What is Plagiarism in Research: From Detection to Prevention

Before the advent of internet, people used to research from the books, research article’s or form other’s journal etc and then articulate those knowledge in their research paper by incorporating their own perspective. However, in the age of internet and technology, everything is at our fingertips.

This has made easier for any of the individual to copy or modify other’s work and present it under their own name without acknowledging the original owner / author of that particular work.

This is where the plagiarism steps in. This article: “What is plagiarism in research” speaks about the concept of plagiarism in research methodology and provides you other useful information related to it.

What is Plagiarism in Research?

People used to browse the internet, study the books, go through other’s research paper to gain knowledge in their respective field of research to complete their research paper.

However, some of the researchers intentionally or unintentionally present other’s work without giving proper attribution to the original author of that content. This constitutes plagiarism in research methodology.

So, lets say when a researcher copies maximum portion of others work in his / her research paper without giving much of his / her own input, then that’s constitute intellectual copying.

The Butterfly Project: A Lesson on Plagiarism in Research

Imagine you’re working on a school project about butterflies. You check out books and websites, learning tons of cool facts. That’s awesome! But if you just copy those facts straight into your project without mentioning where you found them, that’s plagiarism.

Plagiarism is like taking someone else’s work and pretending it’s yours. In research, this happens when someone uses another researcher’s ideas, words, or findings without giving them credit. It’s like copying your friend’s homework without asking!

There are different levels of plagiarism. Stealing big chunks of someone else’s work is bad. But even copying a few sentences without crediting the source is still wrong.

Remember, research is about learning and sharing new things. By giving adequate credit to others, you show respect and make your project even stronger!

Types of Plagiarism in Research Methodology

Self-Plagiarism: Most often people used to take some portion of their work from previous assessment and present them in their current research paper without presenting fresh content or their fresh perspective.

Accidental Plagiarism: This occurs due to the lack of knowledge of proper citation or attribution, where people present their research assignment without giving proper credit to the author of the referenced material.

Direct Plagiarism: This happens when people use other’s saying in their paper without using quotation marks.

Complete Plagiarism: This happened when research scholar copies entire work or paper of other’s and won’t give their own effort, or input and also won’t bring their knowledge or their view points to the table.

Mosaic Plagiarism: This happened when researchers picked the information from multiple sources and stitched altogether into one piece and present it as their own without acknowledgement and without their own input.

In Which Research Field Does Plagiarism Not Happen?

Plagiarism can potentially occur in any research field.

Every area of study involves the creation and sharing of knowledge, which means that the risk of plagiarism is always present. However, the likelihood of plagiarism might be lower in some fields compared to others due to the nature of the work and the strict adherence to ethical standards.

Fields with Strict Ethical Guidelines

Certain fields, like medical research and clinical studies, have very strict ethical guidelines and rigorous peer-review processes. These standards help minimise plagiarism, but they do not eliminate it entirely.

Highly Specialised Fields

Highly specialised fields, such as quantum physics or advanced theoretical mathematics, may experience lower rates of plagiarism simply because the work is very complex and requires a deep understanding that cannot easily be copied. However, even in these fields, the risk is not zero.

Collaborative and Open Source Fields

Fields that emphasise collaboration and open-source contributions, such as software development in the open-source community, might see less plagiarism because the culture promotes sharing and giving credit where it’s due. Yet, there is always a possibility of someone not adhering to these principles.

Emerging Fields

In new and emerging fields, like nanotechnology or artificial intelligence ethics, there might be fewer instances of plagiarism initially due to the novelty of the research. However, as these fields grow, the risk of plagiarism can increase.

Fields with Strong Mentorship

Fields with strong mentorship and a focus on developing original research, such as certain arts and humanities programs, may have lower instances of plagiarism because students and researchers are closely guided to develop their own ideas. Still, vigilance is necessary to ensure integrity.

Why is it Important to Avoid Research Plagiarism?

It Promotes Creativity and Originality

Avoiding plagiarism gives you the chance to develop original concepts and solutions. This method stimulates your creative thinking and gives your subject of study new insights.

Original research expands the body of knowledge in the field and fosters innovation. It also gives you the chance to add something special that represents your own wisdom and understanding.

Increases Credibility and Trust

Building trust and credibility involves doing your own work and acknowledging others when you use their ideas. You’ll come across as trustworthy and dependable to instructors, students, and even potential employers.

A reputation for integrity must be built in order to succeed academically and professionally. Any academic or professional community must be built on trust, which can only be sustained by hard work.

Enhances Your Learning

You will gain a far deeper understanding of the subject matter by conducting your own research and writing.

