Policy on the Use of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies

Alsina: Journal of Arabic Studies recognizes the rapid development of generative artificial intelligence and AI-assisted technologies in scholarly writing, editing, peer review, and publishing. This policy is intended to preserve academic integrity, transparency, confidentiality, intellectual accountability, and ethical standards throughout the journal’s publication process.

This policy applies to authors, reviewers, editors, and all parties involved in the submission, review, editing, and publication of manuscripts in Alsina: Journal of Arabic Studies.

1. Definition

In this policy, generative AI and AI-assisted technologies refer to tools, applications, or systems that use artificial intelligence to generate, revise, translate, summarize, organize, analyze, or otherwise assist in producing text, images, audio, data, or other forms of content.

Examples include, but are not limited to, ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Copilot, Perplexity, DeepL Write, Grammarly AI-based features, DALL·E, Midjourney, and similar tools.

2. Use of AI by Authors

Authors may use generative AI and AI-assisted technologies to support the preparation of manuscripts, provided that such use remains under full human oversight and control.

Permitted uses may include:

  1. improving grammar, spelling, punctuation, and readability;

  2. refining academic style and clarity;

  3. assisting with translation or language polishing;

  4. organizing ideas or improving the structure of a manuscript;

  5. helping authors identify possible gaps, questions, or directions for further scholarly consideration.

However, generative AI and AI-assisted technologies must not replace the author’s intellectual contribution, critical thinking, scholarly judgment, data analysis, interpretation, argumentation, or conclusions.

Authors remain fully responsible for the content of their manuscripts, including any part prepared with the assistance of AI tools.

Authors must carefully review, edit, and verify all AI-assisted outputs. This includes checking the accuracy of factual claims, quotations, references, interpretations, translations, data analysis, and all other scholarly content. Authors must also ensure that AI-generated or AI-assisted material does not contain fabricated references, inaccurate citations, misleading claims, plagiarism, or biased interpretations.

3. Disclosure of AI Use

Authors must disclose any substantive use of generative AI or AI-assisted technologies in manuscript preparation.

The disclosure must be included in a separate section before the reference list under the following heading:

Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies in the Writing Process

The declaration should include:

  1. the name of the AI tool used;

  2. the purpose of use;

  3. the part of the manuscript or research process in which the tool was used;

  4. a statement confirming that the author(s) reviewed, edited, and verified the AI-assisted outputs;

  5. a statement that the author(s) take full responsibility for the final content of the manuscript.

Basic checks of grammar, spelling, and punctuation do not require disclosure, provided that the tool is not used to generate, rewrite, analyze, interpret, or substantially revise scholarly content.

If AI tools are used as part of the research process, such as for corpus annotation, data classification, natural language processing, textual analysis, translation analysis, image processing, or other methodological purposes, this use must be described in detail in the Methods section. The description should include the tool name, model or version when available, purpose of use, procedures, type of data processed, and the form of human verification applied.

4. AI Tools Must Not Be Listed as Authors

Generative AI tools, chatbots, software, or other AI-based systems must not be listed as authors or co-authors.

Authorship is limited to human contributors who meet the journal’s authorship criteria, approve the final version of the manuscript, agree to its submission, and are able to take responsibility for the integrity, accuracy, and originality of the work.

AI tools must not be cited as authors in the reference list. When disclosure is necessary, the use of AI should be described in the AI declaration statement, not treated as authorship or scholarly citation.

5. Author Responsibility and Accountability

Authors are fully accountable for the integrity of their manuscripts. This responsibility includes:

  1. ensuring the accuracy of all statements, data, quotations, translations, and references;

  2. ensuring the originality of the manuscript;

  3. ensuring that the analysis, interpretation, and conclusions reflect the author’s own scholarly contribution;

  4. verifying all AI-assisted outputs before submission;

  5. protecting confidential data, personal data, unpublished materials, and intellectual property;

  6. complying with the terms and conditions of any AI tool used;

  7. ensuring that the use of AI does not violate copyright, privacy, data protection, or other legal and ethical requirements.

Authors must not upload confidential materials, unpublished manuscripts, identifiable personal data, respondent data, copyrighted materials, or sensitive information into public AI tools if doing so may compromise confidentiality, privacy, intellectual property, or third-party rights.

6. Use of AI in Figures, Images, Illustrations, and Artwork

Alsina: Journal of Arabic Studies does not permit the use of generative AI or AI-assisted tools to create, alter, manipulate, enhance, remove, obscure, introduce, or modify specific features in figures, images, illustrations, photographs, or artwork submitted as part of a manuscript.

This restriction includes, but is not limited to:

  1. creating illustrations using generative AI;

  2. altering or removing elements from an image;

  3. adding new visual features to an image;

  4. manipulating images in ways that change, hide, or distort the original information;

  5. producing graphical abstracts or cover artwork using generative AI without prior editorial approval.

