Are questionable research practices considered a successful career strategy? A novel implementation of the implicit association test.

IF 3.5 3区管理学 Q2 COMPUTER SCIENCE, INTERDISCIPLINARY APPLICATIONS

Scientometrics Pub Date : 2025-01-01 Epub Date: 2025-07-05 DOI:10.1007/s11192-025-05357-4

Antonia Velicu, Fabian Winter, Justus Rathmann, Heiko Rauhut

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Abstract

Scientific misconduct and questionable research practices (QRPs) pose significant challenges to the integrity of academic research. This study therefore investigates scientists' implicit associations regarding misconduct and its relationship with perceived academic success. Employing the Single-Category Implicit Association Test (SC-IAT), the attitudes of 11,747 scientists across Austria, Germany, and Switzerland were examined. Results suggest that only a very low fraction of researchers associate serious misconduct with success, yet approximately one-fifth of participants associate QRPs with success. Gender and discipline-based distinctions were minimal, with notable inclinations among PhD students decreasing with status. However, limitations exist, including the lack of validation against explicit attitudes. The decline in the association between QRPs and success with status raises questions about cohort effects or shifting ethical norms. Early intervention and ongoing training efforts may mitigate these issues, emphasizing ethical considerations in scientific practice from undergraduate education onwards. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for fostering integrity in research and guiding future interventions.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11192-025-05357-4.

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有问题的研究实践被认为是成功的职业策略吗？一种新的内隐联想检验方法。

科学不端行为和有问题的研究实践（qrp）对学术研究的完整性构成了重大挑战。因此，本研究调查了科学家对不端行为的内隐联想及其与学术成功的关系。采用单类别内隐联想测验（SC-IAT），对奥地利、德国和瑞士的11,747名科学家的态度进行了调查。结果表明，只有非常低比例的研究人员将严重不当行为与成功联系起来，但大约五分之一的参与者将qrp与成功联系起来。性别和学科基础的差异很小，博士生的显著倾向随着地位的下降而下降。然而，局限性是存在的，包括缺乏对明确态度的验证。qrp和成功与地位之间关系的减弱引发了关于群体效应或道德规范转变的问题。早期干预和持续的培训努力可以缓解这些问题，强调从本科教育开始的科学实践中的伦理考虑。了解这些动态对于促进研究的完整性和指导未来的干预措施至关重要。补充信息：在线版本包含补充资料，可在10.1007/s11192-025-05357-4获得。

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来源期刊

Scientometrics 管理科学-计算机：跨学科应用

CiteScore

7.20

自引率

17.90%

发文量

351

审稿时长

1.5 months

期刊介绍： Scientometrics aims at publishing original studies, short communications, preliminary reports, review papers, letters to the editor and book reviews on scientometrics. The topics covered are results of research concerned with the quantitative features and characteristics of science. Emphasis is placed on investigations in which the development and mechanism of science are studied by means of (statistical) mathematical methods. The Journal also provides the reader with important up-to-date information about international meetings and events in scientometrics and related fields. Appropriate bibliographic compilations are published as a separate section. Due to its fully interdisciplinary character, Scientometrics is indispensable to research workers and research administrators throughout the world. It provides valuable assistance to librarians and documentalists in central scientific agencies, ministries, research institutes and laboratories. Scientometrics includes the Journal of Research Communication Studies. Consequently its aims and scope cover that of the latter, namely, to bring the results of research investigations together in one place, in such a form that they will be of use not only to the investigators themselves but also to the entrepreneurs and research workers who form the object of these studies.