Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-Assisted Technologies

As an academic journal committed to upholding academic integrity, research transparency, and responsible scholarly publishing, UIN Law Review establishes this policy to regulate the ethical and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in the preparation, submission, review, and publication of scholarly manuscripts. This policy aims to maintain the credibility of scientific publications, safeguard the originality and accountability of scholarly work, and ensure that technological advancements support rather than undermine human intellectual contributions.

This policy provides guidance for authors, editors, and reviewers regarding the permissible and prohibited uses of AI tools throughout the publication process. It emphasizes transparency in disclosing AI use, human responsibility for scholarly content, and the protection of confidentiality throughout the peer-review process. All parties involved in the journal's publication process are expected to comply with these principles to preserve the integrity, quality, and trustworthiness of academic publications.

1. Authorship and Accountability

1. AI Cannot Be an Author. AI tools and AI-assisted technologies, including large language models, automated writing assistants, and other AI-based systems, do not meet the criteria for authorship because they cannot assume responsibility for the content, integrity, or originality of scholarly work. Therefore, AI tools or software must not be listed as authors or co-authors of any submitted manuscript.
2. Authors' Full Responsibility. Authors remain fully responsible and accountable for the entire content of their submitted manuscripts, including any material generated, edited, analyzed, or enhanced using AI tools. Authors must independently verify the factual accuracy of all statements, citations, references, data, and figures produced or assisted by AI tools.
3. Human Oversight Required. The use of AI tools must remain subject to meaningful human supervision. Authors must critically evaluate, verify, edit, and revise AI-assisted outputs to ensure that the final manuscript meets applicable academic standards, methodological requirements, and ethical guidelines.

2. Transparency and Disclosure

1. Mandatory Disclosure. Authors must disclose the use of AI tools and AI-assisted technologies when such use contributes to the development, analysis, presentation, or substantive revision of the submitted work. Disclosures must be explicit, specific, and transparent.
2. Information to Be Disclosed. The disclosure should include:
   1. Name of the Tool: The name of the AI tool or software used, including its developer or provider where relevant, such as ChatGPT (OpenAI), Gemini (Google), Grammarly, or other AI-assisted applications.
   2. Purpose of Use: The specific purpose for which the tool was used, such as language refinement, grammar checking, drafting assistance, literature summarization, data analysis, coding assistance, or image and figure generation.
   3. Extent of Involvement: A brief explanation of how the tool contributed to the manuscript and which sections, procedures, or research activities were affected.
3. Location of Disclosure. The disclosure should be included in an appropriate section of the manuscript, depending on the nature of the AI use:
   1. Acknowledgements: Preferred for general language editing and writing assistance.
   2. Methods: Required when AI tools contribute to methodological procedures, data processing, statistical analysis, coding, or other research activities.
   3. Declaration of AI Use: A separate statement placed before the References section or in a footnote on the title page may be used when appropriate.

Example of a Disclosure Statement for Writing Assistance:

"The authors used ChatGPT (OpenAI) to assist with language refinement and improvements in grammatical accuracy and readability. The authors critically reviewed and revised the AI-assisted output and verified the accuracy of the final manuscript. The authors take full responsibility for the content of the published work."

Example of a Disclosure Statement for Research Assistance:

"The authors used [name of AI tool and provider] to assist with [specific research activity, such as data processing, coding, or visualization]. The procedures, outputs, and results were independently reviewed and verified by the authors to ensure methodological accuracy and reproducibility. The authors take full responsibility for the research process and its reported findings."

Example of a Disclosure Statement for Image Generation:

"Figure X was created with the assistance of [name of AI tool and provider]. The authors reviewed and, where necessary, revised the generated output to ensure its accuracy, relevance, and consistency with the objectives of the research."

3. Permissible Uses

AI tools and AI-assisted technologies may be used to support scholarly work, provided that their use complies with this policy, is appropriately disclosed, and remains subject to human verification.

