Policy on the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence

Al-Jamahiria: Jurnal Komunikasi dan Dakwah Islam recognizes that generative artificial intelligence and AI-assisted technologies are increasingly used in research, academic writing, translation, data processing, and scholarly communication. These tools may support researchers when used responsibly, transparently, and under meaningful human supervision.

This policy provides guidance for authors, reviewers, and editors regarding the appropriate use of generative artificial intelligence in manuscripts submitted to the journal. The purpose of this policy is not to prohibit technological assistance, but to ensure that artificial intelligence does not replace human intellectual contribution, scholarly judgement, accountability, or research integrity.

1. Definition and Scope

Generative artificial intelligence refers to computational systems capable of generating or transforming content in response to user instructions. The content may include text, images, illustrations, audio, video, computer code, summaries, translations, simulated data, or other digital materials.

Examples include, but are not limited to, ChatGPT, Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Claude, Perplexity, DALL-E, Midjourney, and other large language models or generative media tools. This policy also applies to generative AI features integrated into writing, translation, reference-management, design, transcription, and data-analysis applications.

2. General Principles

1. Generative AI may assist human work, but it must not replace the author's original intellectual contribution, critical reasoning, interpretation, or scholarly judgement.
2. Authors must verify the accuracy, relevance, completeness, and impartiality of all AI-assisted output before including it in a manuscript.
3. Authors must disclose any substantive use of generative AI in the preparation of the manuscript or in the conduct of the research.
4. AI-generated content must not be presented as independently verified evidence, authentic field data, or the author's original analysis.
5. Confidential, personal, copyrighted, culturally sensitive, or unpublished material must not be uploaded to an AI service unless the author has the legal authority to do so and the service provides adequate privacy protection.
6. Generative AI tools cannot be listed as authors, co-authors, reviewers, editors, or responsible contributors.

3. Guidance for Authors

3.1 Permitted Uses

Authors may use generative AI or AI-assisted technologies for limited and supportive purposes, provided that human control, verification, and accountability are maintained. Permitted uses may include:

• Checking spelling, grammar, punctuation, and linguistic clarity;
• Improving the readability of text originally written by the authors;
• Translating author-written material, provided that the translation is checked by a person competent in both the source and target languages;
• Brainstorming keywords, alternative titles, search terms, or preliminary research questions;
• Assisting with the technical organization of references, tables, coding structures, transcripts, or research notes;
• Producing preliminary diagrams, workflows, or non-evidentiary illustrations that are subsequently reviewed and verified by the authors;
• Supporting data processing or computational procedures when the tool is used as part of a clearly described and reproducible research method; and
• Analyzing generative AI itself as the object, medium, platform, or phenomenon being investigated.

Basic spelling, grammar, and punctuation checks that do not substantially change the content or structure of the manuscript do not require a declaration. Substantive rewriting, translation, summarization, content generation, reference selection, coding, image generation, or analytical assistance must be disclosed.

3.2 Uses Requiring Disclosure

Authors must disclose the use of generative AI when the technology has made a substantive contribution to the manuscript or research process, including when it has been used to:

• Draft, restructure, summarize, or substantially revise text;
• Translate substantial portions of the manuscript;
• Generate research ideas, conceptual categories, or analytical themes;
• Assist with coding, classification, transcription, or data analysis;
• Generate or substantially modify figures, diagrams, audio, or images;
• Recommend, select, summarize, or organize scholarly literature;
• Produce computer code used in the research process; or
• Perform any task that may affect the interpretation, reproducibility, or conclusions of the study.

3.3 Prohibited Uses

The following uses of generative AI are prohibited:

• Listing an AI tool as an author or co-author;
• Submitting AI-generated text without careful human review, editing, and verification;
• Using AI to replace the author's critical analysis, interpretation, argumentation, or conclusion;
• Fabricating, altering, or manipulating research data, interview statements, quotations, field notes, survey responses, historical documents, or research findings;
• Generating fictitious participants, informants, observations, or empirical evidence;
• Creating false, misleading, or unverifiable references, citations, quotations, DOI numbers, or bibliographic information;
• Using AI-generated summaries as substitutes for reading and evaluating the original scholarly sources;
• Generating or modifying photographs, screenshots, audio, or video in a way that misrepresents them as authentic research evidence;
• Using AI to conceal plagiarism, duplicate publication, unattributed translation, or other forms of academic misconduct;
• Uploading confidential interview transcripts, personal data, unpublished manuscripts, reviewer reports, or copyrighted material to public AI platforms without appropriate authorization; and
• Using AI to produce an entire manuscript or substantial academic argument without genuine intellectual contribution from the listed authors.

4. AI and Authorship

Generative AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors. Authorship requires responsibilities that can only be fulfilled by human contributors, including approving the final manuscript, declaring conflicts of interest, responding to peer-review comments, protecting research participants, signing publishing agreements, and accepting accountability for the accuracy and integrity of the work.

All persons listed as authors must meet the journal's authorship criteria and remain responsible for the complete content of the submitted and published article.

