Code of conduct

Overview
- The Review of Economic Studies (“REStud”) is committed to providing an environment free from harassment bullying and discrimination and ensuring all authors, referees, participants, tourists, attendees, editors, directors and board members (“REStud Community Members”) are treated, and treat others, with dignity and respect.
Anti-Harassment Policy
- Harassment, bullying or victimisation of any REStud Community Member or anyone they come into contact with during the course of their participation and/or interaction with REStud will not be tolerated. REStud is committed to taking active steps to help prevent the harassment, bullying and victimisation of all REStud Community Members. Anyone who is a victim of, or witness to, harassment, bullying, victimisation or discrimination is encouraged to report such in accordance with this code of conduct.
- Harassment includes any unwanted physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct that has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them. Unlawful harassment may involve conduct of a sexual nature (sexual harassment), or it may be related to age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation (“Protected Characteristic”). Examples of such behaviours may include but are not limited to:
  - engaging in intimidating or hostile behaviour towards an editor after the evaluation of a submitted article;
  - harassing REStud Community Members or third parties at any REStud Tour, board meeting or event;
  - unwanted physical contact or advances at any REStud Tour, board meeting or event;
  - excluding or ridiculing an individual including due to a Protected Characteristic;
  - sending or displaying material that is pornographic or that some people may find offensive; and
  - condoning any such behaviour or conduct.

Creating an Inclusive Environment
- Our activities including board meetings, Tours (Europe and North America), REStud events or affiliated events and article submissions (the “Activities”) are for the purpose of educational discussion and development. Whilst we respect and encourage open dialogue, engagement and freedom of opinion within our Activities, we will not tolerate any offensive or abusive language and behaviour. All ideas and articles submitted and presented should be considered on their scientific merits regardless of a person’s age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.
Publication Misconduct
- REStud Community Members should undertake all research activities in line with the standards of publication ethics set by the Committee of the Publication Ethics (“COPE”). Further information on the COPE standards can be found All Activities should be conducted with integrity, care, honesty and transparency and REStud Community Members shall follow the below principles when submitting and article or presenting/discussing an article:
  - Plagiarism: plagiarism will not be tolerated by REStud. Contributions by other individuals should be correctly cited with personal contribution truthful and accurate;
  - Intellectual Property: all data and software must be legally obtained. The rights of any copyright agreement or applicable terms and conditions of the data, software or other materials used in research should be complied with;
  - Appropriation: REStud Community Members should not appropriate ideas of others including those of other REStud Community Members;
  - Authorship: co-authorship of an article submitted to REStud should be the result of a scientific contribution and not the result of unethical behaviours including, but not limited to:
    - the result of power relations; or
    - the artificial inflation of someone’s publication record.

All authors should be in agreement with the submission of an article or presentation of such. Co-authors shall be dually responsible for the full content of the article unless otherwise disclosed at the time of submission. Articles should not be submitted if there is an ongoing dispute regarding the authorship.

Data and Code: REStud Community Members should not falsify or undertake any fraudulent manipulation of data or of the results obtained from such data. Replication packages must be made available and properly documented in accordance with REStud’s Data and Code Availability policy which can be found here;
Co-operation: REStud Community Members must cooperate with researchers trying to reproduce the results of their published paper to the extent that these requests are reasonable;
Conflict of Interest: in the event of a conflict of interest, REStud’s policies regarding conflict of interest (which can be found ) should be followed. If a REStud Community Member is unable to undertake their role in an objective manner, they should inform REStud, citing their perceived conflict of interest, even if the conflict is not listed in the policy-dictated conflicts of interest;
Impartiality: REStud Community Members should not seek special treatment from editors or referees before, during, or after the evaluation process of an article submission or during any other REStud Activity; and
Expertise: REStud Community Members should acknowledge the limits of their expertise when undertaking their roles. Referees should inform editors, or remove themselves from their roles, when they are unable to provide an informed assessment of the work of others. Editors should seek enough recommendation from referees and potentially other editors when the extent of their expertise limits their ability to make informed decisions.

Who does this code of conduct apply to?
- This statement applies to all REStud Community Members in all Activities, interactions and communications with:
  - REStud;
  - other REStud Community Members; and
  - third parties they may encounter during their involvement with REStud or participation in REStud Activities.

Reporting Harassment, Discrimination and/or Misconduct
- REStud Community Members should report all inappropriate conduct to REStud by emailing [xxx] or speaking to the relevant conference, board meeting or event manager, notified to the REStud Community Members at the relevant event.
- REStud will take reasonable measures to investigate all complaints in a timely manner. All complaints shall remain confidential where possible.
- If a REStud Community Member is found to engage in misconduct, harassment and/or unwanted behaviour, REStud retains the right to take appropriate action which may include:
  - expulsion from the Tour, board meeting or event;
  - removal of the consideration of an article without a refund;
  - banning such REStud Community Member from future events and/or from submitting future articles; and
  - removal from current roles or responsibilities.
- Any complaints found to be malicious shall be addressed by REStud with the appropriate action taken in accordance with the list of actions above.