The process of retracting a scientific paper can be initiated by several different parties. This includes the original researcher who led the study, their research collaborators, the institution that employed the researcher, or the editorial board of the journal that published the work. Once retracted, the scientific community is formally notified of the serious issues with the publication.

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Scientific publications can be rescinded for various reasons, which can be categorized by severity. Minor issues that are often corrected and then republished include administrative mistakes, reference errors, or copy-editing oversights. More serious grounds for retraction involve significant problems with the research itself, such as data fabrication, falsification of results, plagiarism, serious flaws in the research design, or unethical treatment of subjects.

Reasons for Retractions of Scientific Papers

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

Plagiarism, image manipulation, data errors/ fabrication/ falsification, image duplication, submission to several journals, author misconduct, and fake peer review.

Top Reasons for Scientific Paper Retractions

- financial incentives (America and UK: amount of publication affects a scientist’s ability to get promotions, tenured positions, and funding on future projects. China: Researchers are paid when they reach a certain number of publications. This promotes rushed, unreliable research and/or fake peer reviews.)


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Initiators of Scientific Retractions

A scientific journal retracts a paper after publication. The retraction notice explains that the paper's central conclusion is invalid because of a critical flaw in the research. Which of the following issues would most likely be considered a critical flaw warranting a full retraction?

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