Academic Integrity Policy

1. Statement of Principle

World Bridge University is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity in all scholarly activity. The integrity of the WBU Scholarly Repository depends upon the authenticity, originality, and ethical rigour of the works it contains. The University regards academic misconduct as a serious violation of its foundational values and applicable university regulations.

All works submitted to the Repository are subject to assessment for compliance with this policy. Submission of a work constitutes the author's declaration that the work is original, properly attributed, and in compliance with applicable ethical standards.

2. Definitions of Academic Misconduct

For the purposes of this policy, academic misconduct includes but is not limited to:

2.1 Plagiarism

The use of another person's words, ideas, data, or creative work without proper attribution, whether intentional or unintentional. This includes verbatim copying, close paraphrasing, and the unacknowledged translation or adaptation of source material.

2.2 Self-Plagiarism

The re-use of an author's own previously published or submitted work, in whole or in substantial part, without appropriate disclosure and acknowledgement, in a manner that misrepresents the work as new and original.

2.3 Fabrication and Falsification

The invention, fabrication, or deliberate alteration of research data, results, citations, or any other scholarly material included in a submitted work.

2.4 Unauthorised AI-Generated Content

The submission of content generated by artificial intelligence tools (including but not limited to large language models) as the author's own original intellectual work, without appropriate disclosure, where such use is not permitted by the applicable degree programme regulations or journal publication agreement.

2.5 Collusion

The collaboration between individuals, without authorisation, that results in the submission of work presented as solely the product of one person's independent scholarship.

3. Plagiarism and AI Detection

All works submitted to the Repository are assessed using institutional plagiarism detection and AI-content identification tools prior to publication. The following thresholds are applied:

• Similarity score below 15%: No action required; work proceeds to review
• Similarity score 15–29%: Repository Administrator reviews flagged passages; may require author clarification
• Similarity score 30% or above: Submission suspended; matter referred to the Office of Academic Affairs for investigation
• AI-generated content score 50% or above: Submission suspended pending investigation and clarification from the author

These thresholds are indicative and do not preclude investigation at lower similarity scores where the nature of the matched content raises integrity concerns.

4. Investigation and Sanctions

Where a prima facie case of academic misconduct is established, the matter shall be referred to the appropriate university disciplinary authority in accordance with the WBU Student Academic Integrity Regulations and/or the Staff Code of Conduct. Potential sanctions include:

• Requirement to resubmit a revised and corrected work
• Permanent rejection of the submission from the Repository
• Withdrawal or retraction of a previously published record
• Notation of retraction on the Repository record
• Referral to degree programme authorities for academic penalty
• In cases involving research fraud, referral to external regulatory bodies as appropriate

5. Proper Attribution and Citation

Authors are required to ensure that all sources consulted in the preparation of a submitted work are fully and accurately cited in accordance with the citation style adopted by the relevant discipline. The Repository does not prescribe a specific citation format but requires that citations be internally consistent, complete, and verifiable.

6. Ethical Research Conduct

Works reporting on research involving human participants, animals, or sensitive data must include evidence of ethical approval from the appropriate institutional or national ethics committee. Authors are required to disclose relevant conflicts of interest and funding sources in accordance with applicable disciplinary norms.

7. Retraction Policy

Where a published work is found, after publication, to contain material errors, fabricated data, or plagiarised content, the Repository will issue a formal retraction notice. The original work will be retained in the Repository with a clearly visible retraction statement appended to the record, in accordance with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) retraction guidelines.