List AND briefly describe all of the items/actions that constitute scientific misconduct ?

Answer 1

Scientific misconduct refers to various actions that deviate from the accepted standards and ethical principles in the scientific community. Here are some examples of items/actions that constitute scientific misconduct:

1. Fabrication: Involves creating, falsifying, or manipulating data or results, including making up experimental outcomes or altering images or graphs.

2. Falsification: Changing or omitting data to fit preconceived notions or to obtain desired results, and selectively reporting only favorable outcomes while neglecting contradictory findings.

3. Plagiarism: Presenting someone else's work, ideas, or words as one's own without proper acknowledgment or citation. This includes copying text verbatim, paraphrasing without proper attribution, or using copyrighted material without permission.

4. Data manipulation: Engaging in practices that distort or misrepresent data, such as selectively excluding or altering data points to support a particular hypothesis or conclusion.

5. Misrepresentation: Deliberately presenting or misinterpreting scientific findings, methodology, or background information to mislead readers or gain personal benefit.

6. Inadequate acknowledgment: Failing to properly credit colleagues, collaborators, or funding sources who made significant contributions to the research project or study.

7. Unauthorized use of research material: Accessing or using someone else's research materials, results, or ideas without their permission.

8. Failure to disclose conflicts of interest: Neglecting to disclose financial, professional, or personal conflicts of interest that may bias research, data interpretation, or scientific conclusions.

9. Publication bias: Deliberately suppressing or selectively publishing research findings based on their conformity to preconceived hypotheses or statistical significance, which may lead to an incomplete or biased understanding of a particular field.

10. Non-compliance with ethical guidelines: Violating ethical principles related to human or animal subjects' welfare, informed consent, privacy, or the use of recombinant DNA or hazardous materials.

11. Retrospective fitting of hypotheses: Making post hoc adjustments to research questions or hypotheses based on observed results rather than following a pre-defined protocol, distorting the scientific process.

12. Misuse of statistics: Inappropriate or deliberate manipulation of statistical methods or analyses to support particular outcomes or conclusions.

It is important to note that this list is not exhaustive, and there are other forms of scientific misconduct that can occur. The scientific community, journals, and institutions have established guidelines and procedures to address and prevent scientific misconduct in order to maintain the integrity and credibility of scientific research.