Journal Editorial Policies Updated

August 2, 2024

The ASA, CSSA, and SSSA Board of Directors recently approved recommendations made by the ACS321 Editorial Policy Coordination Committee to update some journal editorial policies.

Artificial Intelligence Generated Content

The policy on Artificial Intelligence Generated Content will now require the authors to include the version of the tool they used. The full policy is listed below:

Authors must report the use of artificial intelligence (AI), language models, machine learning, or similar technologies used in the writing of a manuscript, production of images or graphical elements of the paper, or in the collection and analysis of data either in the Methods or Acknowledgments section of their manuscript. Authors should name the AI tool used, including the tool version, and describe exactly how it has been used. Tools that are used to improve spelling, grammar, and general editing are not included in the scope of these guidelines. AI tools cannot be credited as authors on a manuscript as they cannot take responsibility for the submitted work. Authors are fully responsible for the content of their manuscript, including those parts created by an AI tool, and are thus liable for any breach of publication ethics. The final decision about whether use of an AI tool is appropriate or permissible in the circumstances of a submitted manuscript or a published article lies with the journal’s editor or other party responsible for the publication’s editorial policy. This policy is adapted in part based onWiley and COPE guidelines.

Data Policy

The policy on Data for all journals except The Plant Genome (TPG) changed the word “encourages” to “expects” in the statement “ASA, CSSA, and SSSA expects the storage and availability of data necessary to understand and evaluate phenomena reported in our publications.” The current policy for TPG mandates that a data availability statement be included. The updated policy for the ASA, CSSA, and SSSA journals (except TPG) is listed below:

The Data Policy of ASA, CSSA, and SSSA expects the storage and availability of data necessary to understand and evaluate phenomena reported in our publications. Data should be stored or archived in domain repositories that are recognized widely and available to the community. Archiving should follow best management practices for metadata and data curation. Data not stored in such a repository should be available upon request to the authors. ASA, CSSA, and SSSA collaborates with Dryad Digital Repository. Authors may choose to host their article‐associated data in Dryad at no cost. You can find more information on our Dryad Data Repository page. Additional guidance or requirements may be provided by individual journals.

UNITED2ACT Against Paper Mills

There was also approval for becoming a signatory on UNITED2ACT Against Paper Mills. More information on United2ACT can be found here: https://united2act.org/.

View all the editorial policies here: agronomy.org/publications/journals/author‐resources/editorial‐policies/.

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