ISTOCK, SPRNG23Update (March 20): Scientific Reports retracted the 2016 study today. It has been cited 17 times since its publication. In a statement to Retraction Watch, the journal acknowledged that “the correction made following the initial review was insufficient and inadequate,” and noted that editorial staff would receive further guidance on “handling allegations of plagiarism.”
Nearly 20 researchers, most of whom are based at Johns Hopkins University, have resigned from the editorial board of Scientific Reports following a dispute about an allegedly plagiarized study published by the journal in 2016, Retraction Watch reports today (November 7). The resignations follow months of back-and-forth between the journal and members of its editorial board, culminating in an email sent yesterday by managing editor Richard White notifying the researchers that “we do not think retraction is warranted” for the disputed study.
“I resigned as soon as I learned that Scientific Reports elected not to retract the paper,” Ted Dawson, a Johns Hopkins neurobiologist, writes in an email to Retraction Watch. “It seems Scientific Reports has a unique publication policy—‘If you are caught plagiarizing someone ...
