A Case of Ethics and Scholarly Integrity in Research

The case study for this blog post is the research misconduct of Alec Mirchandani (https://ori.hhs.gov/case-summary-mirchandani-alec)

Summary: Alec Mirchandani is a former post-baccalaureate research volunteer in the Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences, Florida Atlantic University (FAU). The FAU and the office of research integrity (ORI) found that Mirchandani engaged in research misconduct by knowingly and intentionally (sic) fabricated results of an experiment for control mice, falsified the laboratory entry logs, and reporting the falsified data to his supervisors. For his actions, Mirchandani agreed that he would have his research supervised for a one-year period if he applies or receives U.S Public Health Service (PHS) support and some oversight of his research.

One thing stood out to me when scanning through the list of case summaries. The majority of the reported cases are for research in biological sciences or related fields. This is not a case for why research misconduct is carried out, but some thought should be given to the workload of the scientists in these fields. Is it possible that they are given an inordinate workload and expected to deliver it within a short time? This case is made because I fail to admit (maybe in my naivety) that all of these persons with the prior experiences still decide to engage in scientific misconduct if the system is perfect.

Prior to reading the case experience of Alec Mirchandani, I had a preconceived mindset to present a nuanced view of the case. However, there is no way to defend Mirchandani’s viewpoint. There is no pathway to make a case for his actions. Rather, for the willful and flagrant disregard for the scientific process, the punishment is soft-palmed. I do not have all of the information, but for such gross plagiarism being allowed to continue research and possibly apply for support from the PHS in the future was surprising to me.

As scientists (and humans), we have a duty to maintain integrity. In some instances, such misconduct only affects the researcher (or human), however, when you are a scientist serving in the field of health, research misconduct has far-reaching consequences.