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Meursinge Reynders RA, Cavagnetto D, Ter Riet G, Di Girolamo N, Malički M. Automatically listing senior members of departments as co-authors is highly prevalent in health sciences: meta-analysis of survey research. Sci Rep 2024; 14:5883. [PMID: 38467762 PMCID: PMC10928221 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-55966-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2023] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024] Open
Abstract
A systematic review with meta-analysis was conducted to assess the prevalence of automatically listing (a) senior member(s) of a department as co-author(s) on all submitted articles in health sciences and the prevalence of degrees of support on a 5-point justification scale. Survey research was searched in PubMed, Lens.org, and Dimensions.ai. until January 5 2023. We assessed the methodological quality of studies and conducted quantitative syntheses. We identified 15 eligible surveys, that provided 67 results, all of which were rated as having low quality. A pooled estimate of 20% [95% CI 16-25] (10 surveys, 3619 respondents) of researchers in various health sciences reported that a senior member of their department was automatically listed as an author on all submitted articles. Furthermore, 28% [95% CI 22-34] of researchers (10 surveys, 2180 respondents) felt that this practice was 'never', 24% [95% CI 22-27] 'rarely', 25% [95% CI 23-28] 'sometimes', 13% [95% CI 9-17] 'most of the time', and 8% [95% CI 6-9] 'always justified'. The practice of automatically assigning senior members of departments as co-authors on all submitted manuscripts may be common in the health sciences; with those admitting to this practice finding it unjustified in most cases.Registration of the protocol The protocol was registered in Open Science Framework. Link: https://osf.io/4eywp/ .
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Affiliation(s)
- Reint A Meursinge Reynders
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Amsterdam University Medical Center (Amsterdam UMC) Location AMC, Meibergdreef 9, 1105 AZ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
- Studio di Ortodonzia, Via Matteo Bandello 15, 20123, Milan, Italy.
| | - Davide Cavagnetto
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Amsterdam University Medical Center (Amsterdam UMC) Location AMC, Meibergdreef 9, 1105 AZ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Studio di Ortodonzia, Via Matteo Bandello 15, 20123, Milan, Italy
| | - Gerben Ter Riet
- Faculty of Health, Urban Vitality Centre of Expertise, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Cardiology, Amsterdam University Medical Center (Amsterdam UMC) Location AMC, Meibergdreef 9, 1105 AZ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Nicola Di Girolamo
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Cornell University, 930 Campus Rd, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
- EBMVet, Via Sigismondo Trecchi 20, 26100, Cremona, CR, Italy
| | - Mario Malički
- Stanford Program on Research Rigor and Reproducibility (SPORR), Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Meta-Research Innovation Center at Stanford (METRICS), Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
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Malički M, Aalbersberg IJJ, Bouter L, Mulligan A, ter Riet G. Transparency in conducting and reporting research: A survey of authors, reviewers, and editors across scholarly disciplines. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0270054. [PMID: 36888682 PMCID: PMC9994678 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0270054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 03/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Calls have been made for improving transparency in conducting and reporting research, improving work climates, and preventing detrimental research practices. To assess attitudes and practices regarding these topics, we sent a survey to authors, reviewers, and editors. We received 3,659 (4.9%) responses out of 74,749 delivered emails. We found no significant differences between authors', reviewers', and editors' attitudes towards transparency in conducting and reporting research, or towards their perceptions of work climates. Undeserved authorship was perceived by all groups as the most prevalent detrimental research practice, while fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, and not citing prior relevant research, were seen as more prevalent by editors than authors or reviewers. Overall, 20% of respondents admitted sacrificing the quality of their publications for quantity, and 14% reported that funders interfered in their study design or reporting. While survey respondents came from 126 different countries, due to the survey's overall low response rate our results might not necessarily be generalizable. Nevertheless, results indicate that greater involvement of all stakeholders is needed to align actual practices with current recommendations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Malički
- Urban Vitality Centre of Expertise, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- * E-mail:
| | | | - Lex Bouter
- Faculty of Humanities, Department of Philosophy, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Epidemiology and Data Science, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Gerben ter Riet
