This grievance procedure establishes a process to address complaints raised by participants in the publishing process of AAA journals.
The AAA adheres to the ethical principles and best practices outlined in the Core Practices and associated guidelines from the Committee on Publication Ethics, as well as applicable principles included in Wiley’s Publisher’s Best Practice Guidelines on Research Integrity and Publishing Ethics.
Types of Complaints
Complaints may involve authors, peer reviewers, or journal editors or staff, and may include:
- Plagiarism or duplicate submissions
- Unauthorized or inappropriate use of artificial intelligence (AI)
- Research misconduct
- Misattribution or inappropriate citation
- Miscrediting of coauthor or contributor
- Conflict of interest
- Editor or reviewer bias
- Administrative or financial mismanagement
- Harassment, retaliation, or other inappropriate behavior
Complaint Process
Complaints involving authors, peer reviewers, or editorial decisions should be made directly to a journal’s editor(s)-in-chief. Except for editorial decision appeals, complaints against journal editors or staff can be made directly to the AAA’s Director of Publishing (DP).
When a journal editor receives a complaint, they should inform the DP. The DP, in consultation with the chair of the Anthropological Communication Committee (ACC), will decide whether the editor should attempt to resolve the complaint or the complaint should be elevated to the ACC. The DP will inform the subject of the complaint about the details of the complaint, and they will be given an opportunity to respond. The DP, ACC, and Wiley may also provide guidance to the editor, including access to legal support. If the complaint exceeds the scope of a publishing grievance, the DP and ACC may elevate the complaint to the AAA’s Executive Board.
If a publishing complaint is not able to be resolved by the editor, it can be appealed or elevated to the ACC by the complainant, editor, DP, or chair of the ACC. The ACC chair will select two other members of the ACC, and the three members will form an ad hoc committee to address the complaint. If the chair has a conflict of interest, the AAA President will appoint the three committee members.
The ad hoc committee will make a recommendation to the full ACC. If the ACC cannot facilitate a resolution that is agreed upon by all parties, the ACC can send a recommendation to the EB for action. EB decisions are final and not eligible for appeal.
In the process of resolving a complaint, the DP and ACC may consult relevant institutions or employers, funding bodies, institutional review boards, journal staff, AAA and section leadership, Wiley and any publishing-related contractors, and legal counsel.
The AAA will not tolerate any form of retaliation against those involved in the grievance process. Any form of retaliation will be investigated by the AAA’s Executive Board and may result in disciplinary action.
The DP will maintain a record of past grievances; committee members are welcome to consult this record to learn how past grievances were resolved
Changes to Published Manuscripts
If the complaint resolution involves a change, correction, or retraction to a published manuscript, the journal editor and DP will work with Wiley’s Research Integrity team on a statement to be published with the manuscript that describes the grievance and resolution terms. The statement will be shared prior to publication with all parties involved in the complaint, but the statement need not require the approval of all parties before publication.