Complaints & Appeals Policy

Authors may appeal an editorial decision where they believe that:

• A significant factual or technical issue was misunderstood.
• Important evidence provided in the manuscript was overlooked.
• A review contained a substantial factual error.
• The journal's stated editorial or peer-review procedure was not followed appropriately.
• A relevant conflict of interest may have affected the decision.

An appeal should not be based solely on disagreement with an editorial decision.

Appeals should normally be submitted within 30 calendar days of the editorial decision.

Appeals received after this period may be considered where there are reasonable grounds for the delay.

Appeals should be sent to: editor@jddiea.com

The appeal should include:

• Manuscript ID
• Manuscript title
• Corresponding author's name
• Date of the editorial decision
• Clear reason for the appeal
• Specific points being challenged
• Relevant supporting evidence, where applicable

Authors should provide a concise and evidence-based explanation. Submission of an appeal does not guarantee that the original decision will be changed.

The journal will review the appeal and the relevant editorial records.

Where appropriate, the appeal may be evaluated by:

• The Editor-in-Chief
• A senior or independent editor who was not substantially involved in the original decision
• An additional independent subject expert, where technical reassessment is required

Where a conflict of interest exists, the person concerned will not participate in reviewing the appeal.

Following assessment, the journal may:

• Uphold the original decision
• Reconsider the manuscript
• Request an additional independent review
• Request further clarification or revision
• Correct an identified procedural or factual error

Where an appeal leads to reconsideration, this does not automatically mean that the manuscript will be accepted. The subsequent editorial decision will be communicated to the author in writing.

A complaint may be submitted regarding matters including:

• Unreasonable or unexplained editorial delays
• Failure to follow stated journal procedures
• Reviewer conduct
• Editor conduct
• Breach of confidentiality
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest
• Inappropriate communication
• Suspected misuse of submitted manuscript material
• Administrative or procedural irregularities
• Ethical concerns connected with the journal's processes

Complaints should be submitted to editor@jddiea.com and should contain sufficient detail and supporting information to allow the matter to be assessed.

If a complaint directly concerns an editor who would normally handle the matter, that editor should not investigate or decide the complaint. The matter should instead be referred to another suitably independent senior editor or an appropriate representative of the publisher.

Where a complaint directly concerns the Editor-in-Chief, the complaint should be reviewed independently by an appropriate senior editorial representative and/or the publisher. The Editor-in-Chief should not determine the outcome of a complaint concerning their own conduct.

Where a complaint involves suspected:

• Plagiarism
• Fabrication or falsification of data
• Duplicate publication
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest
• Citation manipulation
• Authorship misconduct
• Ethical approval concerns
• Misuse of confidential material
• Other forms of research or publication misconduct

The matter will be handled under the journal's publication ethics and research misconduct procedures. Where appropriate, the journal may seek information from relevant authors, reviewers, institutions, employers, funding organisations, or other journals while maintaining appropriate confidentiality.

Complaints and appeals will be handled confidentially to the extent reasonably possible.

Information will normally be shared only with individuals who need access to the information in order to assess or resolve the matter.

The journal will seek to protect the legitimate interests of complainants, authors, reviewers, editors, and other involved parties.

Individuals directly involved in the matter or having a relevant conflict of interest should not be responsible for determining the outcome of the complaint or appeal.

JDDIEA aims to ensure that complaints and appeals are considered objectively and without retaliation against individuals who raise genuine concerns in good faith.

Where a complaint or appeal identifies an error affecting published scholarly content, JDDIEA may take appropriate action, including:

• Publishing a correction
• Publishing an editorial notice
• Issuing an expression of concern
• Retracting an article where justified

Any such action will follow the journal's applicable corrections and retractions procedures.

JDDIEA will communicate the outcome of a complaint or appeal in writing.

Where appropriate, the response will explain the basis of the journal's decision while respecting confidentiality and legal or ethical limitations.

JDDIEA aims to resolve complaints and appeals fairly at the journal level.

Where a matter cannot appropriately be resolved by the person initially handling it, it may be escalated to an independent senior editorial representative and/or the publisher for final internal review.

JDDIEA welcomes genuine complaints and appeals raised in good faith.

Abusive, threatening, discriminatory, knowingly false, or persistently repetitive communications may be restricted where they do not contribute meaningfully to resolving the matter. This restriction will not prevent the journal from considering legitimate evidence of editorial or publication-ethics concerns.