The main goal of science is often described as the search for truth in a particular domain of knowledge. Accordingly, scientific research is regarded as incompatible with the manipulation of facts and data, and with the resort to falsehood and deception (for instance, regarding authorship). Therefore, the question that inevitably arises is: Why does misconduct happen in science? What strange attraction leads scientists to act in a way that so openly contradicts the central goal of the scientific enterprise?

The preliminary answer to this question is very simple: Scientific research, like any other human activity, is exposed to dishonesty. After all, “scientists are not different from other people” (Broad and Wade 1982, p. 19). When scientists enter into their office, laboratory or research unit, they continue having the same passions and driving ambitions to which all human beings are exposed. They are tempted, like all human beings, to transgress the boundaries of ethical behaviour to achieve more rapidly their personal and professional goals. This is why it is naïve to assume that, as science embodies by definition a disinterested pursuit of knowledge, scientists are necessarily honest and always comply with ethical standards.

Of course, this does not mean that misconduct can be simply explained by the deviant behaviour of some ‘bad’ individuals. The lack of clear awareness of the criteria for doing research properly is also an important internal factor to be considered. Indeed, how can we expect that researchers meticulously follow all best practice rules if they are not aware of them? Is it reasonable to hold young scientists fully accountable for their wrong practices if they have never been explicitly taught how to conduct research in a proper manner? Can we really expect that common moral intuitions, without any proper education, are enough for enabling future researchers to address the complex choices they will face in their work? The answer to these questions is clearly ‘no.’

This is why, among the various efforts aiming to promote scientific integrity, “the educational goal is the most important one” (Resnik 2003, 132). Having guidelines and procedures is certainly helpful to promote integrity, but they are obviously insufficient because “ethical conduct is not likely to occur without effective education” (Resnik, idem). Indeed, in the end, only an effective training of future researchers can help them become aware of the existing rules and procedures and of the importance of complying with them. More fundamentally, only through education can young researchers realize that the conduct of research in conformity with ethical principles is quintessential to the scientific endeavour. Only effective education can enable future researchers to internalize the notion that doing research properly is the raison d’être of their entire career and, ultimately, the condition sine qua non for becoming good scientists. Promoting effective learning strategies in this area is precisely one of the key goals of the INTEGRITY Project.

References

Broad, William; Wade, Nicholas (1982). Betrayers of the Truth. Fraud and Deceit in the Halls of Science, New York, Simon and Schuster.

Goodstein, David (2010). On Fact and Fraud. Cautionary Tales from the Front Lines of Science. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Resnik, David (2003), ‘From Baltimore to Bell Labs: Reflections on Two Decades of Debate about Scientific Misconduct’. Accountability in Research, 10:123-135.

Feature image author – @freepik