A Dilemma about Co-authorship
Case for discussion about co-authorship and collegiality.
A younger surgeon was about to submit a scientific article for review in a journal. He was asked by an older, senior colleague if he could be included on the author list. The older surgeon had not participated in the research project, but was in the process of applying for a new position and “needed” new articles on his publication list. The younger surgeon felt that he was in a kind of debt of gratitude to his senior colleague, who had been very helpful to him in many situations. “Does it really matter if I show a little generosity?” he asked himself. “I’m not competing with my senior colleague for any job, and I will still be the first author.”
Questions for discussion
- How should the researcher handle this situation?
- Does it matter if researchers are a little “generous” with co-authorship? What consequences can it have if researchers grant each other so-called gift authorship?
- How can a research group ensure that this type of issue is handled properly?
- What can institutions do to help their researchers with questions of authorship?
This case originates from Sokol, D. K. (2008). The dilemma of authorship. BMJ, 336(7642), 478–478.
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