Originality, Attribution & Copyright

Plagiarism, Attribution & Reuse

Plagiarism is the act of using another party’s ideas, text, data, images, figures, tables, graphics, mathematical analysis, or other creative expression without appropriate attribution.

Authors must:

• properly cite relevant prior work, including their own,
• clearly distinguish original contributions from previously published material,
• acknowledge the source of reused or adapted material, and
• accurately describe the relationship between the submitted manuscript and related publications or manuscripts.

Proper attribution is required regardless of whether the reused material is quoted directly, paraphrased, summarized, adapted, reorganized, or presented in modified form.

Word-for-word copying of another author’s work must be clearly identified. Short copied passages should be placed in quotation marks or otherwise clearly marked and followed by an appropriate citation. Longer copied passages should be presented in a manner that clearly distinguishes them from the authors’ own text and should be followed by an appropriate citation. This does not apply to short generic phrases that do not convey original intellectual content.

Extensive reproduction of another party’s work is generally not appropriate in scholarly journal articles, even when the copied material is cited.

Reuse of Previously Published Material

Manuscripts may build upon previously disseminated research, including:

• conference papers,
• working papers,
• dissertations,
• preprints,
• technical reports, and
• prior journal publications.

Authors must clearly disclose and appropriately cite related prior work, including earlier versions of the manuscript or closely related publications.

Submissions must provide sufficient new scholarly contribution to justify journal publication. Authors are responsible for explaining the relationship between the submitted manuscript and related prior work.

Authors must also clearly identify any reuse of their own previously disseminated or published work. Extensive word-for-word reuse of an author’s own work may be appropriate in some circumstances, provided that:

• the reuse is properly disclosed and cited,
• the manuscript clearly identifies the reused material, and
• any required copyright permissions have been obtained.

If a section is copied or closely adapted from prior work by one or more of the authors, the manuscript should state this clearly, for example:

• “This section is adapted from Section X of [citation]” or
• “This section is based on material previously presented in [citation].”

Double-anonymous review does not eliminate the obligation to cite relevant prior work, including the authors’ own work. If citing an author’s own related work would compromise anonymity, authors should use an anonymized citation in the manuscript and explain in the cover letter how the citation will be restored if the manuscript is accepted.

The first work in which a creative contribution appears — whether text, ideas, data, analysis, models, algorithms, figures, or other scholarly contributions — should receive credit for that contribution, even if the work has not yet been formally published. Subsequent manuscripts drawing upon that contribution should cite the earlier work, including manuscripts currently under review where appropriate.

When in doubt about whether a reuse requires attribution, authors should err on the side of disclosure — documenting the situation and clearly citing prior contributions in their cover letter. The goal of this policy is transparency: authors must present prior and current work in a manner that allows editors, reviewers, and readers to understand what is original to the submitted manuscript and how it draws upon prior work.

Conference Papers, Working Papers, & Preprints

Authors should consult journal-specific guidelines regarding extensions of conference papers, working papers, preprints, dissertations, and technical reports. When such extensions are welcomed, authors must disclose and cite all materially related prior content and explain the new scholarly contribution made by the submitted manuscript. Editors will evaluate conference proceedings and related prior dissemination on a case-by-case basis, considering the novelty, significance, and archival contribution of the submitted work. Editors may request that authors provide an anonymized copy of related conference papers, working papers, or other prior versions as review-only material so that the contribution of the submitted manuscript can be properly evaluated without compromising the review process.

As a practical matter, if a conference paper, working paper, or preprint has a DOI, appears in formal proceedings, or is otherwise publicly citable, authors should assume that it must be disclosed and appropriately cited.

Data, Figures, Tables, Graphics & Other Third-Party Content

Authors are responsible for ensuring that all reused or adapted material is properly attributed and lawfully used.

This includes, but is not limited to:

• figures,
• tables,
• photographs,
• charts,
• screenshots,
• maps,
• survey instruments,
• datasets,
• software interfaces,
• corporate logos, and
• supplemental content.

Permission may be required even when material is cited appropriately.

In addition, authors should clearly identify when:

• empirical data have been reused from prior studies;
• figures or tables have been reproduced, adapted, redrawn, or derived from previously published sources; or
• previously published analyses have been extended or reanalyzed.

Reuse of empirical data must clearly identify the original source of the data and the extent to which the submitted manuscript provides new analysis, interpretation, or contribution.

Attribution and copyright permission are separate requirements. Citing the source of a figure, table, chart, dataset, screenshot, or other material does not by itself establish permission to reuse it.

Similarly, redrawing a figure, modifying a graphic, reorganizing data in a table, or adapting the presentation of previously published material does not eliminate the need to obtain permission from the copyright holder.

Mathematical Notation, Models & Standard Methods

The reuse of commonly accepted notation, terminology, algorithms, and standard methodological frameworks is generally appropriate within scholarly communication, and reuse of notation for consistency is encouraged.

However, authors must appropriately acknowledge prior sources when mathematical models, analytical methods, proofs, algorithms, or conceptual frameworks originate from prior work and are not presented as common knowledge within the field.

Changing notation or terminology does not eliminate the obligation to provide attribution where substantive intellectual contributions originate elsewhere.

A manuscript should clearly indicate whether a model, algorithm, proof, or other analytical contribution originates from prior literature or represents an original contribution of the submitted work.

When in doubt, authors should cite prior contributions.

Copyright & Permissions Responsibilities

Authors are responsible for obtaining all necessary permissions to reuse copyrighted or trademarked material. This responsibility may apply even when:

• the material is publicly available online,
• the material is reused from the author’s own prior publications, or
• the material is reproduced for scholarly purposes.

Examples of material that may require permission include:

• previously published figures or tables,
• photographs,
• proprietary datasets,
• screenshots,
• logos, and
• substantial excerpts of copyrighted text.

Even when permission is obtained, authors remain responsible for properly citing prior work and acknowledging the original source.

Authors should retain documentation of any permissions obtained and provide such documentation after acceptance when submitting final files for production and publication.

Additional information regarding reuse permissions and republication requests is available on the Rights, Reuse & Permissions page.

Fair Use

“Fair use” is a legal doctrine under United States copyright law that permits certain limited uses of copyrighted material without permission under specific circumstances. Fair use determinations are highly fact dependent, context specific, and do not follow precise numerical or mechanical rules. Whether a particular use qualifies as fair use may depend on factors such as:

• the purpose and character of the use,
• the nature of the copyrighted work,
• the amount and substantiality of the material reused, and
• the effect of the reuse on the market for the original work.

Because fair use determinations are highly dependent on the specific circumstances of each use, authors should seek permission whenever uncertainty exists regarding whether permission is required.

Generative AI & AI-Assisted Content

Authors remain fully responsible for the originality, accuracy, attribution, legality, and integrity of all submitted content, including content developed with the assistance of generative AI tools.

The use of AI-generated or AI-assisted material does not eliminate the obligation to:

• provide appropriate attribution where required,
• avoid plagiarism,
• comply with copyright and licensing restrictions, and
• ensure the accuracy and originality of the submitted work.

Authors should also consult applicable journal-specific policies regarding the disclosure and permitted use of generative AI tools in scholarly publishing.

Questions & Concerns

Questions regarding originality, attribution, permissions, or reuse may be directed to the INFORMS Publications Department at [email protected].