MyCites: a proposal to mark and report inaccurate citations in scholarly publications
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(2020) 5:13
Research Integrity and Peer Review
RESEARCH
Open Access
MyCites: a proposal to mark and report inaccurate citations in scholarly publications Mohammad Hosseini1* , Martin Paul Eve2, Bert Gordijn1 and Cameron Neylon3
Abstract Background: Inaccurate citations are erroneous quotations or instances of paraphrasing of previously published material that mislead readers about the claims of the cited source. They are often unaddressed due to underreporting, the inability of peer reviewers and editors to detect them, and editors’ reluctance to publish corrections about them. In this paper, we propose a new tool that could be used to tackle their circulation. Methods: We provide a review of available data about inaccurate citations and analytically explore current ways of reporting and dealing with these inaccuracies. Consequently, we make a distinction between publication (i.e., first occurrence) and circulation (i.e., reuse) of inaccurate citations. Sloppy reading of published items, literature ambiguity and insufficient quality control in the editorial process are identified as factors that contribute to the publication of inaccurate citations. However, reiteration or copy-pasting without checking the validity of citations, paralleled with lack of resources/motivation to report/correct inaccurate citations contribute to their circulation. Results and discussion: We propose the development of an online annotation tool called “MyCites” as means with which to mark and map inaccurate citations. This tool allows ORCID users to annotate citations and alert authors (of the cited and citing articles) and also editors of journals where inaccurate citations are published. Each marked citation would travel with the digital version of the document (persistent identifiers) and be visible on websites that host peer-reviewed articles (journals’ websites, Pubmed, etc.). In the future development of MyCites, challenges such as the conditions of correct/incorrect-ness and parties that should adjudicate that, and, the issue of dealing with incorrect reports need to be addressed. Keywords: Inaccurate citations, Editorial process, Post-publication peer-review, Annotations, Research integrity, Responsibilities
Introduction Within all areas of research, the use of previously published material is an essential building block of knowledge-production [1]. This is so indispensable that, famously, Isaac Newton described the process of discovering the truth by relying on previous explorations as
* Correspondence: [email protected] 1 Institute of Ethics, School of Theology, Philosophy, and Music, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
standing on the shoulders of giants [2]. However, research results are sometimes used sloppily and cited inaccurately. Inaccurate representations of previously published material can mislead readers about the claims of the cited source, and distract the accurate flow of information and history of ideas. This pertains
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