By Julia Belluz
Summary
When a scientific paper is retracted, it means:
A problem with a study has been detected.
The journal who published it no longer endorses the paper.
A statement is issued explaining why the research findings have been invalidated or reversed.
The recent creation of the largest database of scientific retractions, Retraction Watch Database, indicates an improving trend of retracting flawed, sloppy, and fraudulent studies from the scientific record. The database contains over 18,000 retracted papers and conference abstracts dating back to the 1970s. In spite of increased awareness of flawed research, retractions are still rare. But there has been an increase in retracted studies from less than 100 per year before 2000 to about 1,000 per year in 2018. Still, most of the 12,000 journals indexed in the Web of Science have never retracted a paper, showing room for improvement.
Nearly half of all retractions are not due to scientific misconduct, but errors or failure to replicate. The highest number of retractions come from China and the US. Journals with high-impact factors seem to be taking the lead in retracting studies.
The current rate of retractions is 4 out of every 10,000 papers. This has been stable since 2012, partly because the number of papers published keeps increasing. A stigma surrounding retractions is another reason. Having a paper retracted hurts the reputation of both the scientist who did the research and the journal that published it.
The co-founder of the database, Ivan Oransky says, “Science is not broken. The question is whether the science correction mechanism process is as robust as everybody wants it to be.”
When a scientific paper is retracted, it means:
A problem with a study has been found.
The journal who published it warns people about its problems.
They explain why the paper was wrong.
In 2016, around 488 scientific papers were retracted compared to only 44 in 1997. This is according to a website called RetractionDatabase.org. This means scientists have found problems with these papers and don't believe they can be trusted anymore.
RetractionDatabase.org is now the biggest collection of retracted scientific papers. Some reasons for this might be if scientists find mistakes, or if they do an experiment again but get a different result, or even if a scientist lied in their work.
This trend of more papers being retracted shows that people are taking mistakes or fraud in science very seriously. The website has over 18,000 retracted papers, going back to the 1970s, that anyone can see.
However, there's still need for more improvement. Most of the 12,000 science journals listed in another website called the Web of Science have never retracted any papers.
The database also revealed other interesting things:
Not all retractions are due to dishonesty in work. Almost half are because mistakes were made or because other scientists couldn't do the same experiment and get the same results.
China and the US have the most retractions, but they also produce the most scientific papers. But, Romania also has a lot of retractions for a small country.
The top-ranked journals do the most retractions, which is good for keeping science accurate and honest.
The rate of retractions has not changed much since 2012. More retractions are being found than ever before, but more papers are also being published. One reason more retractions aren't found is because scientists and journals are afraid that a retraction would hurt their reputation.
A man who helped create the database says science is not broken. He wants to help science improve its ability to fix its mistakes.
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The site shows more and more studies are being pulled from the scientific record.When a scientific paper is retracted, it means:
A problem with a study has been found.
The publisher no longer endorses the paper.
A statement is issued explaining why the research findings have been disproven or reversed.
In 2016, 488 scientific papers were withdrawn, which is over 10 times more than in 1997, according to a new analysis from RetractionDatabase.org. They recently created a big collection of scientific studies that have been retracted for various reasons.
This is good news for science because retracting a study means that someone found something wrong with it. The scientific journal or the authors who wrote the study can request a retraction if they find mistakes or problems. A statement is then made to explain why the study's claims are no longer valid.
It's worth noting that editors of scientific journals take this retraction process very seriously. They do it rarely, even though they are increasingly aware that some studies can be flawed, sloppy, or even fraudulent.
The people who made this database are Dr. Ivan Oransky, a journalist and professor at New York University, and Adam Marcus. Their database has over 18,000 retracted studies going back to the 1970s. Now, anyone can search the database by author, country, and journal, among other things, to see where and how science has made mistakes.
Before 2000, fewer than 100 studies were retracted each year, but now about 1,000 are pulled each year. Although things are getting better, there's still a lot that can be improved. For example, most of the 12,000 journals in the database have never retracted a paper.
Not all retractions are due to scientific misconduct or fraud. Almost half are due to errors or problems in repeating the results of the study. The countries with the most retractions are China and the US, but that's because they also publish the most studies.
The most influential journals are leading the way with retractions. This is actually a sign that they take research integrity seriously. But there is still a stigma around retractions. There is a fear that a retracted paper will hurt the reputation of the scientist who wrote it and the publisher who published it.
The co-founder of the database, Ivan Oransky says, “Science is not broken. The question is whether the science correction mechanism process is as robust as everybody wants it to be.”
Homeschool:
Homeschool Curriculum: Understanding Science Publishing and Retractions
Objective: The aim of this curriculum is to help children understand the procedures of scientific publishing, the reasons for paper retractions and how to identify trustworthy scientific studies.
Materials needed: Internet access, paper, pen or pencil for note-taking
Week 1:
- Discussion: Introduction to science publishing. Here, children can learn about the importance of disseminating knowledge through various published papers.
- Activity: Do a quick browse through a science journal online and analyse one scientific article's structure.
Week 2:
- Discussion: Decoding Retractions. Explain what a retraction is, why it may be initiated, & the investigation process it involves.
- Activity: Investigate a retracted paper. Use RetractionDatabase.org to locate a retracted study. Discuss why this specific study was retracted.
Week 3:
- Discussion: Addressing flaws in studies. Discuss why some published studies are flawed and how it affects the scientific community.
- Activity: Choose a published paper known to be flawed. Discuss the flaws and how they could have been avoided or improved.
Week 4:
- Discussion: Recognising the importance of responsibility in science publishing & why more journals are retracting problematic studies.
- Activity: Discuss and debate over making retractions more common in scientific publishing.
Week 5:
- Discussion: Exploring the growth of retractions & the reasons behind it. Discuss the findings published in Science
- Activity: Analyze the statistics of retracted papers over the years and make interpretations.
Week 6:
- Discussion: Discussing various reasons for retractions not related to scientific misconduct like errors or problems with reproducibility.
- Activity: Look for retractions related to errors and discuss how such errors could have been avoided.
Week 7:
- Discussion: Explore the countries with the most retractions and reasons behind it.
- Activity: Research about retractions in Romania, inspect the specific issues that led to the high number of retractions.
Week 8:
- Discussion: Discuss the concept of journals with "high-impact factors" and their contributions to retractions.
- Activity: Investigate journals with high impact factors and their retraction records.
Assessment: At the end of the curriculum, children should be able to decipher scientific studies & their reliability, understand the reasons behind retractions, and appraise the efforts taken for clarity in scientific publishing. A comprehensive test or project relating to this can be planned.
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