The Indian Society of Periodontology has changed their editorial policy as the result of an author who had “neither taken adequate permission from nor given due acknowledgement to all authors concerned.”
Now, any authors will be required to sign a contract acknowledging accountability for the content of the submitted paper, as well as be able to state the specific work contributed by each author.
Here’s the notice from the Journal of the Indian Society of Periodontology:
The lead author of manuscript titled “Reconstructive surgery with chin block graft and esthetic rehabilitation of missing anterior tooth.” J Indian Soc Periodontol 2014;18:263-66 has misrepresented facts and has neither taken adequate permission from nor given due acknowledgement to all authors concerned. Furthermore, the lead author of this paper has failed to give an adequate explanation and the Editorial Board and Executive Committee of the Indian Society of Periodontology therefore recommend that this paper not be cited as an original piece of work.
To ensure that those credited as authors recognise their role in taking responsibility and being accountable for what is published, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) has added a fourth criterion for authorship as part of the new ICMJE Recommendations. The ICMJE now recommends that authorship be based on the following four criteria: (1) substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; and (2) drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and (3) final approval of the version to be published; and (4) agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work thereby ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved. In addition to being accountable for the parts of the work he or she has done, an author should be able to identify which co-authors are responsible for specific other parts of the work. In addition, authors should have confidence in the integrity of the contributions of their coauthors.
All those designated as authors should meet all four criteria for authorship, and all who meet the four criteria should be identified as authors. Those who do not meet all four criteria should be acknowledged.[1]
Authors are reminded that their signature on the contributor’s form is the only means of affirming that submission of a manuscript complies with the guidelines of the journal. The review and publication process is seriously undermined when the authors misrepresent compliance with the spirit or letter of the guidelines. The author of the offending paper, Dr. Preetika Bansal has communicated her apology to Dr. Nymphea Pandit and the editorial office. Author misconduct can never be accepted or defended but the matter is now closed.
Editor – JISP
Hat tip: Rolf Degen
The scientific community would do well to read, in detail, the newest December 2014 “update” to the ICMJE ethics.