Authorship issues

Abstract

Authorship is a highly sought attribute, as it is associated with recognition for creativity. In addition, it is associated with multiple benefits such as peer recognition, better evaluation and financial gains. These possibilities spur scientists to author articles, but some take recourse to unethical practice of honorary authorships. Another unethical practice is that of ghostwriting. It is a phenomenon wherein individuals who write the articles are not named as authors and are not even acknowledged to be associated with the manuscript. Reputed and renowned scientists, who have not participated in the conduct of the study or in the manuscript preparation, are enrolled by the industry to allow their names to be mentioned as authors. This phenomenon is harmful not only because it suppresses the contribution of ghost-authors but also because the guest “authors” bestow underserved credibility upon an “industry-written” paper. The readers have no way of knowing the bias that may have crept in. The journal editors, institution, and government agencies need to come together to ensure that these malpractices are curbed by employing various measures such as creating awareness amongst authors, academicians, and administrators; enunciating and implementing policies to dissuade unethical behavior, protecting whistle-blowers, and providing punishments to those indulging in malpractices. All of us should remember that if unchecked, these deviant behaviors have the potential to compromise the credibility of scientific research and scientific publications.

Identification of research communities in cited and uncited publications using a co-authorship network

“… Wislar et al also discussed ghost authorship in these 2008 journal issues, i.e., authors who were involved in the research or in the writing of a paper but are unnamed there(Bavdekar, 2012). This also is a major problem in PRC, withHu and Wu (2013) providing a detailed analysis of the websites of 127 Chinese companies offering large-scale ghost-writing services…”

Using Publication Metrics to Highlight Academic Productivity and Research Impact

“…23 Nonetheless, authorship is a recognized necessity for career advancement, tenure/promotion, and obtaining grant funding. 24 It is accepted practice in academia that authors who are first or last authors to a publication are recognized or assumed as having contributed the bulk of the work toward the publication. 25 , 26 Publications with multiple authors can be indicative of collaborative activity, which can be used to demonstrate productivity.…”

Sensitivity and integrity of authorship

“…Further, scientists might be included because they are part of a research team although they did not participate in a particular manuscript. Surveys in the medical field indicate that guest authorships may occur on 11–60% of articles published, and articles having 5 or more authors are likely to have “honorary authors” (Bavdekar ). Conversely, “ghost” authorship occurs when someone deserving of authorship is omitted.…”