1. Language and Grammar Refinement. Improving readability, spelling, grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure without compromising the author's intended meaning or scholarly contribution.
2. Drafting and Editing Assistance. Supporting the preparation or revision of preliminary drafts and non-research-critical sections of a manuscript, provided that authors critically review, revise, and take responsibility for the final text.
3. Brainstorming and Idea Development. Assisting with preliminary brainstorming, topic exploration, and manuscript outlining, provided that the authors retain responsibility for the originality, development, and academic justification of their arguments.
4. Data Analysis and Visualization Assistance. Supporting data processing, statistical analysis, coding, and the preparation of figures or tables, provided that the methods and outputs are independently verified and reproducible. The tools, procedures, and validation steps must be described in the Methods section whenever relevant to the research methodology.
5. Literature Summarization and Research Assistance. Assisting with the preliminary summarization or organization of existing literature. Authors must consult and verify the original sources, ensure that interpretations accurately reflect the cited works, and provide appropriate citations to the original publications.
6. Translation and Terminology Assistance. Supporting the translation of scholarly texts and the clarification of technical or legal terminology, provided that the resulting text preserves the original meaning and is reviewed by the authors for accuracy and contextual appropriateness.

4. Prohibited Uses

The use of AI tools and AI-assisted technologies is strictly prohibited in the following circumstances:

1. Fabrication of Research Content. Generating or manipulating false data, fabricated research findings, fictitious references, non-existent citations, or misleading figures and other research materials.
2. Plagiarism and Improper Attribution. Using AI-assisted outputs to reproduce or misappropriate existing intellectual work without appropriate attribution, or presenting material derived from other sources as original work. Authors must comply with applicable citation, copyright, and academic integrity requirements.
3. Replacement of Essential Human Intellectual Contributions. Delegating the essential intellectual responsibilities of research to AI tools without meaningful human involvement, including the critical evaluation of evidence, interpretation of findings, justification of legal or theoretical arguments, and formulation of research conclusions. AI assistance must not be used to misrepresent the authors' actual intellectual contributions.
4. Violation of Confidentiality. Editors and reviewers must not upload, disclose, or otherwise expose confidential manuscript content, unpublished research, personal information, or other restricted materials to AI tools or external services that are not authorized to process such information. Any permitted use of AI in editorial or review activities must comply with the journal's confidentiality requirements, applicable data protection obligations, and editorial policies.
5. Misrepresentation of Research. Using AI tools to deliberately mislead readers, editors, reviewers, or other parties concerning the research methods, data, results, sources, authorship, or conclusions presented in a manuscript.
6. Unverified AI-Assisted Outputs. Submitting AI-assisted content, citations, data analyses, translations, or visual materials without appropriate verification when such content may affect the accuracy, reliability, or integrity of the research.
7. Undisclosed Substantive AI Use. Failing to disclose AI use when disclosure is required under this policy, particularly where AI tools materially contribute to the manuscript's content, research methodology, analysis, or presentation.

5. Use of AI by Editors and Reviewers

1. Editorial Responsibility. Editors remain responsible for editorial decisions and must not delegate their professional judgment to AI tools. Any AI-assisted editorial activity must be consistent with the journal's editorial standards, confidentiality obligations, and publication ethics.
2. Reviewer Independence. Reviewers must independently evaluate manuscripts based on their academic expertise and must not rely on AI-generated assessments as a substitute for their own critical judgment.
3. Protection of Manuscript Confidentiality. Editors and reviewers must ensure that confidential manuscripts, unpublished findings, and identifiable author information are not disclosed to unauthorized AI systems. Where the journal permits AI-assisted administrative or editorial support, such use must be appropriately controlled and must not compromise the confidentiality, fairness, or independence of peer review.

6. Consequences of Misuse

Failure to comply with this policy will be treated as a potential breach of publication ethics. Depending on the nature, severity, and circumstances of the violation, UIN Law Review may take one or more of the following actions:

1. Rejection of the submitted manuscript.
2. Retraction or correction of a published article, where justified under applicable publication ethics standards.
3. Restriction or prohibition of future submissions by the responsible author(s), where warranted by the severity of the misconduct and consistent with the journal's editorial procedures.
4. Notification to the author's affiliated institution or relevant research ethics committee, where appropriate.
5. Additional editorial measures in accordance with the journal's publication ethics policies and applicable guidelines.

Any action taken under this provision should be proportionate to the violation and based on an appropriate editorial assessment.

7. Policy Review and Updates

This policy will be periodically reviewed and updated to reflect developments in AI technologies, emerging scholarly publishing practices, and evolving standards of research integrity and publication ethics. UIN Law Review reserves the right to revise this policy as necessary to ensure that the use of AI and AI-assisted technologies remains consistent with the journal's commitment to academic integrity, transparency, accountability, and responsible scholarly publishing.