Plagiarism – what I have learned

My first undergraduate assignment was to write a 3,000 word essay on the neuromuscular junction. The same assignment was given to around 50 students simultaneously and the university library only had five copies of the book at the top of the suggested reading list (Katz’s book ‘Nerve, Muscle and Synapse’). By the time I had motivated myself the library shelves were empty, similarly the second, third and fourth books on the list had quickly vanished. Consequently, I had to get all my information from primary sources. In the pre electronic age this involved searching the literature with Index Medicus and trawling the stacks for individual articles. Three weeks later I submitted my freshly hand-written and self-illustrated synopsis. My masterpiece. 

Sadly, Dr Mackay, who marked the essay dropped me several grades saying that he would have preferred if I had not simply copied Katz’s text so closely. Thirty-five years later and I still claim that any similarity between the two works was purely coincidental. Nevertheless, it was an unpropitious, unanticipated and somewhat stinging start to my writing career.

Fast-forward to the present day and the consequences of plagiarism, whether accidental or deliberate, have become more significant than the loss of a few grade points. In the intervening years we have seen a tightening of the rules, the introduction of severe penalties (particularly for undergraduates) and ready availability of on-line applications that allow anyone to check the originality of your work. 

Plagiarism is not limited to simply overuse of ‘copy and paste’. I use the acronym CITES to keep in mind where unintentional cases of plagiarism can sneak in.

• Combinatorial – plagiarism detection software will readily detect if you mix content from various sources and present the resulting 'jigsaw text' as your own compilation
• Ideas – I am sure you wouldn't present someone else’s ideas as your own but it is equally negligent not to provide proper acknowledgement when presenting them
• Text – plagiarism isn’t restricted to copying entire blocks of text, it can include someone’s phrases or terms. We know for example that I am not the person to come up with “Et tu, Brute?”
• Erroneous plagiarism – it is possible to appear as though you have copied someone else’s words – apparently, one in a million chances come up more often than you might think
• Self-plagiarism – be sure to acknowledge sources when reproducing your own work

It is also good to know when you don’t have to worry about plagiarism, being too cautious will cramp your style. Detailed guidance is provided in one of our recent Insider's Insights. Knowing the correct citation format (including where to put citations) is important is critical because failing to cite correctly is almost as bad as not citing at all. To help you navigate the ever-more complex field of plagiarism I thought that I would share some key learnings that I have made over the last three decades.

1. Be aware of the rules surrounding plagiarism: not only the ‘general’ rules but also any specific rules that relate to the channel you are writing for. There are plenty of guides that will help you avoid the consequences of ignorance. 
2. Use plenty of sources (and cite them): One of the most common reasons for plagiarism is reliance on too few sources once you start writing. Perform thorough literature searches to ensure that you have a comprehensive overview of the scientific literature.
3. Evaluate your sources: Use primary sources where you can and remember that both primary and secondary sources can be of variable quality. When judging sources you want to consider the author's reputation and/or track record, where they sourced their information and whether their data is actually relevant and up to date. Using sources of questionable background increases potential for plagiarism. 
4. Stay organised: The potential for unintended plagiarism increases as your project progresses and the number of sources you are using increases. Employ a system that helps you track how you use your source materials; give each source some form of unique identifier so that you build a bibliography as you go (don’t forget about online resources). You might also want to consider highlighting the specific text that you extract each point from.
5. Cite as you write: It is always tempting to ‘go with the flow’ when you are in the creative zone! Stopping to include references can really cramp your style. However, the only way you can be sure not to omit sources accidentally is to ‘cite as you write’. Engage with your citation plan and record usage. Expecting to enter all the details once you have finished writing a specific block of text or section can be time consuming (if you have to search for 'lost' references) and it is an easy way for errors to creep in.
6. Put something of yourself into your writing: If you ignore my own unfortunate experience, one of the best ways to avoid plagiarism is to put something of yourself into your work. Find some aspect of the work that you feel deserves specific attention and provides your own understanding. In the end it is our own unique minds that are the best defence against plagiarism. To this end, read broadly. Reading is how you feed your inner muse. Every time you read something of value your brain absorbs the rhythms, the flow and the style that other authors have used. You are training your writing muscle.
7. Write in isolation: Keep your sources and writing away from each other. This forces you not to use copy and paste and properly process your information as you write. It should minimise the potential for leaving content unaddressed. I appreciate that this makes creation of your reference list difficult (especially if you are like me and don't like using referencing software). If you must use copy and paste – leave it to the end.
8. Use an online checker: Clearly, this is the most obvious way to avoid plagiarism. However, I would contest that it is the responsibility of any author to ensure that your work is free from plagiarism, at least where it can be avoided. 

 There are a number of options available including:

• iThenticate compares files with over 37 million published research articles. Possibly the most reliable tool, it rarely misses an unacknowledged work 
• Turntin tests writing against considerable amounts of online material
• Plagscan is a free on-line checker that chops text into blocks that can are searched for matches

One last thought, I once read somewhere that desperation is the mother of plagiarism. A bastardisation of the English proverb “Necessity is the mother of invention”. Sadly my efforts have failed to identify the original source. Please let me know if you ever find out – I would love to give them credit. However, the point being made, I think, is that giving yourself sufficient time to perform the writing task in hand is the best preparation you can undertake to avoid plagiarism, accidental or otherwise.

In closing, I would note that the best informed of us can still be surprised from time to time, even when we have taken all available steps to avoid plagiarism. Recently, in writing up the proceedings of The Association for Human Pharmacology in the Pharmaceutical Industry’s meeting conducted this summer in London, we prepared text simply from the spoken word delivered by each of the presenters (with reference to their relevant regulatory sources). Nevertheless, on submission the journal's plagiarism detection software found no less than 30 cases of ‘suspected’ plagiarism from sources as wide as government publications, company websites and blogs in addition to scientific articles. You will be glad to hear that a quick check on Plagscan and Quetext show the blog to be 100% compliant. Be careful out there.

Dr Tim Hardman is Managing Director of Niche Science & Technology Ltd., a bespoke services CRO based in the UK. He is also Chairman of the Association of Human Pharmacology in the Pharmaceutical Industry and an occasional commentator on science, business and the process of drug development.