Laakbare wetenschap - Over alledaagse verleidingen en normoverschrijding in de wetenschap

Two categories of scientific misconduct should be distinguished: on the one hand blatant scientific fraud such as fabrication, falsification and plagiarism (FFP), and on the other hand questionable research practices (QRPs) such as data cooking, omitting contradictory evidence, rephrasing hypotheses till a positive result appears. Research results show that 2 percent of all scientists commit FFP, whereas up to 34 percent of scientists engage in questionable research practices. In addition to the prevalence of misconduct, the article discusses personality, motives and demographic characteristics of scientific fraudsters, the role of the social context, possible theoretical and methodological approaches, and issues of ethics and prevention.