Authorship issues

In papers with multiple authors, it is crucial that every individual who has significantly contributed to the work is recognized as an author, while those who have offered support but have not made a substantive contribution should be mentioned in an Acknowledgements section. Issues surrounding authorship typically fall into three categories: omitting a contributor from the author list, including someone who has not contributed to the work or does not want to be associated with it, and disagreements over the order of authors and their respective contributions to the paper. CrossLink Studies commits to assisting in the resolution of any authorship disputes, but since the research is conducted before submission, neither CrossLink Studies nor its editors can ascertain each author's level of contribution. Authors and readers are advised to consult the Committee on Publication Ethics' flowcharts for the procedures CrossLink Studies adheres to in the event of authorship disputes in submitted or published articles. Should the issue remain unresolved, CrossLink Studies will defer to the involved authors' institutions for a decision. Changes in authorship agreed upon by all authors will be documented through a corrigendum, while a retraction notice will be issued only if all authors request it.