Authorship disputes is one of the most common complaints encountered in academic publishing (Smith, Williams-Jones, et al, 2020). Many of these disputes arise when there are multiple authors or when clear lines of responsibility are not drawn at the beginning of a project.
Key ethical issues surrounding the submission and review of manuscripts and grant proposals include how to appropriately acknowledge contributions on joint projects, what is expected of authors, and what is expected of reviewers.
Another important question is whose names should not be on a paper. Not every contribution justifies authorship. Because authorship entails rights and responsibilities, contributors should not be named as authors without their knowledge or unless they review manuscripts.
Below are some examples of contributions that might merit acknowledgement but might not merit authorship. Collaborators should have discussions on acknowledgement and authorship prior to initiating the project so that expectations are clear.
An authorship and authorship and data sharing template are offered as a resource for Radford University personnel to utilize in preventing authorship disputes.
Reference
Smith, E., Williams-Jones, B., Master, Z., Larivière, V., Sugimoto, C. R., Paul-Hus, A., Shi, M., & Resnik, D. B. (2020). Misconduct and Misbehavior Related to Authorship Disagreements in Collaborative Science. Science and engineering ethics, 26(4), 1967–1993. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-019-00112-4
THE LAB: AVOIDING RESEARCH MISCONDUCT is now available for viewing on the website of the Office of Research Integrity, US Department of Health and Human Services. To participate in this interactive experience, go to: http://ori.hhs.gov/TheLab