Corrections, Retractions, and Post-Publication Updates Policy

MENTOR Revista de Investigación Educativa y Deportiva recognizes the importance of preserving the accuracy, transparency, and integrity of the scholarly record after publication.

When errors, omissions, integrity concerns, or other circumstances affecting a published article are identified, MENTOR may take post-publication action according to the nature, seriousness, and consequences of the issue.

Such actions may include corrections, errata, expressions of concern, retractions, and, only in exceptional circumstances, removal of published content.

Decisions are made through editorial assessment and, where appropriate, with reference to guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Identification of Post-Publication Errors

Errors or potential concerns relating to a published article may be reported by authors, readers, reviewers, editorial team members, institutions, or other interested parties.

Reports will be assessed by the editorial team before any action is taken.

Where necessary, MENTOR may request explanations, documentation, data, permissions, or other information from the authors or relevant institutions.

Authors are expected to cooperate with the editorial team when a potentially significant error is identified in a published article.

Errata

MENTOR may publish an erratum when a post-publication error attributable to the journal’s editorial or production process is identified.

Such errors may include layout, production, transcription, metadata, or other errors introduced during the editorial process.

Where the error may affect the understanding, citation, identification, or interpretation of the article, a notice will be published clearly explaining the error and the correction made.

The corrected article will maintain a transparent record of the change and will be linked to the corresponding notice.

Corrections

A correction will be published when an error or omission identified after publication requires part of an article to be amended but does not substantially invalidate its results, arguments, or conclusions.

Such cases may include:

• errors in data, tables, figures, or references that do not invalidate the main conclusions;
• incomplete or incorrect information requiring clarification;
• relevant errors reported by the authors;
• justified changes in authorship or contributor information;
• corrections to funding statements, competing interests, or other relevant editorial information.

The correction notice will identify the affected article, explain what information was changed, and maintain a clear link to the published version.

Where the original article is updated, a visible record of the correction and its date will be maintained.

Minor errors that do not affect the scientific meaning of the article, such as certain obvious typographical errors, may be editorially corrected where appropriate while maintaining transparency of the published record.

Post-Publication Authorship Changes

Authorship changes after publication will only be made where appropriately justified and in accordance with MENTOR’s Authorship and Contributorship Policy.

Where a change is approved, a correction linked to the original article will be published.

MENTOR will not retract an article solely because of an authorship dispute where there is no reason to question the reliability of the scientific content.

Expressions of Concern

MENTOR may publish an expression of concern where substantial questions exist about the reliability or integrity of a published article but there is not yet sufficient evidence to determine whether a correction or retraction is appropriate.

An expression of concern may be considered where:

• an institutional or editorial investigation is ongoing;
• available evidence is inconclusive;
• the information required to resolve the matter cannot be obtained in a timely manner;
• significant concerns regarding data integrity, peer review, or other aspects of the article require further investigation.

The expression of concern will be clearly identified, explain the reasons for its publication, and be linked to the relevant article.

When conclusive information becomes available, the expression of concern may be replaced or supplemented by a correction, retraction, or other appropriate editorial notice.

Retractions

MENTOR may retract an article where sufficient evidence demonstrates that its results or conclusions are unreliable or where serious research or publication integrity concerns have been identified.

Reasons for retraction may include:

• fabrication or falsification of data;
• inappropriate manipulation of images, data, or results;
• major errors that substantially invalidate the results or conclusions;
• substantial plagiarism;
• undisclosed duplicate or redundant publication;
• use of materials or data without the necessary authorization;
• seriously unethical research;
• serious copyright, privacy, or other legal infringements;
• substantial manipulation or compromise of the peer-review process;
• major undisclosed competing interests that significantly affected interpretation of the work or editorial decisions;
• other circumstances that make the article unreliable.

Retractions may be initiated by the journal, by the authors, or as a result of an institutional investigation, but the editorial decision is made by MENTOR after assessment of the available evidence.

Lack of agreement or cooperation from the authors will not prevent retraction where sufficient evidence supports such action.

Retraction Procedure

When a retraction decision is made:

1. The article will remain available unless legal, ethical, or safety circumstances require otherwise.
2. The article webpage and published document will be clearly identified as retracted.
3. A separate retraction notice will be published and bidirectionally linked to the original article.
4. The notice will clearly identify the retracted article.
5. The notice will state who is retracting the article.
6. The reasons for retraction will be explained objectively and factually.
7. The retraction notice will remain openly accessible.
8. Article metadata will clearly indicate the retracted status.

Where technically appropriate, the PDF may display a clearly visible retraction watermark without obscuring the original content.

The purpose of retraction is not to erase the article from the scholarly record but to provide a transparent warning that its content should not be regarded as reliable for the reasons stated in the retraction notice.

Correction and Retraction Notices

Correction, erratum, expression-of-concern, and retraction notices will be clearly linked to the articles to which they relate.

Where such notices are published as independent editorial documents, they will have their own bibliographic record and may be assigned a DOI where appropriate within MENTOR’s editorial infrastructure.

Corrected versions and related notices will maintain clear relationships that allow the editorial history of the article to be reconstructed.

Article Removal

Complete removal of article content is an exceptional measure.

Removal may be considered where continued public availability:

• violates a court order or legal obligation;
• seriously infringes legal or privacy rights;
• exposes confidential information whose continued publication would cause serious harm;
• presents a serious and immediate risk to human health or safety;
• must be withdrawn because of another exceptional legal circumstance that cannot appropriately be addressed through correction or retraction.

Where full text must be removed, MENTOR will seek to preserve the article landing page and bibliographic metadata.

The removed content will be replaced by a notice indicating that the article has been removed and, to the extent permitted by legal and confidentiality obligations, providing the general reason for the action.

Removal will not be used as a routine mechanism for dealing with errors, academic disagreements, or misconduct that can appropriately be addressed through correction or retraction.

Metadata Updates

Where a correction, authorship change, retraction, or other post-publication action affects article metadata, MENTOR will update, where appropriate, the information recorded in its editorial platform and in external services to which it supplies metadata.

Articles and related notices will retain persistent identifiers and appropriate relationships to preserve the traceability of the scholarly record.

Editorial Responsibility

The Editor-in-Chief or the responsible editor designated by MENTOR makes decisions concerning corrections, expressions of concern, retractions, and other post-publication actions.

Where necessary, advice may be sought from the Ethics Committee Coordinator, other Ethics Committee members, independent experts, research institutions, or other competent authorities.

The Ethics Committee acts in an advisory capacity and does not replace the responsibility of the Editor-in-Chief or responsible editor for editorial decisions.

Decisions will be documented and will seek to preserve both the integrity of the scholarly record and a fair process for the individuals involved.