Project News

Guest Editors:

Aliya Kuzhabekova, Assistant Professor, University of Calgary, Canada

 Sarah Elaine Eaton, Professor and Research Chair, University of Calgary, Canada

Elena Denisova-Schmidt, Research Associate, University of St. Gallen, Swetzerland 

Contact email: aliya.kuzhabekova@ucalgary.ca

The problem of research misconduct is growing around the world. Some scholars engage in unethical behaviors, such as plagiarism, data fabrication, manipulation with research results, publishing in predatory journals, ghost authorship, and etc. This problem is becoming more severe with the development of information technologies, the advancement of privately funded research, and the intensifying pressure on scholars in higher education to produce publications to satisfy the reporting requirements for research funding agencies and to successfully gain tenure and promotion. Importantly, while most prior research on the problem was conducted in the West, the problem is becoming more pervasive in non-Western countries, which focus their economic development agendas on innovation, necessitating strategic enhancement of university research capacity.

The growth in research misconduct has serious repercussions. It erodes the quality of produced knowledge, stalls the development of human society and the improvement of human life, leads to inefficiencies in public spending, and undermines public trust in higher education. Humanity needs reliable research results to treat diseases, to address social problems, and to develop life-improving technologies. Because research is a global enterprise, research misconduct of a scholar on one side of the world may affect the life of people on the other. Hence, it is important to understand how frequently research misconduct factors, which prevent or increase the likelihood of breeches in research integrity, and the way the factors play out in different cultural contexts. In particular, it is important to understand what drives the growing problem of research misconduct in non-Western countries.

The purpose of the special issue is to bring together scholars from around the world and to map current research on the topic of interest. The special issue will highlight the existing theories explaining research misconduct, available empirical findings, as well as methods and methodological issues arising when studying the issue. We are seeking contributions of theoretical and empirical nature, which explore individual, organizational, institutional, and cultural factors of research misconduct, the scale and manifestations of the problem in the countries of interest, comparative analysis of the issue in several non-Western contexts, existing policies and measures aimed at addressing the issue, the relationship between technological advancements, technological literacy and research misconduct, and other themes, which enlighten the issue. Systematic literature reviews or bibliometric explorations might be considered if they provide a good overview of the existing research.

Submission timeline:

Submission start date: February 1, 2025

Submission deadline: May 30, 2025

Expected acceptance deadline: February 1, 2026

Expected publication schedule: March 30, 2026

JOURNAL SUBMISSION LINK:

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/page/journal/14682273/call-for-papers/si-2024-001221