5. Accuracy of Citations and References

Generative AI systems may produce inaccurate, incomplete, irrelevant, or fabricated references. Authors must personally verify every citation against the original publication, including the authors' names, article title, journal title, volume, issue, page range, publication year, URL, and DOI.

References that cannot be verified through the original source or a reliable academic database must not be included. The presence of fabricated references, false quotations, or invented sources may result in manuscript rejection or further action under the journal's publication ethics policy.

6. Use of AI in Research Methods

When generative AI is used as part of the research design, data-processing procedure, coding process, analytical framework, or research object, its use must be described transparently in the Methods section.

Where relevant, the description should include:

• The name and provider of the AI tool;
• The model or version used, when available;
• The date or period of access;
• The purpose for which the tool was used;
• The type of data or material entered into the system;
• The principal prompts, parameters, or processing procedures;
• The procedures used to check, validate, and correct the output;
• The role of human researchers in interpreting the results; and
• Relevant limitations, risks of bias, confidentiality issues, and reproducibility considerations.

AI-generated interpretation must not be treated as an autonomous research conclusion. The authors must independently evaluate the output and provide the final scholarly interpretation.

7. Images, Audio, Video, and Other Media

AI-generated or AI-modified visual and audiovisual materials must be clearly identified in the manuscript and, where applicable, in the figure caption. Authors must explain the purpose of the generation or modification and confirm that the material does not misrepresent empirical evidence.

Generative AI must not be used to fabricate documentary evidence, field photographs, screenshots, interview recordings, historical materials, or other media presented as authentic research data. AI-based adjustment of research images is limited to technically necessary corrections that do not add, remove, obscure, or distort relevant information.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that AI-generated media do not violate copyright, privacy, cultural rights, publicity rights, or the rights of identifiable individuals.

8. Confidentiality, Privacy, and Intellectual Property

Before using an AI tool, authors must review its terms of service, privacy policy, data-retention practices, and rules concerning model training. Authors should not upload confidential or sensitive material to a service that may store, reuse, share, or train its systems using the submitted content.

Particular care must be taken with interview transcripts, identities of research participants, personal communications, unpublished documents, restricted archives, copyrighted works, indigenous or culturally sensitive knowledge, and other materials requiring permission or protection.

9. Required AI Disclosure Statement

When disclosure is required, authors must include a separate section entitled Declaration of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies at the end of the manuscript, immediately before the References.

The declaration must identify the tool used, explain its purpose, and describe the authors' review and verification of the output.

When generative AI has not been used substantively, authors may include the following statement:

10. Guidance for Reviewers

Submitted manuscripts are confidential documents. Reviewers must not upload a manuscript, manuscript excerpt, supplementary file, author information, editorial correspondence, or reviewer form to a public generative AI platform.

Reviewers must provide their own independent scholarly assessment. AI must not replace the reviewer's expertise, critical reasoning, ethical judgement, or evaluation of the manuscript.

Limited assistance for correcting the language of a review report may be acceptable only when no confidential manuscript content or identifying information is entered into the system. The reviewer remains fully responsible for the accuracy, fairness, originality, and tone of the review report.

Any substantive use of an AI tool in preparing a review report must be disclosed to the editor. Reviewers who cannot comply with these confidentiality requirements should decline the review invitation.

11. Guidance for Editors

Editors must preserve the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and related communications. Editors must not upload unpublished manuscripts, reviewer identities, review reports, author correspondence, or editorial records to public generative AI platforms.

Generative AI must not make or determine editorial decisions. Decisions concerning desk rejection, peer-review selection, revision, acceptance, rejection, correction, or retraction must remain under the responsibility of qualified human editors.

AI-assisted systems may be used for limited administrative or technical functions only when confidentiality, data security, fairness, and human oversight are maintained. Editors remain fully responsible for all editorial communications and decisions.

12. Editorial Assessment and Non-Compliance

The journal will not reject a manuscript merely because an author has used generative AI responsibly. Editorial assessment will focus on whether the use has been transparent, ethically appropriate, accurately verified, and consistent with the author's responsibility for the work.

When undisclosed, misleading, or unethical AI use is suspected, the journal may request:

• A detailed explanation of how the AI tool was used;
• Earlier versions or revision histories of the manuscript;
• Original data, transcripts, coding files, or analytical documentation;
• Copies of relevant prompts and AI-generated output;
• Verification of references, quotations, images, or other materials; and
• A corrected AI disclosure statement.

Failure to disclose substantive AI use, fabrication of data or sources, violation of confidentiality, false statements, or other serious breaches may result in manuscript rejection, withdrawal of acceptance, correction, retraction, notification of the authors' institutions, or other action consistent with the journal's publication ethics policy.

13. Policy Review

Generative AI technologies and publication standards continue to develop. Al-Jamahiria may revise this policy periodically to reflect changes in research practices, ethical guidance, data-protection standards, and scholarly publishing.

Authors, reviewers, and editors are expected to consult the most recent version of this policy when participating in the journal's publication process.