Research misconduct policy in biomedicine : beyond the bad-apple approach

208 Pages·2013·0.65 MB·English

by  Redman

Research Misconduct Policy in
Biomedicine
Basic Bioethics
Arthur Caplan, editor
A complete list of the books in the Basic Bioethics series
appears at the back of this book.
Research Misconduct Policy in
Biomedicine
Beyond the Bad-Apple Approach
Barbara K. Redman
The MIT Press
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, England
© 2013 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by
any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or
information storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from the
publisher.
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This book was set in sabon by Toppan Best-set Premedia Limited, Hong
Kong. Printed and bound in the United States of America.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Redman, Barbara Klug.
Research misconduct policy in biomedicine : beyond the bad-apple
approach / Barbara K. Redman.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-262-01981-1 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Medicine—
Research— Corrupt practices. 2. Medical scientists— Professional ethics.
3. Medical research personnel— Professional ethics. 4. Biotechnology—
Research. I. Title.
R852.R435 2013
610.72'4 — dc23
2013009438
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Series Foreword vii
Introduction ix
1 Has Something Important Happened to Scientific
Ethics? 1
2 Will Approaches from the Psychosocial and
Organizational Sciences Improve Research Misconduct
Regulation? 17
3 What Combination of Regulatory Tools Will Minimize
Research Misconduct? 37
4 Are Current Publication Standards Protecting the
Integrity of the Scientific Record? 59
5 Lessons from Clinical Case Studies in Research
Misconduct 79
6 Research Misconduct Policy, Its Evolution and Culture of
Morality 115
7 The Unity of Moral Science 139
References 155
Index 179

Series Foreword
I am pleased to present the thirty-eighth book in the Basic
Bioethics series. The series makes innovative works in bioeth-
ics available to a broad audience and introduces seminal schol-
arly manuscripts, state-of-the-art reference works, and textbooks.
Topics engaged include the philosophy of medicine, advancing
genetics and biotechnology, end-of-life care, health and social
policy, and the empirical study of biomedical life. Interdisci-
plinary work is encouraged.
Arthur Caplan
Basic Bioethics Series Editorial Board
Joseph J. Fins
Rosamond Rhodes
Nadia N. Sawicki
Jan Helge Solbakk

Introduction
Overview
Public policy on research misconduct, which has developed
contentiously in the United States and a few other countries
over the past thirty years, remains largely untested as to whether
it yields clearly specific outcomes; alternative policies that
might reach those outcomes remain unexamined. Each widely
publicized case of research misconduct creates a new scandal,
leading to questions about whether current regulation is effec-
tive or just, and whether it supports the progress of science.
It is important to remember the broader context of research
misconduct, the system of incentives and disincentives embed-
ded in the production and dissemination of research. Yet,
in current public policy, all attention is on those individuals
who have been caught fabricating, falsifying, or plagiarizing.
Research Misconduct Policy in Biomedicine reviews a variety
of frameworks, each of which provides options for preventing
and controlling this phenomenon. The management of research
misconduct policy and other reforms, such as the control
of conflict of interest, can improve the quality of scientific
research; they can help it to build trust in its conduct and the