Good but not original!
The issue of plagiarism is of growing concern within biomedical and life science research. As a result, most major academic publishers now use plagiarism detection software. Importantly, even in cases of coincidental similarity, when detected, the author is always assumed to be guilty of attempted deception. Do you know enough about plagiarism to avoid unwarranted accusations of intellectual theft? Are you at risk of over-zealous plagiarism detection software? Don't get caught out.
In our most recent Insider's Insight - Good But Not Original: An Insider’s Insight into Plagiarism - published by Niche Science & Technology, we give some useful hints to any budding author. We hope you may find it valuable. Freely available on our Insider's Insight page, it will remind you of important rules you should follow and why:
- When reading source documents, keep them well-organised and highlight important passages as you go. This will help you to keep track of what you need to cite in your final manuscript
- Never cite articles that you have not read yourself. Always check that the source article aligns with the proposed interpretation if you plan to include an opinion from a review article or online resource that reproduces information from somewhere else
- Avoid relying on just one or two major review articles for your background information. You want to minimise any chance that your narrative appears similar to existing texts
A useful way to avoid accidental plagiarism is to find your own writing style. Although academic writing should principally focus on clarity and content, writing in a voice that comes naturally to you will reduce the likelihood of coincidental similarities with existing work - though you will still be prone to self plagarism. Remember, if you work carefully and have a working understanding of what plagiarism is, it is unlikely that you will commit it accidentally. Therefore, although the penalties are severe, you should not be afraid of using a wide variety of sources.
Information in the current Insider's Insight was compiled by Dr Susan Reijntjes, one of our Senior Medical Writers, and summarises the collective experience of our Medical Writing Team, which has over 100 years of service in the industry.
While you are downloading our current guide please check out our other Insider's Insights (here). You can register to receive monthly updates and ensure that you don't miss future issues of these helpful guides. We welcome any suggestions on how our Insider’s Insights might be improved and requests for future topics you would like us to cover.