Title: Pirated Idea for Research
Author: Anji Wall
Description: A reviewer from an NIH study section gives a trainee a research project based on a submission she reviews.
Keyword(s): plagiarism, ORI, intellectual property, mentor-trainee relationship, publishing, peer review
Based On: (Shamoo & Resnik, 2003, p. 137)
Case: While reviewing a grant proposal, a member of an NIH study section concluded that her lab would be better equipped to perform the research and could get it done more quickly even though it was somewhat different from her normal research. She gave the idea to one of her post-docs the next day and he began working on it diligently.
The research resulted in a paper that was submitted for publication to a highly regarded journal. One of the reviewers for this journal was the original researcher, who had reached similar findings but had been holding off publication because of a pending patent application.
- The researcher who had submitted the original proposal complained to the Office of Research Integrity. What should ORI do?
- What should the researcher who submitted the paper do?
- What should the post-doc do?
- What should be done about the patent?
Source: Shamoo, A., & Resnik D. (2003) Responsible Conduct of Research. New York: Oxford University Press