Consequences of POP: research misconduct (part 1)

In response to the challenge posed by POP, academics have changed their publication-related behaviour in two ways. In one way, a tendency has arisen to indulge in research misconduct that takes various shapes and forms. In another way, academics have become more willing to “gang up” to produce a paper, to the extent that single-authorship has become a thing of the past. The pressure imposed on academics to publish (or else) may, can and does lead to misconduct or at least questionable ethics. Research misconduct takes several forms, including plagiarism, self-plagiarism and salami slicing. The sky is the limit when it comes to the techniques of cheating used in order to publish and not perish. Even when it comes to research misconduct, survival of the fittest is the name of the game.