Ar Rehla: Journal of Islamic Tourism, Halal Food, Islamic Traveling, and Creative Economy supports the responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in scholarly research and manuscript preparation. AI may be used as a supporting tool, provided that its use maintains academic originality, scientific accuracy, transparency, confidentiality, and human intellectual responsibility.
This policy applies to authors, editors, reviewers, and other individuals involved in the journal's publication process.
Ar Rehla permits the responsible use of AI technologies to support scholarly activities, including:
Language Editing and Translation: Improving grammar, spelling, academic language, readability, and translation accuracy.
Manuscript Preparation: Assisting with the organisation of ideas, writing structure, and preliminary manuscript development.
Literature Organisation: Supporting literature searches, bibliographic organisation, and preliminary identification of research themes.
Research and Data Analysis: Assisting with data processing, statistical analysis, qualitative coding, text analysis, and other appropriate analytical procedures.
Research Instruments and Programming: Supporting the development of research instruments, analytical frameworks, and research-related computer code.
Scientific Visualisation: Assisting in preparing diagrams, conceptual illustrations, and data visualisations.
All AI-assisted content must be independently reviewed and verified by the authors. The use of AI must not replace critical thinking, scholarly interpretation, or genuine intellectual contributions.
Ar Rehla prohibits the use of AI technologies in ways that compromise research integrity or misrepresent scholarly evidence, including:
Data Fabrication or Falsification: Generating fictional research data, interview responses, observations, or findings and presenting them as authentic evidence.
Fabricated References: Using nonexistent publications, inaccurate citations, fabricated quotations, or unverified bibliographic information generated by AI.
Misleading Scholarly Content: Presenting inaccurate or unverified AI-generated arguments, interpretations, or conclusions as established research findings.
Plagiarism and Misrepresentation: Using AI to conceal plagiarism, disguise another person's work, or misrepresent intellectual contributions.
Manipulation of Research Evidence: Creating or modifying images, figures, datasets, or other research materials in ways that misrepresent actual findings.
Undisclosed Substantive AI Use: Concealing AI assistance that materially contributes to research methods, analysis, manuscript content, or scholarly conclusions.
The legitimate use of synthetic or simulated data is permitted when scientifically justified, transparently documented, and clearly distinguished from actual empirical observations.
Authors must disclose substantive AI assistance used in conducting research, analysing data, preparing manuscripts, generating scholarly content, or producing scientific illustrations.
The disclosure must identify the AI tool used, its purpose, the nature and extent of its contribution, and the procedures undertaken to verify the results.
AI use that directly affects research methods or data analysis must be described in the Methods section. Other substantive assistance may be reported in a separate AI Use Declaration or another appropriate section of the manuscript.
Routine spelling checks, basic grammar correction, and conventional formatting assistance do not normally require separate disclosure when they do not materially affect the manuscript's intellectual content.
Example of an AI Use Declaration:
"The authors used [AI Tool Name] to assist with [specific purpose]. All AI-assisted content was independently reviewed and verified by the authors, who remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the manuscript."
Authors must ensure that their declarations accurately reflect the actual use of AI technologies.
Human authors remain fully responsible for the originality, accuracy, validity, and integrity of their manuscripts, including content developed with AI assistance.
AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors. Requirements concerning scholarly authorship are explained in the Authorship Criteria.
Authors must verify AI-assisted research findings, analyses, quotations, citations, and references against reliable sources and underlying evidence.
Confidential research data, personal information, unpublished materials, and protected institutional documents must not be uploaded to AI systems without appropriate authorisation and safeguards.
Further requirements concerning data confidentiality and protection are available in the Research Data Policy.
Editors and reviewers may use AI tools for authorised supporting activities, provided that confidentiality, independence, and scholarly judgment are maintained.
Unpublished manuscripts, confidential reviewer reports, and private editorial communications must not be uploaded to external AI systems without the necessary permissions and appropriate safeguards.
Editors must not delegate manuscript acceptance or rejection decisions to AI systems. Reviewers must conduct independent scholarly evaluations and must not substitute AI-generated assessments for their own academic judgment.
Any substantive and authorised AI assistance used during manuscript evaluation must be disclosed to the responsible editor.
Suspected misuse of AI will be assessed using relevant evidence and appropriate human evaluation. AI-detection software results alone are not sufficient to establish misconduct.
Where necessary, the editorial team may request clarification, supporting documentation, or additional assessment. Confirmed violations will be addressed in accordance with the journal's Allegations of Research Misconduct policy.
