Generative AI policy

E-LOGOS recognizes that generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and AI-assisted technologies can support research and scholarly communication. At the same time, their use raises questions concerning authorship, accountability, accuracy, originality, confidentiality, intellectual property, and research integrity.

This policy applies to authors, reviewers, editors, and other participants in the editorial and publication process. For the purposes of this policy, GenAI tools include large language models and other AI systems capable of generating or substantially transforming text, images, data, code, audio, or other content.

Human responsibility and authorship

GenAI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors of articles published in E-LOGOS.

Authorship entails responsibility and accountability that can only be assumed by human authors. All authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and appropriate attribution of everything contained in the submitted and published manuscript, including material created or modified with the assistance of GenAI.

The use of a GenAI tool does not reduce or transfer an author's responsibility for the work.

Permitted use of GenAI by authors

Authors may use GenAI or AI-assisted technologies in the preparation of a manuscript provided that their use is consistent with standards of academic integrity and this policy.

Permitted uses may include, for example:

improving the clarity, readability, style, or structure of author-written text;
assisting with translation;
assisting with the organization or formulation of ideas;
generating or substantially revising draft text;
summarizing material for use during manuscript preparation;
assisting with code, data presentation, tables, diagrams, or visualizations;
assisting with identification of potentially relevant literature; and
other research or manuscript-preparation functions where the use of the tool is transparent and methodologically appropriate.

Authors must critically review and verify all GenAI-generated or GenAI-assisted material before submission.

In particular, authors are responsible for verifying factual statements, quotations, references, bibliographic information, calculations, interpretations, and other outputs produced by GenAI. GenAI-generated references must not be included without verification against the original source.

Disclosure of GenAI use

Authors must disclose any substantive use of GenAI or AI-assisted technologies in preparing a manuscript.

A disclosure is required when GenAI has been used, for example, to:

generate or substantially rewrite manuscript text;
translate substantial parts of a manuscript;
summarize literature or other source material for incorporation into the manuscript;
generate or modify code used in the research;
analyze or interpret research material;
generate or substantially modify tables, figures, diagrams, or visualizations;
assist with methodological or analytical procedures; or
make another material contribution to the intellectual or presentational content of the work.

Routine use of tools limited to spelling, grammar, punctuation, basic formatting, reference formatting, or similar mechanical language corrections does not normally require disclosure.

When there is reasonable doubt as to whether a particular use is substantive, authors should disclose it.

GenAI disclosure statement

Where disclosure is required, authors must include a section entitled "Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies"

The declaration should identify:

the name of the tool or service used;
where relevant, the version or model;
the purpose for which it was used;
the nature and extent of its contribution; and
confirmation that the authors reviewed and verified the resulting content and accept full responsibility for it.

Example of declaration:

"During the preparation of this manuscript, the author(s) used [tool/service and, where relevant, model/version] for [purpose and description of use]. The author(s) subsequently reviewed, verified, and where necessary revised the resulting material and accept full responsibility for the content of the publication."

The declaration should normally appear before the reference list.

If GenAI forms part of the research methodology, rather than merely assisting manuscript preparation, its use must also be described in the relevant methodological section of the article in sufficient detail to permit scholarly evaluation and, where applicable, replication. Depending on the research design, this may include the tool, model or version, date of access, relevant settings, prompts or instructions, and procedures used to validate the outputs.

Research data, results, images, and other evidence

GenAI must not be used to fabricate, falsify, or misrepresent research data, evidence, sources, results, quotations, or other scholarly material.

Content generated by GenAI must not be presented as if it were empirical data, historical evidence, documentary evidence, or other independently obtained research material unless the GenAI output itself is explicitly the object of the research and is clearly identified as such.

GenAI must not be used to manipulate images, figures, datasets, or other research evidence in a way that could mislead readers about the underlying material or findings.

AI-generated or AI-assisted illustrative material may be used where appropriate, provided that:

it is clearly identified as AI-generated or AI-assisted where its origin is relevant to interpretation;
it does not falsely represent research evidence;
its use is disclosed;
applicable copyright, licensing, privacy, and other legal requirements are respected; and
the authors take responsibility for its accuracy and appropriateness.

Sources, citations, and intellectual property

Authors must ensure that the use of GenAI does not result in plagiarism, unattributed reproduction, copyright infringement, or other misuse of third-party material.

GenAI output should not be treated as an authoritative scholarly source. Authors must consult and cite the relevant original scholarly or primary sources wherever such sources exist.

Where GenAI output is itself the object of analysis, authors should identify the tool and document the interaction in a manner appropriate to the research question and sufficient to permit scholarly scrutiny.

Authors should also avoid entering confidential, personal, copyrighted, unpublished, or otherwise protected third-party material into GenAI systems unless they have the necessary rights and the tool provides appropriate guarantees concerning confidentiality and data use.

Use of GenAI in peer review

Submitted manuscripts and associated materials are confidential.

Reviewers must not upload a submitted manuscript, extracts from it, supplementary materials, author correspondence, or other confidential editorial material into publicly accessible or external GenAI systems.

GenAI must not replace the reviewer's own expert evaluation, critical reasoning, or judgment. Reviewers remain personally responsible for the content, accuracy, fairness, and integrity of their review reports.

Reviewers must not use GenAI to generate a substantive evaluation or recommendation concerning acceptance, revision, or rejection of a manuscript.

Where the journal explicitly authorizes the use of a secure AI-assisted system within the editorial infrastructure, such use must comply with the journal's confidentiality, data-protection, and human-oversight requirements.

Use of GenAI by editors

Editors must treat submitted manuscripts and editorial correspondence as confidential and must not upload them, or substantial extracts from them, into publicly accessible or external GenAI systems.

Editorial decisions must be made by human editors. GenAI must not replace an editor's assessment of a manuscript, evaluation of reviewer reports, or final editorial decision.

Editors remain fully accountable for the editorial process and for communications issued on behalf of the journal.

The journal may use appropriate automated or AI-assisted systems for administrative or technical purposes, such as manuscript screening, plagiarism detection, reference checking, formatting, or workflow support, provided that such systems are used with appropriate human oversight and safeguards for confidentiality, privacy, and research integrity.

Any material use of GenAI by the journal that directly affects the evaluation or published content of an individual manuscript should be transparent to the relevant participants where appropriate.

Undisclosed or inappropriate GenAI use

Failure to disclose substantive GenAI use, or use of GenAI in a manner that compromises research or publication integrity, may constitute a breach of the journal's publication ethics.

Depending on the circumstances, the journal may request clarification or underlying materials, require correction of the manuscript, reject the submission, or take appropriate post-publication action in accordance with its publication ethics procedures.

The use of GenAI does not in itself constitute misconduct. The relevant considerations are transparency, accountability, accuracy, appropriate attribution, confidentiality, and the integrity of the scholarly record.

Development of this policy

GenAI technologies and standards for their use in scholarly communication are developing rapidly. E-LOGOS will therefore review this policy periodically and may revise it in response to developments in technology, publication ethics, and recognized standards of scholarly publishing.