*as of October, 2024

Article 1 (Purpose)
The Code of Ethics for the Asian Society of Human Services (hereafter, “ASHS”) stipulates the malpractices and violations of research ethics to secure the research ethics of editing and the publication of articles for the Asian Journal of Human Services, Total Rehabilitation Research, and Journal of Inclusive Education.

Article 2 (Application)
This Code of Ethics applies to all the members of ASHS.

Article 3 (Definition of Socially Vulnerable Groups)

Socially vulnerable groups are defined as individuals or populations who, due to factors such as age, disability, illness, poverty, social isolation, migration, minority status, or cultural and linguistic barriers, are at increased risk of disadvantages in maintaining human dignity, quality of life, and opportunities for social participation.

Article 4 (Scope of Groups)

Socially vulnerable groups include, but are not limited to:

1. Older adults requiring care and support
2. Persons with physical, intellectual, developmental, or mental disabilities
3. Children in need of protection, care, or special educational support, including special needs education
4. Individuals and families facing economic hardship, single-parent households, and migrants or foreign workers
5. Patients with chronic illness, rare diseases, or requiring long-term medical and social care
6. People affected by disasters, homelessness, or social exclusion

Article 5 (Mission of the Asian Society of Human Services)

The ASHS regards the protection, inclusion, and empowerment of socially vulnerable groups as a core mission. The Society promotes interdisciplinary academic research, culturally sensitive professional practice, and evidence-based policy advocacy that reflect the diversity of Asian societies. Furthermore, it endeavors to foster international collaboration and knowledge exchange to enhance the quality of life and ensure the full participation of socially vulnerable groups across Asia. 

Article 6 (Scope of Violations of Research Ethics)
The violations of research ethics refer to intentional fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, improper authorship, and multiple publication in the process of suggesting, performing, and publishing articles regardless of the purpose of the research. The terms of violation of research ethics are defined as follows:

1. Fabrication refers to intentionally misrepresenting nonexistent information or research results.
2. Falsification refers to distorting the contents and results of a research work by intentionally fabricating, modifying, or deleting the research data, process, and results.
3. Plagiarism refers to entirely or partially using the existing ideas, research process, and research results of authors or others without indicating the sources, or by changing the forms. This rule also applies to different languages.
4. Multiple publications refer to the case where the submitted articles are closely related to the results and methods of research that have already been published domestically or internationally by the author or other authors, including the articles that are under review.
5. Improper conduct related to research refers to suggesting/imposing improper conduct to/on others, threatening to tamper with and forge research results, and unduly advertising research results.

Article 7 (Receipt of Report on Violation of Research Ethics)
The informant may report a case of research ethics violation to the editorial board of ASHS by phone, mail, or e-mail, with specific proofs provided.

Article 8 (Investigation of a Research Ethics Violation Case)
The editorial board of ASHS shall investigate cases when a report on research ethics violation is received, and the editor-in-chief shall establish a Research Ethics Committee to investigate the violation, soliciting the opinions of the editorial board thereon.

Article 9 (Organization and Authority of the Research Ethics Committee)

1. The Research Ethics Committee shall be composed of more than one person each from the fields of medicine, health science, social welfare, education, psychology, and economics from South Korea and Japan, respectively. The chairperson of the Research Ethics Committee shall be elected through manual voting.
2. The Research Ethics Committee may request the relevant materials from the accused and may keep the research materials related to the persons of interest in cases of research ethics violation, based on the approval of the chairpersons of ASHS, to preserve the evidence.
3. The Research Ethics Committee may suggest proper follow-up measures to the chairpersons of ASHS if the accusation is true.

Article 10 (Protection of the Rights of the Informant and the Accused, and Confidentiality)

1. The Research Ethics Committee should do its best to protect the identity of the informant and should take extra care not to infringe the integrity or rights of the accused until the investigation of the research ethics violation case is completed.
2. The Research Ethics Committee must keep the investigation and the investigation-related matters under wraps, and the persons who shall participate in the investigation must not directly or indirectly give away the information that shall be acquired in the process of investigation. Only if disclosure is necessary and justified may such information be disclosed, after approval by the editorial board.

Article 11 (Guarantee of the Opportunity for Formal Objection and Explanation)
The Research Ethics Committee should provide the person accused of a research ethics violation with sufficient opportunities for formal objection and explanation.

Article 12 (Judgment)

1. The Research Ethics Committee shall confirm the results of the investigation based on the objections or explanations.
2. The judgment of the Research Ethics Committee shall be determined through the agreement of two-thirds of the committee’s members.

Article 13 (Follow-up Measures)
The Research Ethics Committee may impose more than one sanction among the following, when it is confirmed that the accusation is true:

1. disapproval of the publication of the article that has been confirmed to violate research ethics;
2. if the article has already been published, posting of the cancelation of the publication on the ASHS website, and issuing a notice of such action in the journal;
3. membership disqualification or suspension; and
4. other measures.

Article 14 (Notice of Judgment)
The Research Ethics Committee should notify the persons of interest, including the accused, of the committee’s judgment regarding the research ethics violation case without delay and in writing.

Article 15 (Reinvestigation)
If the informant or the accused objects to the judgment of the Research Ethics Committee, he or she may request for re-investigation by mail or e-mail within thirty (30) days from the day when the notice pursuant to Article 13 is made.

Article 16 (Honor Restoration and Follow-up Measures)
If the accusation is confirmed to be false after the investigation, the Research Ethics Committee shall do its best to restore the honor of the accused, and shall take the proper follow-up measures.

Article 17 (Storage and Opening of the Records)

1. The records related to the investigation of a research ethics violation case must be stored for five (5) years from the day of the completion of the investigation.
2. The results of the judgment on a research ethics violation case must be reported to the executive members and the board of directors without delay.

Published 1, September, 2011

Last updated 16, September, 2025