You learn how to locate information, evaluate it, and provide an explanation in your own words rather than just copying what someone else has written. This improves your critical thinking abilities and deepens your understanding.

Real learning doesn’t come from copying the ideas and concepts of others; it comes from wrestling with them yourself.

Prevents Ethical and Legal Problems

Plagiarism is similar to stealing someone else’s work, and it can give rise to moral and legal quandaries. You can avoid trouble and show respect for other people’s intellectual property by abstaining from plagiarism.

Upholding the ideals of the academic and professional communities as well as the integrity of your work depend heavily on your adherence to ethical standards.

Participates in the Exchange of Knowledge

Everyone can learn more when they carry out independent research and appropriately disseminate it.

Original work that is correctly cited broadens the body of knowledge that can be used and expanded upon by others. This method encourages open communication and idea development in a collaborative setting.

It guarantees that credit is awarded appropriately, fostering a moral and courteous academic environment.

How Does Plagiarism Happen?

Plagiarism happens when someone uses someone else’s work or ideas and pretends they are their own. Here are some common ways it can happen:

Copying and Pasting

One of the easiest ways plagiarism happens is by copying and pasting text from a book, article, or website directly into your work without giving credit to the original author.

Using Someone Else’s Ideas

Even if you don’t use the exact words, taking someone else’s ideas or research without saying where you got them from is also plagiarism. You need to mention the source to avoid this.

Not Quoting Properly

Sometimes people use quotes but forget to put them in quotation marks or don’t mention who said or wrote them. This makes it look like the words are their own.

Paraphrasing Without Credit

Paraphrasing means rewording someone else’s ideas in your own words. If you don’t give credit to the original source, it’s still considered plagiarism.

Submitting Someone Else’s Work

Handing in a paper or project that someone else wrote, like a friend or something you bought online, and claiming it as your own work is a serious form of plagiarism.

Forgetting to Cite Sources

Sometimes plagiarism happens by accident when you forget to cite your sources properly. It’s important to always keep track of where your information comes from and cite it correctly.

Plagiarism Cases in Research Field

Dr. Sanjeeb Kumar Sahoo controversy

At the Institute of Life Sciences, an independent institute of the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, in Bhubaneswar, India, Dr. S.K. Sahoo works as a scientist studying nanotechnology and its application to cancer medication delivery.

Serious doubts have been raised regarding the veracity of the information provided in numerous articles that he has written.

A notice that appeared in the Acta Biomaterialia journal in June 2013 states that five research articles written by Dr. S.K. Sahoo have been retracted due to extremely unethical practices, including data manipulation, results falsification, and serial self-plagiarism.

Gopal Kundu’s controversy

When an anonymous email claimed that the authors of a paper published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, H. Rangaswami and colleagues from Dr. Gopal Kundu’s group, had misrepresented data, particularly through Western blots, it caused a stir at the National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune in 2006. They were accused of rehashing a set of data that they had previously published.

Although an independent committee headed by G. Padmanabhan, a former director of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, found no evidence of data manipulation, an internal NCCS committee recommended the authors to withdraw their paper. This sparked a contentious discussion among Indian scientists, with many points of view being expressed.

Amid claims of data manipulation, the Journal of Biological Chemistry withdrew the paper on February 23, 2007. The authors continue to insist that despite having similar experiments, the two papers used different sets of data.

Following an internal ethics committee investigation, the Indian Academy of Sciences barred Gopal Kundu from involvement in the organisation’s operations for a period of three years in November 2010.

K. Muthukumar dispute

In 2007, there was another controversy, this time over writers from the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) and Anna University who published a piece in the Journal of Materials Science.

According to reports, the paper by David Andersson and colleagues at the Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden, was replicated in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) by K. Muthukumar, T. Mathews, S. Selladurai, and R. Bokalawela.

The journal stated that the article “does not just plagiarise the results presented in the PNAS paper, but actually copies most of it word for word” in an online correction. In addition to collaborating with officials at the two institutions, the journal had launched an investigation.

The first author has acknowledged his error, and the other three authors have disassociated themselves from the work.

How to Spot Plagiarism in Research?

1. Unusual Writing Styles

Look for changes in writing style within the same paper. If parts of the text sound different from the rest, it might be copied from another source.

2. Inconsistent Formatting

Inconsistent formatting, like different font sizes or styles, can be a sign of copying and pasting from various sources. Pay attention to these discrepancies.

3. Outdated or Irrelevant Information

If the research contains outdated or irrelevant information that doesn’t fit well with the rest of the paper, it might be copied from an old source.

4. Lack of Citations

A research paper should have citations for all the information taken from other sources. If there are few or no citations, it’s a red flag that the content might be plagiarised.

