One of the questions we often get — but are careful to answer with some version of “we don’t know because we don’t have a denominator” — is how retraction rates vary by scientific field and country. We’ve noticed that the reasons for retraction seem to vary among countries, but didn’t really have the data. … Continue reading Which countries have the most retractions, for which reasons?
Last October, the BMJ published a paper by a group of researchers from the United States and Canada questioning the use of statins in patients considered at low risk of cardiovascular disease. The article has been cited eight times since then, according to Thomson Scientific’s Web of Knowledge. It mentioned data from another study that … Continue reading BMJ authors take back inaccurate statin safety statements
What a difference a new editor can make. Consider the case of a paper in Scientometrics that came to the attention earlier this year of Jeffrey Beall. Beall, a research librarian and scourge of the predatory publishing world, had previously posted on his blog about his frustrations with the journal’s seeming indifference to the word … Continue reading The “sins and virtues of authors span a rather colorful palette”: New editor yanks plagiarized paper
Jens Förster, the Dutch social psychologist accused of misconduct, has posted an open letter on his lab’s website in which he denies wrongdoing. The letter, in English and dated May 11, offers a detailed rebuttal to the investigation’s conclusions. It also offers a rationale for Förster’s decision not to post his data on the Internet. … Continue reading “I never manipulated data”: Förster defends actions in open letter
Another busy week at Retraction Watch. Here’s what was happening elsewhere on the web:
It’s been another busy week at Retraction Watch, mostly because of the unfolding Jens Förster story. Here’s what was happening elsewhere on the web:
We have obtained a copy of the report that led to the investigation of Jens Förster, the social psychologist at the University of Amsterdam, which is calling for the retraction of a 2012 article by the researcher for manipulated data. As we reported earlier, Förster has denied any wrongdoing in the matter.
Retraction Watch has obtained an email from Jens Förster, the social psychologist in the Netherlands who, as Dutch media reported this week, was the target of a misconduct investigation at the University of Amsterdam. The inquiry led to the call for the retraction of a paper by Förster and a colleague, Markus Denzler, over concerns of … Continue reading Social psychologist Förster denies misconduct, calls charge “terrible misjudgment”
In February we reported on the case of Fred Walumbwa, a leadership scholar at Florida International University who was poised to lose five papers in the Leadership Quarterly for reasons not entirely clear but which appeared to involve problems with the data. Now we see a sixth retraction for Walumbwa, this one in the Journal … Continue reading Florida leadership researcher Walumbwa notches sixth retraction
The University of Amsterdam has called for the retraction of a 2011 paper by two psychology researchers after a school investigation concluded that the article contained bogus data, the Dutch press are reporting. The paper, “Sense Creative! The Impact of Global and Local Vision, Hearing, Touching, Tasting and Smelling on Creative and Analytic Thought,” was … Continue reading New Dutch psychology scandal? Inquiry cites data manipulation, calls for retraction