The Editor-in-Chief of Well-Being Sciences Review, in accordance with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Retraction Guidelines (Version 3, August 2025), hereby retracts the above-cited article (Gao et al., 2025).
An internal investigation, including handwriting verification, email records, and written statements from the affected authors, has provided sufficient evidence that two co-authors were unaware of their authorship designation. This constitutes “fictitious authorship” and “authorship that cannot be verified,” both of which undermine the integrity of the published record (COPE: “When to retract an article”)(COPE Council, 2025).
Consequently, the journal no longer has confidence in the authorship or accountability of the work and considers retraction the only appropriate course of action. This decision has been approved by the Editor-in-Chief and the Publisher. The online version of the article has been water-marked “RETRACTED” and remains freely accessible. The metadata (title, author names, affiliations, and DOI) are retained to preserve transparency of the scholarly record.
The journal apologizes to the readership for any inconvenience caused.
REFERENCES
- COPE Council. COPE Retraction Guidelines-English. Version 3, August 2025. https://doi.org/10.24318/cope.2019.1.4
- Gao, M., Liddle, A., & Lopes, A. (2025). Engagement of young Chinese adults born between 1990 and 2000 with the culture of traditional Chinese music: A quantitative study. Well-Being Sciences Review, 1, 107–118. https://doi.org/10.54844/wsr.2025.1016
