An original work was published in our journal in September 2010. The article had five authors. Now, in February 2013, the third author is requesting an alteration in his/her name. The original name published was SFHS. The request is to change the name to SFH, both on the journal's website and Medline.
No valid reason could be provided by the author for this change in name. The last name is the cast and now he/she wants to write in future without the cast being evident.
Would this deletion be ethical?
Can there be any legal implications?
NOTE (December 2020): This case and Forum advice was published in 2013. Recently, the publishing and academic communities have been working to develop new guidance to ensure that authors who are transgender, non-binary, and/or gender diverse can easily update their articles. COPE will be issuing guidance in due course, but in the meantime, this case should not be used to deny the rights of these authors to request that their names be changed on their publications.
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The COPE Forum was divided on whether or not the editor should allow the author to change their name. One view was that there are many reasons why an author might want to change their name (marriage, divorce, for example) so the editor should publish a corrigendum, provided the editor receives proof of the identity of the author. An author should be allowed to have charge of their name, and if they wish to change it, then the editor should accommodate this request by publishing a simple erratum or corrigendum. This would be linked electronically to the publication and would be picked up by Medline automatically. The online version of the paper could also be changed, depending on the policy of the journal. It is not unethical to request a change in your name but the editor must be certain that the author requesting the change is in fact the author of the paper, and the editor should insist on proof of identification.
However, another view was that the name was correct in 2010 when the paper was published, so is an erratum really appropriate? The spelling of the name, for example, is correct. If the author’s request is a vanity issue, then the majority of the Forum suggested not changing the name. Hence it is then up to the journal and publisher whether they feel they want to spend the time and effort correcting the name. Unless the author has very valid reasons (which he has not provided to date), then the majority view was that the editor should do nothing.
The Forum noted that this case highlights the importance of schemes like ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID, https://orcid.org/), which provides a code to uniquely identify academic authors and which authors can sign up to. Then an author’s history and online activity can be traced, regardless of what name they use, as all publications are traced back to this unique identifier.
On a show of hands, the majority (15) of the Forum said they would not change the name and 10 said they would.
As no valid or convincing reason could be provided by the author for a change in name, we wrote back stating that the case had been discussed at the COPE Forum and the majority of the Forum were of the opinion that, due to lack of a convincing reason, the name should not be changed. The case is now considered closed.
Comments
"No valid reason could be provided by the author for this change in name. The last name is the cast and now he/she wants to write in future without the cast being evident."
Er, isn't that a valid reason? The social and professional implications of the cast name may be serious for the author.
The ORCID scheme is nice but is another one of those things that many authors in many settings may be unaware of or unwilling to participate in. The idea of becoming a number is not really pleasant to contemplate, and unless researchers are obliged by their institutions to obtain an ORCID number, they may prefer not to do this.
Publishing a correction with the appropriate links would take care of the situation and show respect for what is probably a very important life decision for the author.
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First of all, THANK YOU for this entry and the reply! In my situation, I legally changed my birth name. Also, my last name is different since I re-married. I wonder if I should print an "About the Author" with a brief explanation, and obtain an ORCID number, since my publication is an academic edition. (Both of my parents are now deceased, and though I still have scores of ID in my former last name, all of my ID is current (in my correct new names)...or I could simply add a line on the short bio to read: "f.k.a.- formerly known as" and be done with it...of course referencing my new name! PLEASE comment!
I appreciate any serious comments and/or suggestions.
//ss// G.L.Morton-Kibiloski, Esq.
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"vanity?" Someone's name is very important to them. Men aren't subject to this dilemma as much as women. As more and more women are involved in research, I hope this will change. Just because you married a husband that had absolutely nothing to do with your research except get his last name credited for all your unsupported efforts doesn't mean you have to carry the burden of having all your hard work under his after the divorce. You should be allowed to own your work in your name. It's easy for people to say you should never have changed your maiden name to begin with when the truth is you didn't think your marriage would turn out the way it did. Why shouldn't the scientific community stand up for you and grant you the right to change your name on your papers that have your ex's name. Why won't the scientific community stand up for you and honor you instead of an undeserving ex. Why do you have to go through scheme of referring to your work as formerly known as or play the hyphen or middle name game. Why not just give a woman back her dignity?
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I am a transsexual person and i have published a isi paper befor my sex change. Now i am a female legally and all of my documents have been changed to my new sex. Is there any possiblity to change my name in article?
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The ORCID scheme is nice but is another one of those things that many authors in many settings may be unaware of or unwilling to participate in. The idea of becoming a number is not really pleasant to contemplate, and unless researchers are obliged by their institutions to obtain an ORCID number, they may prefer not to do this.
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I have a simple question. Can Editors or corresponding author impose a name of an author without his authorization or against his choice?
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