SHGAPE/JGAPE Plagiarism Policy December 11, 2004

a. The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era (JGAPE) and the Society for Historians of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era (SHGAPE) will use the provisions of the most recent version of the American Historical Association (AHA) Statement on Plagiarism as their criteria for defining plagiarism and evaluating charges of plagiarism.

b. In all procedures and discussions involving accusations or suspicions of plagiarism, the journal's staff and the society's officers will give priority to the professional interests and scholarly reputation of the journal. The journal's responsibility is to ensure the integrity of what appears in its pages. Staff members of JGAPE and officers of SHGAPE will take steps to ensure confidentiality during deliberation over and review of possible instances of plagiarism.

c. When the editor, the associate editors, editorial board members, or peer reviewers suspect plagiarism in a manuscript submitted to the journal but not yet published, the editor and the president of SHGAPE will decide on a case-by-case basis whether to submit the manuscript to the review procedure described below or to return the manuscript to the author with minimal or no explanation.

d. When the editor suspects plagiarism in an article already published or when someone other than an author alleging plagiarism from his or her own work brings such suspicions to the editor's attention, the editor will forward all relevant documentation to the president of SHGAPE, who in consultation with the journal's executive board will decide whether the charge merits submission to the review procedure described below.

e. The editor will forward accusations of plagiarism arising during preparation of a book review to the president of SHGAPE, who in consultation with the journal's executive board will decide on a case-by-case basis whether to submit the accusation to the review procedure described below or to advise the accuser to take the matter to another venue.

f. When an author alleges plagiarism from his or her own work in an article already published in the journal, the president of SHGAPE will ask the accuser to provide specific documentation of the material allegedly plagiarized. The journal's editor will forward all other relevant documentation to the SHGAPE president, who in consultation with the journal's executive board will decide whether to submit the accusation to the review procedure described below.

g. In all instances when SHGAPE decides formally to review an accusation of plagiarism, the president of SHGAPE shall forward all relevant documentation to the accused author, who shall have the opportunity to provide a written comment.

h. JGAPE and SHGAPE understand that the profession's definition of plagiarism recognizes gray areas, for example instances of imprecise or insufficient citation when it is a matter of interpretation whether the action amounts to plagiarism. In such situations, the president of SHGAPE may attempt to mediate a solution in lieu of a formal review.in lieu of the review procedure described below.

i. When an accusation of plagiarism reaches the stage of formal review, the president of SHGAPE will appoint a committee of three to evaluate the relevant documentation, including any materials presented by the accused and accuser. One member of the committee will be a member of the JGAPE editorial board. The others will be specialists in the topical field under review. For these two positions, the president will appoint people with no conflict of interest in relation to the contending parties and, if feasible, with no current or past service on the journal's editorial board or staff.

j. The committee will evaluate materials provided to it and produce a written report on the charges within two months. If a meeting of the committee is difficult for geographic reasons, the committee members will deliberate via conference call before submitting their report.

k. If no plagiarism is found, the president of SHGAPE will notify the JGAPE editor, the accused author, and, if relevant, the accuser of the finding. The president of SHGAPE and the journal's executive board will decide whether to disclose this finding in the journal.

l. If a finding of plagiarism is made in an unpublished manuscript under review by the journal, the manuscript will be withdrawn from consideration and the author and, if relevant, the accuser will be notified of that action.

m. If the evaluation committee finds plagiarism in a piece already published, the SHGAPE president and the journal's executive board will determine appropriate action to be taken, in consultation with legal counsel, if that is deemed necessary. Such action could include disclosure of the report or conclusions of the evaluation committee in the journal, expelling the author from SHGAPE, barring the author from again publishing in the journal, or another appropriate sanction.