Awarding honorary coauthorships is one such misrepresentation that undermines the assumption that people doing good science will be recognized for the rigor and soundness of their work. Additionally, since authorship is used to evaluate the performance of scientists for promotion and honors, weakening the standards by which authorship is granted could ultimately weaken not only academic excellence, but also the perception of accomplishment now guaranteed by titles and awards.
How, then, to avoid misrepresentation and establish guidelines for coauthorship? Years of writing and publishing suggest to me three criteria. A coauthor is someone who participates in all three categories.
* Work. A coauthor contributes a significant part of the work for the project. If the data are taken from another, unrelated project, coauthorship is entitled only if the data are significantly reworked for the present project. If data are offered without significant modification, the contributor should be acknowledged but not ...
