Integrity Training: Misconduct's Source

In his Policy Forum “Global research integrity training” (3 May, p. [552][1]), N. H. Steneck writes that research misconduct, to date, has been found to be an intractable problem. He calls for a global research effort using common standards to determine whether improved training is a reasonable way to improve integrity in research. We should not be surprised to find that Responsible Conduct of Research courses do not influence the behavior of trainees. Research misconduct—fabrication, falsification, and plagiarism—are the academic equivalents of lying, cheating, and stealing. Ethical standards prohibiting such behavior are established long before students begin graduate training in science. I reviewed the individual narratives in 146 Office of Research Integrity reports of those found guilty of research misconduct. These accounts suggest that misconduct results from a combination of an individual's character traits, such as perfectionism or sociopathy, and his or her circumstances. For trainees, an intense fear of failure was often the driving force; for established scientists, it was the lure of academic and/or financial rewards ([ 1 ][2]). As a psychiatrist, I know that character traits do not lend themselves readily to remediation, and the anxiety induced by the reality of publish or perish cannot be abolished. However, I believe that we can reduce the prevalence of research misconduct through interventions that decrease the fear of failure in the trainee and increase the fear of detection in the established scientist. Better mentoring and better protection of whistleblowers would accomplish these goals. Responsible Conduct of Research courses may be effective in teaching good research practices ([ 2 ][3]), but our efforts to decrease misconduct are more likely to succeed if they are moved from the classroom to the laboratory. 1. [↵][4] 1. D. S. Kornfeld , Acad. Med. 87, 877 (2012). [OpenUrl][5][CrossRef][6][PubMed][7][Web of Science][8] 2. [↵][9] 1. N. H. Steneck , Sci. Eng. Ethics 12, 53 (2006). [OpenUrl][10][CrossRef][11][PubMed][12][Web of Science][13] [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.1236373 [2]: #ref-1 [3]: #ref-2 [4]: #xref-ref-1-1 "View reference 1 in text" [5]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DAcademic%2BMedicine%26rft.stitle%253DAcad.%2BMed.%26rft.issn%253D1040-2446%26rft.aulast%253DKornfeld%26rft.auinit1%253DD.%2BS.%26rft.volume%253D87%26rft.issue%253D7%26rft.spage%253D877%26rft.epage%253D882%26rft.atitle%253DPerspective%253A%2B%2Bresearch%2Bmisconduct%253A%2B%2Bthe%2Bsearch%2Bfor%2Ba%2Bremedy.%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1097%252FACM.0b013e318257ee6a%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F22622208%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [6]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1097/ACM.0b013e318257ee6a&link_type=DOI [7]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=22622208&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fsci%2F340%2F6139%2F1403.3.atom [8]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=000305897400014&link_type=ISI [9]: #xref-ref-2-1 "View reference 2 in text" [10]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DScience%2Band%2Bengineering%2Bethics%26rft.stitle%253DSci%2BEng%2BEthics%26rft.aulast%253DSteneck%26rft.auinit1%253DN.%2BH.%26rft.volume%253D12%26rft.issue%253D1%26rft.spage%253D53%26rft.epage%253D74%26rft.atitle%253DFostering%2Bintegrity%2Bin%2Bresearch%253A%2Bdefinitions%252C%2Bcurrent%2Bknowledge%252C%2Band%2Bfuture%2Bdirections.%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1007%252Fs11948-006-0006-y%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F16501647%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [11]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1007/s11948-006-0006-y&link_type=DOI [12]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=16501647&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fsci%2F340%2F6139%2F1403.3.atom [13]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=000235044700006&link_type=ISI