuscript, its use must be disclosed.

Suggested Disclosure Statement

Authors may use the following format:

Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies: During the preparation of this manuscript, the author(s) used [NAME OF TOOL/SERVICE, VERSION] for [DESCRIBE PURPOSE]. The author(s) subsequently reviewed and edited the content and take full responsibility for the accuracy, integrity, originality, and final content of the manuscript.

Where AI tools are used as part of the research methodology or research process, rather than solely for manuscript preparation, their use must be described appropriately and in sufficient detail in the Methods section to enable transparency and, where applicable, reproducibility.

Authorship

Generative AI tools, AI systems, or AI-assisted technologies cannot be listed as authors or co-authors of manuscripts submitted to or published in NJIPS.

Authorship carries responsibilities that can only be fulfilled by human authors. All listed authors must be able to take responsibility for the integrity of the work, approve the final version of the manuscript, and respond appropriately to questions concerning its content.

Authors remain responsible for ensuring that their work is original, appropriately attributed, and does not infringe the intellectual property or other rights of third parties.

AI-Generated Images, Figures, and Artwork

Authors must exercise caution when using Generative AI to create or modify figures, images, diagrams, or other visual material submitted to NJIPS.

AI tools must not be used to fabricate, falsify, manipulate, or misrepresent research data, evidence, findings, or results. Visualizations of research data must accurately represent the underlying data and must not be altered in a manner that could mislead readers.

Where Generative AI is used to create or substantially modify explanatory figures, diagrams, conceptual illustrations, or other visual material, authors should disclose the use of the relevant tool and provide appropriate information regarding its purpose and contribution.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that submitted images and artwork are accurate, original, appropriately attributed, and compliant with applicable copyright and intellectual property requirements.

For Reviewers

Use of Generative AI in Peer Review

Peer review is a confidential process. Manuscripts submitted to NJIPS, together with all associated materials, must be treated as confidential documents.

Reviewers must not upload, paste, or otherwise disclose unpublished manuscripts or any part of them to Generative AI tools or publicly accessible AI platforms. This includes manuscript text, abstracts, research proposals, figures, tables, datasets, supplementary materials, reviewer correspondence, and other confidential information.

The use of Generative AI to independently analyze, summarize, evaluate, or generate substantive judgments about a manuscript is not permitted. The assessment of the manuscript must remain the responsibility of the appointed reviewer and must be based on the reviewer’s own expertise, critical judgment, and evaluation.

Generative AI may be used, where appropriate, only in a supportive capacity, such as assisting with the grammar, language, or structure of a review report, provided that no confidential manuscript content is entered into the AI tool.

Reviewers remain fully responsible for the accuracy, fairness, originality, confidentiality, and integrity of their review reports, regardless of whether AI-assisted tools have been used.

Disclosure by Reviewers

Where a reviewer uses Generative AI in preparing or improving their review report beyond routine spelling or grammar correction, the reviewer should disclose the use of the tool to the editorial team, including the tool used and the purpose of its use.

Suggested disclosure:

During the preparation of this review report, I used [NAME OF TOOL/SERVICE] for [DESCRIBE PURPOSE]. I reviewed and edited the resulting content and take full responsibility for the accuracy, fairness, and integrity of this review.

For Editors

Use of Generative AI in the Editorial Process

Editors are responsible for maintaining the quality, integrity, confidentiality, and impartiality of the NJIPS editorial and peer-review processes.

Unpublished manuscripts and associated materials must be treated as confidential. Editors must not upload or disclose unpublished manuscripts, reviewer reports, editorial correspondence, or other confidential materials to Generative AI tools where doing so could compromise confidentiality, intellectual property, privacy, or data protection.

Generative AI must not replace the editor’s independent scholarly judgment or editorial decision-making. Editors remain fully responsible and accountable for decisions concerning manuscript evaluation, peer review, acceptance, revision, or rejection.

AI-assisted tools may be used by editors only in a supportive capacity, such as assisting with language, formatting, administrative tasks, or other appropriate editorial functions, provided that confidentiality is maintained and meaningful human oversight is exercised.

Generative AI must not be used as the sole basis for making editorial decisions about the quality, originality, significance, or suitability of a manuscript.

Research Integrity and Responsible Use

NJIPS expects all users of Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies to exercise appropriate judgment and maintain the highest standards of academic and research integrity.

AI tools must not be used to:

fabricate or falsify data, findings, or research results; generate or manipulate citations or references deceptively; plagiarize or reproduce copyrighted material without appropriate authorization or attribution; misrepresent AI-generated material as entirely original human work; compromise confidential, personal, or proprietary information; or circumvent the journal’s peer-review, editorial, or research-integrity requirements.

The responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of scholarly work remains with the human authors, reviewers, and editors involved in the publication process.

NJIPS reserves the right to request clarification regarding the use of Generative AI and to take appropriate editorial action where AI use is inconsistent with the journal’s policies, publication ethics, or standards of research integrity.