Simultaneous or Duplicate Submission and Publication

Scientific journals generally do not consider for publication manuscripts that are simultaneously under consideration by another journal, nor do they publish articles that have been previously published by another journal. This has been accepted as a scholarly publishing best practice, whether in other media or other journals, since 1969 and is referred to as the Ingelfinger Rule.  Journals will not consider or publish a manuscript unless it is an original work and not under consideration by any other journal.

This practice supports copyright laws, ethical conduct, and best uses of resources.  Duplicate submission taxes editor, reviewer, and publication staff resources. Duplicate publication of articles may violate copyright laws, and may inadvertently lead to dual counting of published data.

When submitting a manuscript, you will be asked to confirm (either via a submission form question or in your cover letter) that the work has not been previously published and is not currently under consideration by another journal.