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Retracted Covid-19 articles: significantly more cited than other articles within their journal of origin

Author

Listed:
  • Trenton Taros

    (University of Massachusetts TH Chan School of Medicine)

  • Christopher Zoppo

    (University of Massachusetts TH Chan School of Medicine)

  • Nathan Yee

    (University of Massachusetts TH Chan School of Medicine)

  • Jack Hanna

    (University of Massachusetts TH Chan School of Medicine)

  • Christine MacGinnis

    (University of Massachusetts TH Chan School of Medicine)

Abstract

With the expansion of research volume, coinciding with the age of the internet, the retraction of published papers from scientific journals has become crucial to preserving scientific integrity. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, both public and professional interest in scientific literature has grown as people attempt to educate themselves on the virus. The Retraction Watch Database COVID-19 blog was accessed in June and November of 2022 and analyzed to ensure articles met inclusion criteria. Articles were then accessed on Google Scholar and the Scopus database to find number of citations and SJR/CiteScore. The average SJR and CiteScore for a journal that published one of the articles was 1.531 and 7.3 respectively. The retracted articles were cited an average of 44.8 times, which was significantly higher than the average CiteScore (p = 0.01). Between June and November, retracted COVID-19 articles gained a total of 728 new citations, presence of “withdrawn” or “retracted” before article title did not affect citation rates. COPE guidelines for retraction statements were not met for 32% of articles. We believe retracted COVID-19 publications may have been more likely to include bold claims that garnered a disproportionately high amount of attention within the scientific community. Additionally, we found many journals were not forthright with explanations for why articles had been retracted. Retractions could be a tool used to add to the scientific discourse, but currently we are only getting half the data, the what and not the why.

Suggested Citation

  • Trenton Taros & Christopher Zoppo & Nathan Yee & Jack Hanna & Christine MacGinnis, 2023. "Retracted Covid-19 articles: significantly more cited than other articles within their journal of origin," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 128(5), pages 2935-2943, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:128:y:2023:i:5:d:10.1007_s11192-023-04707-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-023-04707-4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Shima Moradi & Sajedeh Abdi, 2021. "Pandemic publication: correction and erratum in COVID-19 publications," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(2), pages 1849-1857, February.
    2. Adam Palayew & Ole Norgaard & Kelly Safreed-Harmon & Tue Helms Andersen & Lauge Neimann Rasmussen & Jeffrey V. Lazarus, 2020. "Pandemic publishing poses a new COVID-19 challenge," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 4(7), pages 666-669, July.
    3. Quan-Hoang Vuong, 2020. "Reform retractions to make them more transparent," Nature, Nature, vol. 582(7811), pages 149-149, June.
    4. Parisa Soltani & Romeo Patini, 2020. "Retracted COVID-19 articles: a side-effect of the hot race to publication," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 125(1), pages 819-822, October.
    5. Heidi Ledford & Richard Van Noorden, 2020. "High-profile coronavirus retractions raise concerns about data oversight," Nature, Nature, vol. 582(7811), pages 160-160, June.
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