International Academy of Financial Consumers
International Review of Financial Consumers
History
The IRFC is issued by the International Academy of Financial Consumers (IAFICO). IAFICO is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It is the only global academic institution focusing its research on financial consumers. It was created in 2014 by several Asian scholars who shared similar opinions regarding the importance of financial consumers in the global and regional economy. They believed the emphasis on financial consumers in the current financial system was not sufficient, and that existing forums should pay more attention to the cross-country comparison of experiences, ideas, and best practices from the perspective of financial consumers.
The IRFC was created with the goal of sharing relevant information on financial developments, whether successes or failures, as well as discussing financial issues in an impartial manner from the perspective of financial consumers. Furthermore, the Journal seeks to find short- and long-term solutions for economic and social development, and to collectively suggest solutions to common issues across countries.
The IRFC journal was first published in 2016 after more than a year’s work, mainly owing to the efforts of its editor, professor Man Cho, and other eminent authors across borders. The journal is a platform for sharing research and opinions and serves as a knowledge base and a symbol of IAFICO.
Editorial Policy
We are committed to publishing only high quality research. Our policy on research ethics is based on recommendations by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). COPE is an internationally recognized non-profit organization dedicated to educating editors and publishers in publication ethics. Authors are encouraged to study the IRFC’s ethics principles and abide by them.
Authorship and Contributorship
Authorship misconducts may include fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, and unfair representation of some authors. Misconduct may occur during the proposal, performance, reporting, or presentation stages of research. By submitting their manuscript, authors confirm they are not engaged in any of the actions defined below.
1) Fabrication is the intentional misrepresentation of research results by making up data.
2) Falsification is the distortion of research contents or results through the manipulation of research materials, equipment or processes, or changing or omitting data or results.
3) Plagiarism is the appropriation of another person's ideas, processes or results, without giving appropriate approval or quotation. We define two types of plagiarism:
3.1) Using the original author's idea, logic, unique terms, data, or system of analysis without indicating the source.
3.2) Indicating the source but copying the original paper's words, ideas, data and so on without quotation marks.
4) Self-plagiarism is the reusing of a large portion of the author’s own previously written research.
Other misconducts include:
5) Indicating as authors those who did not contribute but are credited (“guest”, or “gift” authorships), and those who contributed but are not credited (“ghost” authors).
6) Obstructing investigation of their own or other authors’ misconducts.
7) Pressure on, suggestion or threat to others to do the above things.
8) Any other action which is usually unacceptable in the course of research.
In case that the Editorial Board reveals or suspects any misconduct, it will contact the author for clarification or contact an author’s institution for further investigation. Allegations of ethical misconduct may lead to rejection of the manuscript submitted for publication. If an ethical misconduct is revealed after publication of a manuscript, the article may be retracted or removed. We encourage authors and readers of the Journal to notify the Editorial Board of any alleged misconducts. The Board will keep the names of those who have notified anonymous.
Conflict of Interest
We are committed to identifying a conflict of interest whenever it arises. IRFC policies on the conflict of interest include responsibilities for authors, editors, board members and reviewers.
Conflict of interest arises whenever a personal interest of an author, editor, board member or reviewer may affect objectivity of the research or the fulfillment of journal related obligations. This may include financial (e.g. employment, stock ownership, providing consulting services), intellectual (e.g. patent ownership), political, religious or other personal interests. Authors should submit a Manuscript submission form where they disclose any possible conflict of interest. Editors, editorial board members and reviewers should submit a statement of the conflict of interest prior to engaging in these roles for a manuscript.
Funding information is considered separately from conflicts of interest. IRFC requires authors to disclose whether funding has been received for research, as well as funding sources.
Complaints and appeals
If you are a Journal reader and recognize any thoughts, ideas or other materials that are used in a published IRFC article without giving credit to the initial author, we encourage you to notify the Editorial Board. Authors who contributed to the published research but were not given credit for it should also contact the Journal’s Board. The Board will reply to all complaints and notify the complainant of its decision and following actions. The Board shall not reveal any information on those who notify it of possible misconducts. All notifications will be considered and investigated.
In case of any complaints against the Journal, its staff or Editorial Board members, you should submit your statement to the Board explaining your position and reasoning. Staff or Board members against whom a complaint is submitted will not participate in further investigation and consideration of the case.
Data and Reproducibility
IRFC does not charge for access to our journals, and makes all articles available online.
The Journal may ask authors to provide any raw data necessary to understand and assess the research, including input data and computer codes. Any restrictions and objections to this policy should be disclosed when submitting the article, and otherwise will not be considered as valid later.
Research Ethics
Authors should comply with all standards adopted by their institution and industry in relation to research involving hazards and human or animal objects. If a manuscript contains images or personal data of individuals participating in the research, authors should have individuals’ consent and ethics committee approval. When submitting an article, an author should provide necessary statements of compliance.
Fundamental Errors
If an author identifies any significant error in their paper after its publication, it is the author’s responsibility to notify the Editorial Board promptly. Authors should provide assistance in implementing retractions or corrections to the paper. We also encourage readers to notify the Board should they identify any errors in the published materials.