- Case
Simultaneous publication
…publication of the same data had indeed happened, although the Group made it clear that reporting similar data in different publications without proper referencing was not good practice, which the university entirely agrees.” “Our Vice-Chancellor intends to issue a letter of reprimand to the lead/co-corresponding author” “Another letter will be sent by the Vice-Chancellor to the other co-corresponding… - Seminars and webinars
COPE webinar 2018: Creating and implementing data research policies
…Standards Organization. Discussing the practicalities and challenges of initiating and implementing data sharing policies. Watch now Presentations Presentations… - Case
Retraction or expression of concern?
…that may not be accurate in the public domain, but we also do not feel that the author has intentionally misled us or the public. We feel at this point that the best course of action is to publish the critic’s correspondence article, along with the authors’ response, and let the public judge for itself. However, given the clinical nature of the short report and the doubts raised about the veracity of… - Case
Duplicate publication and alleged image manipulation
…received a reply from the institution. The editorial team is certain that the figures have been manipulated to provide false data and would therefore like to retract the relevant articles (papers 2 and 3) despite the author’s denial of any wrongdoing and no contact from the author’s institution. In consultation with the publisher for journal A, it is felt that the best way to proceed would be to… - Case
Author refuses to comply with editorial review prior to production and publication
…resolution. Therefore it is best to find common ground and to try to work with the author. In principle, the author's goals and the editor's goals should overlap considerably: getting good information into the hands of readers, clarity, timely publication, etc. The editor may wish to try to find a way to negotiate a solution. The editor and the handling editor might want to have… - Case
Retraction because of scientific misconduct even if the conclusions are sound?
…best, cannot be relied upon, and at worst, is fraudulent. It is therefore a disservice to the readers of the journal not to mention the issues with the image for the sake of transparency and reproducibility. Hence something needs to be posted—correction, retraction or expression of concern—to alert readers to the finding. The editor, taking into consideration the findings of the university, needs to… - News
Welcome new COPE members April-June 2019
…href="https://publicationethics.org/core-practices">Core Practices. Journals 3 Biotech https://publicationethics.org/members/3-biotech 3D Printing in Medicine - News
In the news: October Digest
…="https://cen.acs.org/research-integrity/misconduct/China-strengthens-campaign-against-scientific/97/i35" target="_blank">https://cen.acs.org/research-integrity/misconduct/China-strengthens-campaign-against-scientific/97/i35 Interviews with 21 journal editors from North America across multiple disciplines about their thoughts about text recycling (AKA "Self-plagiarism") shows a wide-range of tolerance for the practice, from tolerance of it in some circumstances to absolute… - Case
Authorship dispute
A paper submitted to an international medical journal was reviewed externally and the authors were subsequently invited to submit a revised version. The initial submission included authors from two different research institutions and one author from a corporate sponsor. The initial submission was accompanied by an appropriate description of the individual authors’ contributions, a negative conf… - Case
Suspected plagiarism
…lifted because they were in better English than the author could write (particularly considering the spelling and grammar in the letter). It was also pointed out that there are different views in different countries. For instance in some countries there are many practices that have absolutely no proven clinical benefit. It was also pointed out that when an author submits an article to a journal, then… - Case
Clear case of duplicate publication?
We received an article at our editorial office in April 2008. One of the referees discovered that a similar article had been published in a surgical journal in 2000. In that article, the authors presented data on the haemodynamics and intestinal blood flow in pigs. In the article submitted to us, they presented the same results, but only the first three time points (which had been includ… - Case
Author creates bogus email accounts for proposed reviewers
…fraudulent reviews. The Forum suggested that good practice is always to check the names, addresses and email contacts of reviewers, and especially those that are recommended by authors. Another suggestion was for the editor to write an editorial on this issue.… - Case
Reviewer citation manipulation
…work. Ultimately, this behaviour could compromise the anonymity of the review process (if this is the journal’s practice) and should also be considered in this light. The journal should take the issue up with the reviewer, but it is advisable to frame this as education; reviewers should be thinking beyond the scope of their own work in making recommendations to authors. The journal should also… United2Act launches action against paper mills
…supported by COPE and STM About COPE COPE is committed to educate and support editors, publishers, universities, research institutes, and others involved in publication ethics, with the aim of moving the culture of publishing towards one where ethical practices become the norm. Our approach is firmly in the direction of influencing through education, guidance and support of our members…- Case
Editor adding reference to an author's work
…editor to add a reference to their own work without consulting the author, and that the correction should be made online. It seems clear that the editor has behaved unethically. The principle (and normal practice) here is that editors should not publish changes to an author's piece of work without those changes having been agreed with and approved by the author (unless the circumstances are… - Event
COPE Lightning Talk: Text recycling in research writing
…guidelines and informational resources for editors, authors and instructors. It’s now time for editors and publishers to clarify their organisations practices regarding the legality of text recycling. REGISTER TODAY Cary Moskovitz, Thompson Writing Program, Duke University, NC - Case
Undisclosed conflict of interest
…have varying degrees of association with the CMG and are members of the “Practitioners’ Association” which is the body regulating practitioners who are qualified to practice CMG modalities. Two authors have “occasionally offered paid private healing sessions”. The revised COI by the author also alleged that “all authors have experienced substantial health benefits since they started visiting CMG… - Case
Possible authorship conflict over an article published ahead of print
…criteria, such as ICMJE. Good practice is to copy all authors when corresponding about the manuscript. It is a procedure that can prevent many problems.… - Case
Withdrawal of acceptance based on potentially unconsented data
…COPE's core practices, in relation to submissions. In hindsight, perhaps the letters should not have been accepted during the investigation but rather put on hold first; a relevant office policy or process could be developed to prevent this in the future. It is also commendable that the journal has a statement on the consent from guardians/parents of children; the journal might wish to include… - Seminars and webinars
Seminar 2021: Driving diversity, equity, and inclusion to shape the future of publication ethics
A summary of recent COPE activities in the area of diversity and equity, followed by three talks giving great insights, guidance and practical advice on collecting diversity data from publishing activity, creating diverse and representative editorial boards, and managing allegations of discriminatory behaviour. Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are…