open access
The authorship of research results and scientific publications in medical sciences
Affiliations- Intellectual Property Law Chair of the Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
open access
Abstract
Introduction. The article aims to present the rules for determining the authorship of research results and scientific publications under intellectual property law and the applicable standards.
Materials and methods. The study is based on copyright law, national and international codes of ethical conduct in research and scientific publications, including the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity and the guidelines for publication in medical journals of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors.
Results and discussion. The standards for the attribution of authorship to scientific results under intellectual property law, the applicable guidelines and customs are not consistent. Strict rules for determining the status of an author based on their creative contribution within the meaning of copyright law do not correspond in full extent to the needs of the sciences, where almost every contribution to research, clinical trials, and the preparation of publications is appreciated. In practice, this may create conflicting situations as to the proper identification and indication of authorship and co-authors.
Conclusions. Among the standards for recognizing authorship, copyright standards prevail. A compromise solution between the restrictive approach for attributing authorship (co-authorship) of works under copyright and the non-binding recommendation of the ethical codes, is to distinguish between the ‘authors’ and other ‘non-authors’ who contributed to the creation of work, thereby protecting the interests of all parties involved.
Abstract
Introduction. The article aims to present the rules for determining the authorship of research results and scientific publications under intellectual property law and the applicable standards.
Materials and methods. The study is based on copyright law, national and international codes of ethical conduct in research and scientific publications, including the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity and the guidelines for publication in medical journals of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors.
Results and discussion. The standards for the attribution of authorship to scientific results under intellectual property law, the applicable guidelines and customs are not consistent. Strict rules for determining the status of an author based on their creative contribution within the meaning of copyright law do not correspond in full extent to the needs of the sciences, where almost every contribution to research, clinical trials, and the preparation of publications is appreciated. In practice, this may create conflicting situations as to the proper identification and indication of authorship and co-authors.
Conclusions. Among the standards for recognizing authorship, copyright standards prevail. A compromise solution between the restrictive approach for attributing authorship (co-authorship) of works under copyright and the non-binding recommendation of the ethical codes, is to distinguish between the ‘authors’ and other ‘non-authors’ who contributed to the creation of work, thereby protecting the interests of all parties involved.
Keywords
authorship of research results; authorship of publications; co-authorship; plagiarism
About this articleTitle
The authorship of research results and scientific publications in medical sciences
Journal
Nowotwory. Journal of Oncology
Issue
Article type
Other materials agreed with the Editors
Pages
73-76
Published online
2020-04-07
Page views
366
Article views/downloads
436
DOI
10.5603/NJO.2020.0017
Bibliographic record
Nowotwory. Journal of Oncology 2020;70(2):73-76.
Keywords
authorship of research results
authorship of publications
co-authorship
plagiarism
Authors
Justyna Ożegalska-Trybalska
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