Synergy Publication is proud to align its publishing, review, and editorial policies with the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA). We believe that scientific output must be evaluated on its own merits, rather than on the impact factor of the journal in which it is published.
DORA Signatory • Since 2024
The Paradigm Shift
Traditional Approach
Judge by journal impact factor
Only positive results valued
Coercive self-citation
Citation counts as proxy for quality
DORA-Aligned Approach
Judge by article-level merit
All rigorous research valued
No coercive citation practices
Quality over citation metrics
Our Pledges
Our Commitments under DORA
To support a fair and modern academic evaluation framework, we implement the following practices:
Commitment 01
Focus on Article-Level Metrics
We provide and highlight article-level metrics to showcase the specific impact of each study, rather than promoting journal-wide impact factors.
Page Views
Downloads
Altmetrics
Commitment 02
Methodological Inclusion
We encourage the publication of negative results, replication studies, and exploratory papers, recognizing that all rigorous research contributes to the scientific record.
We do not impose restrictions on reference lists or force authors to cite articles published in our own journals to artificially inflate citation metrics.
No Coercive Citation
No Reference Limits
No Self-Citation Pressure
Commitment 04
Broad Assessment
We instruct our editors and peer reviewers to judge manuscripts based on scientific quality, methodological soundness, and clarity — ignoring citation counts or historical metrics.
Scientific Quality
Methodological Rigor
Clarity of Presentation
Call to Action
Guidelines for Authors & Institutions
We encourage institutions and funding bodies to evaluate researchers based on the content of their publications and the specific scientific contributions they make, supporting the principles of open, ethical, and qualitative assessment.
Open
Transparent evaluation criteria
Ethical
Fair assessment practices
Qualitative
Content over metrics
DORA
San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment
Assess research on its own merit, not on where it is published.