Dear Gunnar,
The terms “gift signature” and “tribute signature” are specific terms used to describe corrupt practices in which those who do not contribute to the substance of an article take credit for authorship.
Corrupt signature practices are not standard practice at leading research universities. To the contrary, most universities have clear policies forbidding such practices. Typical policies are visible on the web sites of most leading research universities. Policies from Yale University, Stanford University, Imperial College, and University of Melbourne are typical.
http://provost.yale.edu/academic-integrity/authorship
https://doresearch.stanford.edu/policies/research-policy-handbook/conduct-research/academic-authorship
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/research-and-innovation/about-imperial-research/research-integrity/authorship/
https://policy.unimelb.edu.au/MPF1181
This is the case at most universities with serious labs, and it is the case at most leading scientific laboratories in most fields, whether they are located in a university or not. Violations of these policies often have serious consequences at universities, other labs, and at the government and non-governmental funding agencies that support labs.
Most top journals also have such policies. Here are discussions and policy statements from the journals Science, Nature, BMJ,
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/327/5961/12.full
http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_magazine/previous_issues/articles/2001_03_30/nodoi.9203462371499238483
http://www.nature.com/authors/policies/authorship.html
http://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/resources-authors/article-submission/authorship-contributorship
Design Studies and She Ji follow the Elsevier Guidelines
https://www.publishingcampus.elsevier.com/websites/elsevier_publishingcampus/files/Guides/Quick_guide_Research_Ethics.pdf
Design Issues and the journals published by The MIT Press follow the ethical standards established by the Committee on Publishing Ethics:
http://publicationethics.org
http://publicationethics.org/files/International%20standards_authors_for%20website_11_Nov_2011_0.pdf
We agree on the principles here.
Where I disagree is the notion that gift signatures or tribute signatures are standard practice. This is not a standard practice. It is corruption. When gift signatures and tribute signatures come to light at universities, funding agencies, and journals, serious consequences follow.
Yours,
Ken
Ken Friedman, PhD, DSc (hc), FDRS | Editor-in-Chief | 设计 She Ji. The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation | Published by Tongji University in Cooperation with Elsevier | URL: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/she-ji-the-journal-of-design-economics-and-innovation/
Chair Professor of Design Innovation Studies | College of Design and Innovation | Tongji University | Shanghai, China ||| University Distinguished Professor | Centre for Design Innovation | Swinburne University of Technology | Melbourne, Australia
—
Gunnar Swanson wrote:
—snip—
Yes.
[Ken Friedman wrote:] “I have heard of cases in which doctoral supervisors require PhD students to include their names on *anything* that they publish, even when the supervisors *have not* contributed content that warrants a signature under the standard research ethics policies.”
This is, I am told, standard practice in many labs. The head of a lab is often listed as first author even if reading the paper is his first participation other than providing the venue for the research. I object to the habit of extending the definition of any disapproving word and the term "plagiarism" has fallen prey to this habit but this is, indeed, clearly the taking of credit for others’ work.
—snip—
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