Controversy/Scandal Archives

The word "AUTHORSHIP" written on a curling red background.

Multimillion-dollar trade in paper authorships alarms publishers – Nature (Holly Else | January 2023)

We were previously unaware of this latest form of shady practice in scholarly publishing. Institutional policies, guidance material and professional development should warn individuals away from selling authorship slots as well as purchasing authorship of a paper. The act of selling or buying are serious forms of research misconduct and should be treated as such. An individual seeking promotion, a performance bonus or referring to purchased coauthorship are forms of fraud. This is a topic area collaborating researchers, research office staff, editors, peer reviewers and Research Integrity Advisers should be aware of.

(China) Can academic publishers resist self-censorship in China? – Times Higher Education (George Cooper | December 2022)

Free and open discussion in the academic press can inform public consciousness and debate. This is why state censorship and the blocking of academic titles during the last few years have been such a concern. So it is deeply concerning that academic titles are self-censoring to avoid subjects the Chinese government has deemed sensitive. Academia should speak truth to power not timidly accept that there are matters they are not permitted to discuss. Self-censorship by publications is not acceptable. We applaud Times Higher Education for this piece. We have included links to seven related items.

(US) Exclusive: Musk’s Neuralink faces federal probe, employee backlash over animal tests – Reuters (Rachael Levy | December 2022)

If this news story is accurate, it is of significant concern. Animal research must involve time and space for the correct handling of animals and attention to animal welfare. The drive to conduct commercial research quickly and efficiently must never compromise this. The goal of the work is admirable and could be of significant benefit to many, but animal ethics principles are non-negotiable.

Close-up of the windows keyboard, where the enter key has been replaced by a red key with the word "SCAM".

Exposed: The plague of fake medical trials putting lives in danger as experts reveal a FIFTH of studies published each year could contain invented or plagiarised results – Daily Mail Health (Barney Calman | October 2022)

Falsified results of medical research are a serious concern for a number of reasons:

(i) They can put lives at risk;
(ii) They can indicate fraud;
(iii) They can corrupt the scientific record;
(iv) They misdirect future inquiry; and
(v) Scandals such as this can undermine community and media trust in research.

For this reason, institutions must treat proven cheats and charlatans especially harshly.

(Romania) Romania’s plagiarism hunter becomes the hunted – RFI (Emilia Sercan | September 2022)

Academic freedom can be expressed as scientists/researchers speaking truth to power. In that vein, scientific sleuths are exposing powerful charlatans and cheats because of their bad acts. It is a sign of how hard that exposure bites when the exposure prompts attacks and vilification of the sleuths. This latest case from Romania is an example of that. Such sleuths are worthy of praise, not attack.

Stop fraud grunge social graffiti print protest text sign. Red, black paint colors. Raster scam prevention stencil poster isolated on white

(Russia) Wiley investigates ‘fake peer review’ at psychology journal – Times Higher Education (Jack Grove | September 2022)

Stories like this highlight the degree to which the scientific record is in peril. The impact of paper mills and fake peer review, is serious and should be taken as such. Transparency, open science and open peer review are strategies to counter this dire situation. A significant change in practice is required. We need research publications to step up. National and institutional research integrity systems and professional development can play a key role. Submitting a paper purchased from a paper mill or faking peer review is serous research misconduct and should be treated as such.

(United States) Prison Experiments – YouTube (Allen Hornblum & Yusef Anthony July 2009)

This account and the research on prisoners are just horrifying. It is like something from Nazi Germany or perhaps China’s use of organs from prisoners. This cohort is by definition vulnerable and their use is completely unacceptable. The fact that they were not being fully advised of what was being tested and the risks, only makes matters worse. While this is an egregious ethical lapse, it should only be used in professional development, guidance and resource material when speaking with biomedical researchers. It most definitely, shouldn’t be used when speaking with researchers in other disciplines. Even when it is used for biomedical researchers, it should be used as a launching point for a discussion about consent, risk, full disclosure and vulnerable populations.

Coronavirus COVID-19 vaccine development, research for cure & treatment of infected patients,groundbreaking discovery in battle against SARS-CoV-2 pathogen, hands in gloves holding ampoule & syringe jab

(Australia) Hydroxychloroquine in Australia: a cautionary tale for journalists and scientists – Reuters Institute (Joanna McCarthy | August 2022)

The silver lining in pandemics, public health disasters, loss of life and economies gutted may not always be easy to see. Clearly, some in the media, politicians and opinion makers didn’t learn the lesson from the Spanish Flu. Hopefully, we can look back at the awful experience of the last couple of years and realise it was science that gave us a vaccine and a way through the perils of COVID-19 not snake oil, wacky theories or Hydroxychloroquine.

ACN - 101321555 | ABN - 39101321555

Australasian Human Research Ethics Consultancy Services Pty Ltd (AHRECS)

Multimillion-dollar trade in paper authorships alarms publishers – Nature (Holly Else | January 2023)

(China) Can academic publishers resist self-censorship in China? – Times Higher Education (George Cooper | December 2022)

(US) Exclusive: Musk’s Neuralink faces federal probe, employee backlash over animal tests – Reuters (Rachael Levy | December 2022)

Exposed: The plague of fake medical trials putting lives in danger as experts reveal a FIFTH of studies published each year could contain invented or plagiarised results – Daily Mail Health (Barney Calman | October 2022)

(Romania) Romania’s plagiarism hunter becomes the hunted – RFI (Emilia Sercan | September 2022)

(Russia) Wiley investigates ‘fake peer review’ at psychology journal – Times Higher Education (Jack Grove | September 2022)

(Australia) Hydroxychloroquine in Australia: a cautionary tale for journalists and scientists – Reuters Institute (Joanna McCarthy | August 2022)

Compiled here are links, downloads and other resources relating to research integrity and human research ethics. more…

Research Integrity

Human Research Ethics

Research Ethics Monthly Receive copies of the Research Ethics Monthly directly
by email. We will never spam you.

Australasian Human Research Ethics Consultancy Services Pty Ltd (AHRECS)

ACN - 101321555 | ABN - 39101321555

Australasian Human Research Ethics Consultancy Services Pty Ltd (AHRECS)