5. Use of Plagiarism Detection Tools

Use plagiarism detection tools like Bytescare, Turnitin or Grammarly. These tools compare the text with a vast database of sources to identify any matches or similarities.

6. Unexplained High-Level Content

If a student’s work suddenly shows a high level of knowledge or advanced vocabulary that doesn’t match their usual writing, it could indicate plagiarism.

7. Check for Originality

Look for sections that are too similar to well-known sources or that stand out as highly sophisticated compared to the rest of the paper. Verify these sections by searching for them online.

8. Cross-Referencing Sources

Verify the references listed in the bibliography. If the citations don’t match the content or are incorrect, it may indicate that the sources were not actually used.

By being vigilant and using these methods, you can effectively spot plagiarism in research. Ensuring that all work is original and properly cited maintains the integrity of academic and professional work.

How to Avoid Plagiarism in Research Paper?​

• Thoroughly do research of the research topic and build your own knowledge in that particular sphere.
• ​Comprehend what constitutes plagiarism and what is not. This will help you to stay away from the said intellectual theft.
• ​While writing a research paper, don’t copy or modify others work into your paper. Instead, go through the reference material and learn what are the are speaking about. Then articulate their key ideas or facts into your own writing by presenting them in a different way. This could be like using examples, statistics, or any sort of data ( whatever is relevant) to justify the statement or information you used from somewhere.
• ​Bring your own perspective, or knowledge into your paper. This will help you give your own input without relying on others journal / article.
• ​Jot down all the sources (somewhere) from where you took information. Then at the completion of your research paper, cite those sources properly in a citation style suggested by your university.
• ​Use quotation marks wherever you have used others saying.

Why People Plagiarise?

• Due to procrastination, some of them won’t start their work. So when the submission time is near, they stepped into plagiarism and copy others work and present it under their own name.
• ​To score well, some of them commit such intellectual theft of copying.
• ​Some unknowingly plagiarise. For example, due to lack of knowledge of citation method, or don’t know whether to give credit or not.
• ​Some think that any information available on internet can be used without any proper acknowledgement.
• ​Some unable to comprehend their research topic properly due to which they engaged in an act of copying.
• ​Some are unable to understand that self-plagiarism type of theft exist and is not considered ethical.

Cite Your Sources Like a Pro: Avoiding Plagiarism in Research

Imagine you’re working on a history project about the pyramids. You’ve gathered tons of fascinating facts from books, websites, and documentaries. Now it’s time to put it all together, but how do you make sure you’re giving credit where credit is due and avoiding plagiarism?

Here are some tips on how to properly cite sources in your research:

Choose Your Weapon: Citation Styles

There are different citation styles used in different academic fields, like MLA, APA, and Chicago.

These styles have specific formats for listing your sources in a bibliography (like a reference list) and citing them within your research paper. Check with your teacher or professor to see which style they prefer.

Gather Your Arsenal: Note-taking with Care

As you research, keep track of all your sources! Write down the author’s name, title of the book or article, publication date, website URL, and any page numbers you referenced. This will save you time and frustration later when it’s time to create your citations.

In-text Citations: Giving Credit Within Your Writing

Whenever you use someone else’s ideas, facts, or even a specific quote, you need to cite them within your paper using the format your chosen citation style requires. This usually involves including the author’s last name and the year of publication within parentheses after the information you borrowed.

For example: “The pyramids were built as tombs for pharaohs” (Smith, 2024).

The Big Reveal: The Bibliography

At the end of your research paper, you’ll need to create a bibliography that lists all the sources you used. This is like your “Thank You” list for all the information you borrowed. Each entry in the bibliography will be formatted according to your chosen citation style.

Online Citation Generators: Use Them Wisely

There are online citation generators that can help you format your citations. However, these tools aren’t perfect and can sometimes make mistakes. Always double-check the information they provide against your chosen citation style guide.

Remember: Citing your sources properly isn’t just about avoiding plagiarism; it’s about showing respect for the work of others and making your research paper more credible. It shows that you’ve done your research and can back up your claims with evidence. By following these tips, you’ll be a citation pro in no time!

What’s Next?

Plagiarism in research is a serious issue that undermines academic integrity. Examples of plagiarism include copying from a previous paper, misusing common knowledge, and committing source-based plagiarism in academic writing.

Academic dishonesty can also involve copyright infringement and improper literature review practices.

Ensuring originality in sentence structure and correctly citing sources is vital to avoid these pitfalls. To maintain high standards and uphold ethical practices, use Bytescare plagiarism checker tools.

Book a demo today to see how our tools can help you produce plagiarism-free content and protect the integrity of your work.

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