Athena: Journal of Social, Culture and Society protects the independence of its editorial assessment and publication decisions. Editors evaluate manuscripts on scholarly grounds, without improper influence from the journal owner, publisher, sponsors, advertisers, or other interested parties.

Editorial decisions are based on the manuscript’s relevance to the journal’s aims and scope, originality, scholarly contribution, methodological or theoretical soundness, research integrity, and the evidence arising from editorial assessment and peer review.

Decisions must not be determined by an author’s nationality, ethnicity, gender, religion, institutional prestige, political views, or personal relationship with the journal’s personnel. The assessment of a manuscript’s arguments and evidence remains part of scholarly evaluation.

Ownership, publishing support, and operational management do not confer authority to require the acceptance or rejection of an individual manuscript. Such decisions rest with the editor authorised under the journal’s editorial arrangements.

The owner and publisher may raise documented concerns about research integrity, legal obligations, or operational matters through the appropriate journal procedures. These concerns must not be used to dictate a preferred scholarly outcome.

Editors must not be pressured, threatened with removal, or otherwise penalised for a good-faith editorial decision made in accordance with the journal’s policies. Any review of an editor’s performance must distinguish legitimate accountability from disagreement with an individual publication decision.

An author’s ability or willingness to pay an Article Processing Charge, eligibility for a waiver, or financial relationship with the publisher must not influence manuscript assessment or the acceptance decision. Acceptance must not be purchased or promised.

Publication targets, revenue expectations, sponsorship, advertising, and commercial partnerships must not determine which manuscripts are accepted, rejected, corrected, or retracted.

Financial administration is handled separately from scholarly assessment. Applicable charges, payment arrangements, and waivers are described in the Author Fees and Article Processing Charges policy.

Submissions from editors, board members, publisher personnel, collaborators, or affiliated institutions must not receive preferential treatment. A relevant conflict of interest requires independent handling in accordance with the journal’s applicable policies.

Individuals holding both organisational and editorial positions remain subject to the same safeguards. Their organisational position must not be used to bypass independent assessment or influence the editor responsible for a manuscript.

An editor who experiences attempted interference should document the communication and refer the concern to a non-conflicted editorial authority. If the Editor-in-Chief is involved, the concern must be referred to another suitably qualified, non-conflicted editor.

Where no suitable internal editor is available, an independent external editor should be engaged. A person whose conduct is under consideration must not control the assessment or its outcome.

Any resulting reassignment or editorial action must be recorded. Detailed complaint, appeal, and misconduct procedures remain governed by the journal’s relevant policies.