Ethical issues in publication of research

We often think of research ethics mostly in connection with the processes of intervention, data collection, and analysis, but ethics does not stop there. The process of preparing publications involves a number of ethical considerations, including continued protection of the rights of human subjects; reporting findings truthfully, accurately, and completely and using one's own words to do so, or appropriately citing the work of others; and ensuring that authorship credit and acknowledgments accurately reflect the contributions of others. No foolproof way exists to ensure that only ethical publications see print; however, including content on publication ethics in all research courses, publishing clear policies related to ethical expectations in journals, and engaging in discussion of these issues with colleagues are a good start toward that goal.