Investigating Possible Misconduct

Basic Principles

• If the editor of an IEEE publication learns that an author may have acted improperly, which may include but is not limited to misrepresenting data, plagiarizing text, or not informing the editor that an article had been published, accepted for publication, or concurrently under review by another publication, then the editor shall investigate the alleged misconduct.
• All inquiries shall be handled promptly and fairly.
• All parties relevant to the allegation shall be given the opportunity to respond.

First Notifications

• The editor will notify the IEEE Staff Executive - Publications or that person's designee that an inquiry has been undertaken. The purpose of this notification is to provide information and a record.
• The Office of the IEEE Staff Executive of Publications will inform the PSPB Chair about the inquiry.

Support and Resources

• In considering the allegation, the editor shall appoint an independent ad-hoc committee of experts in the topic to confidentially investigate and make a recommendation on the allegation to the editor.
• In addition to the material supplied by the editor, the ad-hoc committee may seek other sources of relevant information, such as the IEEE Intellectual Property Rights Office. However, the ad-hoc committee shall not contact the institution where the work was performed unless it has explicit information that such institution has already investigated the issue.

Editor's Findings and Recommendation

• If a finding of misconduct relevant to an IEEE publication (data misrepresentation/fabrication, plagiarism, multiple submission, or prior publication, etc.)is made by an editor, then appropriate corrective and/or disciplinary actions shall be initiated.
• For all cases involving alleged plagiarism or the multiple submission/publication of the same manuscript, the editor shall inform the PSPB Chair of the investigating committee’s conclusions or recommend action(s) to the PSPB Chair in accordance with Section 8.2.4.D “Guidelines for Adjudicating Different Levels of Plagiarism” and Section 8.2.4.F “Guidelines for Adjudicating Prior Publication, Multiple Submission, and Reuse of Previous Publications.”

PSPB Chair's Actions

• Except for cases involving allegations of plagiarism or multiple submission/publication (see Sections 8.2.4.D and 8.2.4.F for more specific information), the PSPB Chair shall notify the individual(s) named in the editor’s recommendation that an action is being reviewed.
• The PSPB Chair shall offer the named individual(s) the opportunity to respond within 30 days to the recommended action, and the Chair may choose to request additional information from the editor and/or the named individual(s).
• No sooner than 30 days and no later than 90 days after notifying the individual(s) named in the editor’s recommendation, the PSPB Chair will issue a final determination of corrective action(s) to be taken.

Finality

• The decision of the PSPB Chair is final and not subject to further appeal within the process and guidelines specified by Section 8.2.4.