The contributions of different authors to a given paper have remained relatively opaque. Contributions are generally inferred from the order of authors, and implications of position on the authorship list vary between different investigators and scientific fields. A year ago, a group of editors and publishers across a wide range of disciplines met to discuss how to provide a more systemic solution to make author contributions more transparent. This week, their recommendations have been released (www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1715374115)
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/359/6379/961.full.pdf
What are the standards for Authorship?
What are your recommendations?
Hi,
Ranking collaborating authors by their contribution to the research is important also in the academic promotion process. There are authors that are publishing 40 articles, for instance, but none of this articles is a single author contribution, and each article is collaborated with 4 or 5 other authors, so how do you evaluate the general scientific level of this author ?
The problem raised is important. There are, however, disciplines that traditionally mention the authors by alphabetical order (Math.). As to R&D companies, I heard that before publishing a team's research results, the team leader asks every one in the team what was his contribution to the research, and then he arranges their names by the order of their contribution.
I guess that the percentage contribution in a co-authored article (or so) is an internal issue between the co-authors, unless these data are required for the promotion of one of the co-authors. In this case, a separate official document letter linked to the article may be made between the co-authors. This document may be used as a declaration of the contribution. Any co-author can then use it as he/she wishes.
Dear Dr Farid
I read your opinion with interest and appreciation. However, i had some disagreement. In the current era of science we live in, it is very difficult to publish a major paper that really adds to science being a single author. In the past twenty years, very rarely the Nobel Prize has been awarded to a single persion in one field. For example, when i a m testing the effects of a particular drug, i do the biochemical analysis, but i am not a pthologist so i have to coauthor a pathologist and may be a geneticist and so forth. If i used my field only, my paper will not be comprehensive enough to add to science (unidimensional). I think an author publishing impactful papers (all joint) does not necessarily mean he did not contribute rightfully to all of them, but collaboration is the current main route to success in science.
Kind Regards
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