Basic technical adjustments, such as brightness, contrast, size, or color balance, are acceptable only when they do not obscure, eliminate, distort, or misrepresent information contained in the original image.

An exception may apply when the use of AI is an integral part of the research design or research method. In such cases, authors must describe the use of AI clearly and reproducibly in the Methods section. Authors may also be asked to provide original, pre-AI-processed files or raw materials for editorial assessment.

7. Use of AI by Reviewers

Reviewers must treat all submitted manuscripts as confidential documents.

Reviewers must not upload manuscripts, manuscript excerpts, tables, figures, data, supplementary materials, or review reports into public generative AI tools or AI-assisted platforms. Doing so may violate author confidentiality, proprietary rights, data privacy, and the integrity of the peer-review process.

Reviewers must not use generative AI or AI-assisted technologies to replace their own scholarly evaluation of a manuscript. Peer review requires critical reading, expert judgment, disciplinary knowledge, and original assessment by the reviewer.

Reviewers are fully responsible for the content, accuracy, fairness, and tone of their review reports.

8. Use of AI by Editors

Editors must treat all submitted manuscripts and editorial communications as confidential materials.

Editors must not upload manuscripts, manuscript excerpts, reviewer reports, author responses, editorial correspondence, decision letters, or other confidential materials into public generative AI tools or AI-assisted platforms.

Editors must not use generative AI or AI-assisted technologies to replace editorial judgment, manuscript evaluation, reviewer assessment, or decision-making. Editorial decisions must be made by human editors based on the scholarly quality of the manuscript, reviewer reports, journal scope, publication ethics, and the journal’s editorial standards.

Editors remain fully responsible for the editorial process, final decisions, and communication with authors.

9. Use of AI in the Journal Publication Process

Alsina: Journal of Arabic Studies may use digital tools or AI-assisted technologies in limited technical aspects of the publication process, such as manuscript completeness checks, formatting checks, similarity screening, metadata checking, reviewer matching, copyediting support, or post-acceptance production assistance.

Such tools are used only to support editorial and publishing workflows. They do not replace human oversight, editorial responsibility, or final decision-making.

10. Violations of This Policy

Failure to comply with this policy may be treated as a publication ethics issue.

Depending on the nature and severity of the violation, editorial actions may include:

  1. requesting clarification from the author, reviewer, or editor concerned;

  2. requesting revision or an additional AI-use declaration;

  3. rejecting the manuscript;

  4. withdrawing a manuscript from the review process;

  5. correcting or retracting a published article;

  6. notifying the relevant institution or authority in cases of serious ethical misconduct.

Suggested Short Version for Author Guidelines

Use of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies

Authors may use generative AI and AI-assisted technologies to support manuscript preparation, such as language editing, translation refinement, organization of ideas, or improvement of readability. However, such tools must not replace the authors’ critical thinking, scholarly judgment, data analysis, interpretation, argumentation, or original contribution.

Authors are fully responsible for the accuracy, integrity, originality, and validity of all content in the manuscript, including any part assisted by AI tools. Authors must verify all AI-assisted outputs, including references, quotations, data interpretation, translations, and factual claims.

Authors must disclose any substantive use of generative AI or AI-assisted technologies in a separate statement entitled Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies in the Writing Process. Basic grammar, spelling, and punctuation checks do not require disclosure.

AI tools must not be listed as authors or co-authors. Authorship is limited to human contributors who are able to take responsibility for the work.

The use of generative AI or AI-assisted tools to create or manipulate images, figures, illustrations, or artwork is not permitted, unless such use forms part of the research method and is described transparently and reproducibly in the Methods section.

Reviewers and editors must not upload submitted manuscripts, review reports, editorial correspondence, or confidential materials into public generative AI tools. Peer review and editorial decisions must remain the responsibility of human reviewers and editors.

Declaration Templates

Template 1: When AI Tools Were Used

Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies in the Writing Process

During the preparation of this manuscript, the author(s) used [name of AI tool] to assist with [specific purpose, e.g., language editing, translation refinement, organization of ideas, or improving readability]. The author(s) reviewed, edited, and verified all AI-assisted outputs and take full responsibility for the final content of the manuscript.

Template 2: When AI Tools Were Not Used

Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies in the Writing Process

The author(s) declare that no generative AI or AI-assisted technologies were used in the preparation of this manuscript.

Template 3: When AI Was Used as Part of the Research Method

Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies in the Research Process

The author(s) used [name of AI tool, model, and version if available] as part of the research process for [specific methodological purpose, e.g., corpus annotation, text classification, translation analysis, or data processing]. The procedures, data processed, and verification steps are described in the Methods section. The author(s) reviewed and verified the outputs and take full responsibility for the accuracy and integrity of the research.