authorshipcriteria

1. General Authorship Policy
Abdimas Unwahas: Jurnal Pengabdian Masyarakat, published by the Institute for Research and Community Service (LP2M) of Universitas Wahid Hasyim Semarang, follows the authorship principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Authorship must reflect substantial contributions to both the community service program and the manuscript reporting it. All listed authors must accept responsibility for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the published work. Attendance at program activities, institutional position, or membership in a grant proposal does not by itself justify authorship.

2. Criteria for Authorship
To qualify as an author, an individual must meet all four of the following criteria:
(1) make substantial contributions to the community service program, such as identifying the partner’s problems, designing the solution, developing training materials or technology, delivering or mentoring program activities, or evaluating program outcomes;
(2) participate in drafting or critically revising the manuscript;
(3) approve the final version for publication; and
(4) accept accountability for the program, the data, and the content of the manuscript.
Contributors who do not meet all four criteria should be acknowledged rather than listed as authors.

3. Author Contributions
Each manuscript must include an Author Contributions statement placed before the References. The journal uses the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT), adapted to community service: conceptualization, program design, material or product development, program implementation, partner coordination, evaluation and data analysis, writing (original draft), writing (review and editing), supervision, and funding acquisition. Each author must hold at least one program role and at least one writing role. Supervision or funding acquisition alone does not qualify an individual for authorship.

4. Author Order and Corresponding Author
All authors must agree on the author order before submission, and the order should reflect their relative contributions. A manuscript may list a maximum of six authors; any additional author requires a written justification of their role. The corresponding author is responsible for communication with the editorial office, coordinating revisions, submitting the signed Authorship Statement, and ensuring that all co-authors have approved the manuscript and agreed to its submission and publication. An ORCID iD is mandatory for the corresponding author and strongly recommended for all co-authors.

5. Authorship of Students and Community Partners
Students, including those participating in thematic community service (KKN Tematik), may be listed as authors if they were involved in core program activities and in writing the manuscript. Students who provided only field assistance, documentation, or logistical support should be acknowledged, individually or collectively. Community partner representatives, such as MSME owners, teachers, health cadres, or institutional managers, may be listed as authors under their own affiliation if they meet all authorship criteria. The journal encourages such participatory authorship. Institutional leaders, funders, and government officials are acknowledged rather than listed as authors.

6. Changes in Authorship
Any addition, removal, or rearrangement of authors after submission must be requested by the corresponding author by email to abdimas@unwahas.ac.id. The request must include a written explanation, the consent of all authors (including any author being added or removed), and an updated Author Contributions statement. Changes must be approved by the editorial team, and manuscript processing may be suspended until approval is given. Authorship changes after acceptance are not permitted. Errors in names or affiliations in published articles are corrected through an erratum.

7. Unacceptable Authorship Practices
Abdimas Unwahas prohibits honorary, gift, guest, ghost, and coercive authorship, as well as listing any individual without their consent or trading authorship positions. Individuals who have not made qualifying contributions must not be listed as authors, and eligible contributors must not be excluded. Financial support, administrative assistance, provision of venues or permits, or general supervision alone does not justify authorship. Editorial board members who submit manuscripts are excluded from all editorial decisions on their own work.

8. Artificial Intelligence and Authorship
Artificial intelligence tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors because they cannot fulfill authorship responsibilities. Authors must disclose any substantive use of AI in writing, translation, or data analysis, naming the tool and its purpose in the Methods or Acknowledgment section. Use limited to grammar and spelling checks need not be disclosed. Authors remain fully accountable for all AI-assisted content in their manuscripts.

9. Authorship Disputes and Author Declaration
Authorship disputes should first be resolved among the contributors or through their institutions. The editorial team does not adjudicate authorship, but it may request contribution statements, written confirmations, or supporting documentation, such as program reports or activity records, and may suspend manuscript processing until the dispute is resolved. Unresolved disputes may lead to rejection or, for published articles, an expression of concern, a correction, or a retraction, in line with the COPE flowcharts. By submitting a manuscript to Abdimas Unwahas, all authors confirm that they meet the journal’s authorship criteria, have approved the final manuscript, and accept responsibility for its integrity.