Competing Interests Policy

A competing interest exists when an individual (or the individual’s institution) has financial, personal, or professional relationships with other persons or institutions that could unduly bias their actions or judgements. Competing interests may arise from such relationships, irrespective of whether the judgement is actually or potentially affected.
All participants, including authors, editors, and referees, are responsible for recognizing and disclosing all relationships during all stages of the scholarly publication process that could be viewed as presenting potential conflicts of interest.

a. Authors

During the submission process, the submitting author will be required to provide a statement, on behalf of all authors, declaring the existence of competing interests with respect to their work in the Competing Interests section. The submitting author is responsible for disclosing all competing interests that could have interfered or could be perceived as interfering with the objective data presentation and interpretation of their scientific work. Moreover, authors must disclose any potential competing interests they are aware of that might influence the evaluation and objective assessment of their manuscript by the referees and/or the editor.
Authors may provide editors with the names of persons they feel should not be asked to review the manuscript because of potential competing interests. When possible, authors should explain such concerns to facilitate the editor’s decision making whether or not to honor such requests.
Any relevant information regarding financial support of the work presented in the manuscript must be included in the Funding section of the published article. In the Acknowledgments section, the authors should provide all relevant information about individuals who donated reagents and materials or provided access to certain equipment for the accomplishment of the work.

b. Referees

Referees are asked to disclose any competing interests upon submission of their review report. All referees must declare any relationships that might be viewed as biasing their objectivity, such as but not limited to, recent collaborations with manuscript author(s). Referees who anticipate that the necessary objectivity for reviewing the manuscript would be seriously impaired should exclude themselves from the peer review of the manuscript.

c. Editors

Editors should be committed to an objective and fair evaluation of the submitted work. They must always take into consideration the competing interests disclosed by the authors and by the referees as well as be aware of any of their own competing interests during the assessment of a manuscript. The selection of referees with obvious competing interests is to be avoided (e.g., same institution/affiliation as any of the authors, recent collaboration/co-authorship).

d. Examples of Potential Competing Interests

Personal or Professional Competing Interests

  • A close relationship with, or a strong antipathy to, a person whose interests may be affected by the publication of the manuscript.
  • An academic connection to (e.g., same institution/affiliation, recent collaboration/co-authorship) or rivalry with a person whose interests may be biased by the publication of the manuscript.
  • A professional relationship with an organization whose interests may be affected by the publication of the manuscript.
  • Political or religious commitments that may influence objective presentations or conclusions.

Financial Competing Interests

  • Recent (within the past five years), current, or anticipated research support or employment by an organization that may in any way gain or lose financially from the publication of the manuscript. This includes salaries, funds, honoraria, equipment, reimbursements, gifts and donations, paid membership in an organization, and other expenses.
  • Stock or shareholding in a company that may in any way gain or lose financially from the publication of the manuscript.
  • Fees for consulting, expert testimony, membership of advisory boards, speaking, organizing education, or other forms of remuneration from an organization that may financially benefit or suffer from the publication of the manuscript.
  • Patents or patent applications that are owned by or licensed to organizations that may in any way gain or lose financially from the publication of the manuscript.
Other Beilstein-Institut Open Science Activities