Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications
Language
English
Publication Date
10-16-2024
Journal
Science and Engineering Ethics
DOI
10.1007/s11948-024-00517-w
PMID
39412686
PMCID
PMC11485062
PubMedCentral® Posted Date
10-16-2024
PubMedCentral® Full Text Version
Post-print
Abstract
The tutelage of our mentors as scientists included the analogy that writing a good scientific paper was an exercise in storytelling that omitted unessential details that did not move the story forward or that detracted from the overall message. However, the advice to not get lost in the details had an important flaw. In science, it is the many details of the data themselves and the methods used to generate and analyze them that give conclusions their probative meaning. Facts may sometimes slow or distract from the clarity, tidiness, intrigue, or flow of the narrative, but nevertheless they are important for the assessment of what was done, the trustworthiness of the science, and the meaning of the findings. Nevertheless, many critical elements and facts about research studies may be omitted from the narrative and become hidden from scholarly scrutiny. We describe a "baker's dozen" shortfalls in which such elements that are pertinent to evaluating the validity of scientific studies are sometimes hidden in reports of the work. Such shortfalls may be intentional or unintentional or lie somewhere in between. Additionally, shortfalls may occur at the level of the individual or an institution or of the entire system itself. We conclude by proposing countermeasures to these shortfalls.
Keywords
Humans, Research Design, Ethics, Research, Science, Writing, Research Report, Narration, Mentors, Publishing, Reproducibility of Results, Research, Epistemology; Philosophy of science; Rigor, reproducibility, and transparency; Trustworthiness; Science communication
Published Open-Access
yes
Recommended Citation
Siddique, Abu Bakkar; Shaw, Brian; Dwyer, Johanna; et al., "Hidden: A Baker's Dozen Ways in Which Research Reporting is Less Transparent than it Could be and Suggestions for Implementing Einstein's Dictum" (2024). Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications. 195.
https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/staff_pub/195
Included in
Biochemical Phenomena, Metabolism, and Nutrition Commons, Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Commons, Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism Commons