- Urban Vitality Centre of Expertise, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Cardiology, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Meursinge Reynders R, Ter Riet G, Di Girolamo N, Malički M. Honorary authorship in health sciences: a protocol for a systematic review of survey research. Syst Rev 2022; 11:57. [PMID: 35379330 PMCID: PMC8978359 DOI: 10.1186/s13643-022-01928-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2021] [Accepted: 03/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Honorary authorship refers to the practice of naming an individual who has made little or no contribution to a publication as an author. Honorary authorship inflates the output estimates of honorary authors and deflates the value of the work by authors who truly merit authorship. This manuscript presents the protocol for a systematic review that will assess the prevalence of five honorary authorship issues in health sciences. METHODS Surveys of authors of scientific publications in health sciences that assess prevalence estimates will be eligible. No selection criteria will be set for the time point for measuring outcomes, the setting, the language of the publication, and the publication status. Eligible manuscripts are searched from inception onwards in PubMed, Lens.org , and Dimensions.ai. Two calibrated authors will independently search, determine eligibility of manuscripts, and conduct data extraction. The quality of each review outcome for each eligible manuscript will be assessed with a 14-item checklist developed and piloted for this review. Data will be qualitatively synthesized and quantitative syntheses will be performed where feasible. Criteria for precluding quantitative syntheses were defined a priori. The pooled random effects double arcsine transformed summary event rates of five outcomes on honorary authorship issues with the pertinent 95% confidence intervals will be calculated if these criteria are met. Summary estimates will be displayed after back-transformation. Stata software (Stata Corporation, College Station, TX, USA) version 16 will be used for all statistical analyses. Statistical heterogeneity will be assessed using Tau2 and Chi2 tests and I2 to quantify inconsistency. DISCUSSION The outcomes of the planned systematic review will give insights in the magnitude of honorary authorship in health sciences and could direct new research studies to develop and implement strategies to address this problem. However, the validity of the outcomes could be influenced by low response rates, inadequate research design, weighting issues, and recall bias in the eligible surveys. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION This protocol was registered a priori in the Open Science Framework (OSF) link: https://osf.io/5nvar/ .
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Affiliation(s)
- Reint Meursinge Reynders
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Amsterdam University Medical Center (Amsterdam UMC) Location AMC, Meibergdreef 9, 1105, AZ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. .,Studio di Ortodonzia, Via Matteo Bandello 15, 20123, Milan, Italy.
| | - Gerben Ter Riet
- Urban Vitality Centre of Expertise, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Cardiology, Amsterdam University Medical Center (Amsterdam UMC) Location AMC, Meibergdreef 9, 1105, AZ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Nicola Di Girolamo
- Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, Oklahoma State University, 2065 W, Farm Road, Stillwater, Oklahoma, 74078, USA.,EBMVet, Via Sigismondo Trecchi 20, 26100, Cremona, CR, Italy
| | - Mario Malički
- Meta-research Innovation Center a Stanford (METRICS), Stanford University, Stanford, USA
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Nurmohamed FRH, Voigt I, Awadpersad P, Matawlie RH, Gadjradj PS. Authorship decision-making in the field of orthopedic surgery and sports medicine. J Clin Orthop Trauma 2021; 21:101531. [PMID: 34405087 PMCID: PMC8348525 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcot.2021.101531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE To facilitate decision-making in authorship positions, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editor (ICMJE) developed a guideline that stipulates criteria authors should meet in order to merit authorship. Authors who did not meet these criteria and still enlisted as authors, are called 'honorary' authors. In this study, the prevalence and characteristics of honorary authorship (HA) is assessed in the field of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. METHODS A survey was distributed among corresponding authors of articles published in 2019 in six Orthopedics-dedicated journals. RESULTS 479 of the 1392 approached authors responded, leading to a response rate of 34.4%. 91.6% of the respondents were aware of the ICMJE guidelines, whereas 67.8% were aware of the issue of HA. Overall, the prevalence of guideline-based HA was 41.9%, while the prevalence of self-perceived HA was 14.7%. Having a senior member automatically enlisted as author on the departments, was associated with a higher rate of guideline-based HA (OR 5.03) and self-perceived HA (OR 3.31). CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of HA in the field of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine is high, but comparable to other medical fields. Transparency in authorship decision-making is crucial to maintain liability in scientific articles.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Istifari Voigt
- Department of Neurosurgery, Park MC, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
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Kurlansky P. Commentary: Deserved honor, or honor among thieves? J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2020; 161:S0022-5223(20)30053-2. [PMID: 32005576 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2019.12.071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2019] [Revised: 12/18/2019] [Accepted: 12/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Paul Kurlansky
- Division of Cardiac Surgery, Columbia University, New York, NY.
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Sergeant PT. Commentary: Honorary or incorrect. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2019; 161:164-165. [PMID: 31987617 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2019.11.044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Paul T Sergeant
- Cardiac Surgery, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
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Commentary: Of ghosts, phantoms, and authors. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2019; 161:166-167. [PMID: 31928827 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2019.10.137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2019] [Revised: 10/24/2019] [Accepted: 10/24/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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