China takes ‘drastic’ action to punish research plagiarism

China has introduced new punitive measures for researchers involved in plagiarism, in the latest signal of the government’s determination to crack down on academic misconduct.

In July, China’s Ministry of Science and Technology published the names of four researchers from institutions across the country who were found to have used plagiarised content in proposals for government-funded research projects. An additional researcher was also named, for having allegedly lobbied reviewers of project applications for favourable treatment.

The government said the researchers would be prohibited from participating in government-backed research projects for three years and would have their names added to a dishonesty database.

“Scientific research integrity is the cornerstone of scientific and technological innovation,” the ministry said in a statement. “Universities, research institutes and enterprises engaged in scientific research should earnestly shoulder their…responsibilities, strengthen the education, guidance and supervision of their own scientific researchers, and take the initiative to discover and seriously deal with behaviours that violate the requirements of scientific research integrity.”

Since emerging as a major science research power, rising to become the top country for highly cited research in 2022, China has struggled to balance explosive growth with ensuring and maintaining ethical practices.

Earlier this year, the government launched a nationwide review of academic misconduct after it was revealed that thousands of papers by Chinese researchers had been retracted.

“Such a humiliating outcome on the international stage has forced [China] to take drastic action,” said Stephen Gow, a coordinator at the University of York and academic integrity researcher.

This problem has become a “national issue”, agreed Xinqu Zhang, a PhD student at the University of Hong Kong who researches Chinese higher education. “Due to the large number of Chinese scholars involved in a wide array of research misconduct with varying severity levels, preventing and addressing these misconduct issues can be much more complicated and challenging than in other countries.”

The government has already taken other measures to prevent research misconduct, including requiring all universities to declare any retractions and to report incidents of misconduct to the government.

However, there are concerns that China’s punitive approach could backfire, leading universities to adopt quick fixes rather than cultivating a culture of academic integrity.

“In the short term, such rapid implementation pulls resources away from improving the system and focuses on detecting and the gruelling bureaucratic process of investigation, appeals and re-investigation that saps morale,” said Dr Gow. “Rather than improving academic integrity and the societal view of research quality, it could actually be counterproductive.”

Mr Zhang said the effectiveness of such harsh measures “relies on their implementation”, but he felt they could reduce cases of academic misconduct. “Specifically, they will remind potential wrongdoers to consider the consequences seriously,” he said.

China is not alone in grappling with rising academic fraud. In recent years, “paper mills” that ghostwrite journal articles for scholars have surged in popularity worldwide, while the number of academics excluded from a global list of highly cited researchers spiked last year.

“It is a myth that plagiarism and other forms of misconduct are deemed acceptable in China,” said Dr Gow.

“Chinese researchers are contributing groundbreaking work from Chinese and international institutions, but such a rapid growth is inevitably accompanied by the spectrum of honest mistakes, shortcuts, sloppy research and blatant fraud, which are more likely to grab the headlines.”

helen.packer@timeshighereducation.com