Psychology Grad Student Faked Data

A young psychologist who studied the effects of motivation and reward on cognitive control is found to have falsified data in three published papers.

| 1 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
1:00
Share

WIKIMEDIA, GALLO & SPERO LLPThe Office of Research Integrity (ORI) has this week (March 4) reprimanded Adam Savine, a former graduate student in psychology at Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) for falsifying data in 3 published papers and 6 abstracts submitted to conferences, reported Retraction Watch.

Investigators found that Savine massaged data in a 2012 paper in Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience, which investigated the effects of motivational incentives on cognitive control, or the psychological and neural mechanisms by which people actively maintain information—such as goals, instructions, or prior events— and use it to guide their behavior. The paper is yet to be cited, according to ISI Web of Knowledge.

According to the report, he also tweaked figures in a 2012 study in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, which has been cited 3 times. The figures pertain to individual differences in prospective memory monitoring, or the ability retrieve and execute future goals.

Finally, Savine was found guilty of mislabeling brain images in a 2010 Journal of Neuroscience paper to show ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here
TS Digest January 2025
January 2025, Issue 1

Why Do Some People Get Drunk Faster Than Others?

Genetics and tolerance shake up how alcohol affects each person, creating a unique cocktail of experiences.

View this Issue
Sex Differences in Neurological Research

Sex Differences in Neurological Research

bit.bio logo
New Frontiers in Vaccine Development

New Frontiers in Vaccine Development

Sino
New Approaches for Decoding Cancer at the Single-Cell Level

New Approaches for Decoding Cancer at the Single-Cell Level

Biotium logo
Learn How 3D Cell Cultures Advance Tissue Regeneration

Organoids as a Tool for Tissue Regeneration Research 

Acro 

Products

Sapient Logo

Sapient Partners with Alamar Biosciences to Extend Targeted Proteomics Services Using NULISA™ Assays for Cytokines, Chemokines, and Inflammatory Mediators

Bio-Rad Logo

Bio-Rad Extends Range of Vericheck ddPCR Empty-Full Capsid Kits to Optimize AAV Vector Characterization

An illustration of different-shaped bacteria.

Leveraging PCR for Rapid Sterility Testing

Conceptual 3D image of DNA on a blue background.

Understanding the Nuts and Bolts of qPCR Assay Controls 

Bio-Rad