RESEARCH MISCONDUCT AND ITS CONSEQUENCES 2

Research Misconduct and Its Consequences

Research misconduct is a gross violation of ethical standards of the scientific community.
It includes fabrication (creating false documentation or data), misrepresentation (suppressing
certain findings), plagiarism (using other people’s ideas without acknowledgment), and
falsification (inappropriately manipulating data). Research misconduct should be avoided
completely because its consequences can be severe.
A recent case of research misconduct was one involving two professors at the University
of Kentucky. The two, Xianglin Shi and Zhuo Zhang, were found guilty of falsifying and
fabricating data in their published articles and grant proposals (Stunson & Acquisto, 2019). They
were also found to have used experimental data carelessly and intentional deception. As a result
of these examples of misconduct, the university asked the two professors to voluntarily resign or
be fired (Stunson & Acquisto, 2019).
The example of these two professors shows that ethical misconduct often has severe
consequences. Among them is loss of job for the guilty researchers. In addition to losing job, the
implicated researchers suffer reputational damage which may make it hard for them to perform
any research work in future because very few people would take their findings seriously. Even if
they continue with research, they may find themselves ostracized from the scientific community
with few researchers, if any, willing to collaborate with them in any work. More significantly,
the individuals involved in the misconduct and their institutions, may suffer from a reduction in
support for research, particularly financial support.
In conclusion, research malpractices are a serious violation of ethical standards. The
severity of the consequences makes it completely unnecessary to engage in the violations. Thus,
it is important to stick to set research ethical standards all the time one conducts research.

RESEARCH MISCONDUCT AND ITS CONSEQUENCES 3

References

Stunson, M. & Acquisto, A. (August 26, 2019). Two UK professors, research scientist
responsible for significant research misconduct. The Messenger. Retrieved on 16 th
September, 2019 on https://www.the-messenger.com/news/local/article_c52bc000-c80e-
11e9-9079-fb1a4f1f3963.html