Data Availability Policy

1. Policy Statement

Impaxon encourages authors to share research data, code, protocols, materials, and other outputs that support the findings reported in their manuscripts. Data sharing strengthens transparency, verification, reproducibility, reuse, and trust in published research.

Authors should provide sufficient information for readers, reviewers, and editors to understand how the reported findings were produced and, where possible, to verify or reproduce the work.

2. Scope of this Policy

This policy applies to research data, code, algorithms, protocols, questionnaires, images, supplementary files, statistical outputs, software, models, and other materials that support the claims, findings, tables, figures, or conclusions of a manuscript.

The policy applies to all manuscripts submitted to Impaxon journals unless a journal, article type, funder, institution, or legal requirement specifies stricter data sharing obligations.

3. Data Availability Statements

Authors should include a Data Availability Statement in their manuscript where applicable. This statement should explain whether the data supporting the findings are publicly available, available on reasonable request, included within the article or supplementary materials, restricted, or not available due to ethical, legal, confidentiality, or privacy limitations.

The statement should be clear, accurate, and consistent with the information provided in the manuscript, supplementary files, repository records, and funding declarations.

4. Publicly Available Data

Where research data are publicly available, authors should provide the name of the repository, database, archive, or platform where the data can be accessed, together with a persistent identifier or stable link where available.

Authors should use recognised repositories that support long-term access, clear metadata, appropriate licensing, and persistent identifiers whenever possible.

5. Data Included in the Article or Supplementary Materials

When data are included within the article or supplementary materials, authors should state this clearly in the Data Availability Statement.

Supplementary materials should be provided in accessible, usable, and clearly labelled formats. Authors are responsible for ensuring that supplementary files do not contain confidential, restricted, or unlawfully shared information.

6. Data Available on Request

If data cannot be made publicly available but can be shared with qualified researchers upon reasonable request, authors should clearly state how requests may be made and any conditions that apply.

“Available on request” statements should be used only where there is a reasonable and genuine route for data access. Authors may be asked by editors to explain why public repository deposit is not possible.

7. Restricted or Confidential Data

Some data cannot be shared openly because of ethical approval conditions, participant privacy, personal data protection, confidentiality agreements, legal restrictions, national security concerns, commercial sensitivity, or third-party ownership.

Where data are restricted, authors should explain the nature of the restriction and identify any process by which access may be requested, if applicable.

8. Human Participant and Sensitive Data

Data involving human participants, patients, personal information, clinical records, images, interviews, surveys, or other sensitive information must be handled in accordance with ethical approvals, informed consent, privacy laws, data protection requirements, and institutional policies.

Authors must not share identifiable or sensitive data unless appropriate consent, permissions, anonymisation, legal basis, and ethical approvals are in place.

9. Code, Software, and Algorithms

Authors are encouraged to make code, software, algorithms, scripts, models, and computational workflows available where this is necessary to support reproducibility and verification of the reported findings.

Code and software should be documented clearly enough to allow reasonable understanding and reuse. Any restrictions on access, licensing, dependencies, or execution should be stated.

10. Third-Party Data

Where manuscripts rely on third-party data, authors must comply with the terms of access, licensing, citation requirements, and reuse restrictions imposed by the data provider.

Authors should cite third-party datasets properly and explain how readers may access them where permitted.

11. Reviewer and Editor Access

Editors or reviewers may request access to data, code, protocols, or supplementary materials during editorial assessment or peer review where necessary to evaluate the manuscript.

Failure to provide reasonable access to supporting materials when requested may affect editorial assessment and may result in revision, rejection, or other appropriate action.

12. Data Integrity and Retention

Authors are responsible for preserving the data and materials underlying their published work for a reasonable period after publication, in accordance with institutional, funder, legal, ethical, or disciplinary requirements.

Data must not be fabricated, falsified, selectively withheld, or manipulated in a way that misrepresents the research record.

13. Data Citation

Authors should cite datasets, code, software, and other research outputs where appropriate. Data citations should include sufficient information to identify and access the cited material, including repository name, creator, title, year, version, and persistent identifier where available.

14. Exceptions to Data Sharing

Impaxon recognises that not all research data can or should be shared publicly. Legitimate exceptions include ethical restrictions, legal limitations, privacy protection, confidentiality obligations, intellectual property concerns, security risks, or restrictions imposed by data providers.

Exceptions should be explained transparently in the Data Availability Statement.

15. Post-Publication Concerns

If concerns arise after publication regarding data availability, data integrity, reproducibility, or the accuracy of a Data Availability Statement, Impaxon may investigate the matter and request clarification or supporting documentation from the authors.

Where necessary, the journal may issue a correction, expression of concern, retraction, or other notice in accordance with its publication ethics and corrections policies.

16. Changes to this Policy

Impaxon may revise this policy periodically to reflect developments in open science, data sharing standards, funder requirements, research ethics, legal obligations, and disciplinary best practices.