Fake Science

There are many reasons why Fake Science emerges in academia. Some researchers or institutions may be tempted to manipulate data in order to improve research results, secure funding, or gain career advantages. Others may pursue political or economic interests by deliberately spreading false information to support certain agendas. In many disciplines, there is also enormous pressure to publish at all stages of a scientific career. This pressure can tempt scientists to manipulate research results or publish without a quality control process.

The impact of Fake Science occurs on various levels. It convinces us primarily because it closely resembles real science on the surface. Manipulated or selectively chosen research results are often difficult to recognize as such. Fake Science also subtly exploits social biases, which in turn affect us as individuals and have a decisive influence on our understanding of information:

• Confirmation bias: People tend to believe information that confirms their existing beliefs or worldviews.
• Authority bias: Information that comes from seemingly reputable or authoritative individuals (e.g., supposed experts from the scientific community) is more likely to be believed.

Scientific deception has many forms. On the one hand, there is classic fraud. Manipulated or fabricated data is used to falsify study results and reinterpret them until the hypothesis appears to be proven. On the other hand, scientific work itself offers many points and moments where scientific results can be influenced even without falsifying data:

• P-hacking: A study is tested until a significant result emerges.
• HARKing (Hypothesizing After Results are Known): In a study, the hypotheses are retrospectively adjusted to the results obtained.

The pressure to achieve positive results is often greater than one's own scientific integrity, which in turn has an effect on what is known as publication bias. Positive and, above all, particularly innovative results are published, while negative results or failed projects are not made public.

In the shadow of well-known scientific scandals, a market for fake studies, manipulated peer reviews, and sold authorships has developed in recent years. Thousands of fictitious scientific publications are produced annually in so-called paper mills, some of which also appear in the journals of major scientific publishers.

Paper mills invent or plagiarize texts, data, and results and then place the articles in their own predatory journals or in established journals. The business model is based, among other things, on the sale of co-authorship. In addition, citations are promoted by having fake publications cite each other.

A central component of commercial scientific fraud is the manipulation of the peer review process, for example through fake reviews or reviewers suggested from within the paper mill's network.

Fake Science spreads in academia not only through individual falsifications, but also through a combination of publication pressure, inadequate quality control, and deliberate manipulation of scientific processes.

One key channel for its spread is unreliable or manipulated publication processes. In so-called “predatory journals,” the publication of articles is rarely or never reviewed. Some scientists publish in such journals inadvertently. Others consciously decide to publish their articles there, for example, to quickly increase the number of their publications, to circumvent the lengthy peer review process, or because they fear that their article would not pass the quality review of a reputable journal.

In addition, problematic or incorrect results are often cited further and included in review articles. This allows them to become established in the specialist literature, even if the underlying study is later retracted or criticized. Media coverage also reinforces this effect: individual publications are presented in a simplified form and quickly reach a wide audience via press releases and social media. Another problem is the unconscious dissemination of misinformation. Students or researchers may unknowingly pass on incorrect data or interpretations because they have not checked them sufficiently.

Fake Science has far-reaching consequences for science, society, and politics. When falsified or heavily distorted research results are published, they can disrupt scientific knowledge processes, as other researchers build on false foundations or have to invest resources in verification and refutation. This leads to wasted time, financial losses, and a distortion of scientific debates. As a result, Fake Science influences social and political decision-making processes. The risks range from ineffective or harmful applications to long-term mismanagement in research and healthcare.

The reputation of scientific institutions also suffers. When manipulations become known or the number of retracted research results increases, trust in scientific institutions and research results dwindles, which in the long term jeopardizes the credibility of science as a whole. This in turn promotes disinformation and the political exploitation of scientific uncertainty. Fake Science also affects the funding opportunities of the entire scientific system: a society that generally tends to distrust science will also support it less and less.

To recognize Fake Science, it is important to critically question and carefully research. Here are some steps that can help:

1. Source verification: Check the source of the information. Was the book or article published by a reputable publisher or journal? Does it have an ISBN or another identifier? Does an imprint exist?
2. Author research: Who wrote the article or study? Are there indications of the author's expertise and credibility?
3. Layout and design: Is the website or source professionally designed? Are there spelling or grammatical errors that may indicate a lack of professionalism?
4. Networking: What links are found on the website? Do they lead to trustworthy sources or are they questionable?
5. Timeliness: How up-to-date is the information? Was the article or study recently published, or is it based on outdated data?
6. Content verification: Are the facts, data, or numbers correct? Are the data published? Can they be verified by other sources? Have the research results been cited by other scientists?

If you’re unsure about a source, the subject librarians at the University Library can also be a valuable resource in identifying Fake Science.

There are several ways to combat Fake Science:

1. Critical review: Before passing on information, check that it is accurate. Use trustworthy sources and research thoroughly.
2. Education and awareness: Participate in workshops or training courses that focus on how to deal with sources and recognize fake science. The Mannheim University Library offers regular workshops on the topic. Share your knowledge of fake science with your scientific communities and raise awareness of its dangers and forms.
3. Reporting fake science: If you come across fake science on social media platforms, journals, or in scientific networks, report it to the operators or publishers.
4. Peer review: Before anything is published, it should undergo a peer review process. This is a form of evaluation of articles submitted to a journal, whereby their content and quality are checked and assessed before they are published. Most scientific journals indicate whether the submitted article has undergone such a process.
5. Open Science: Implement open science practices in your everyday research and take advantage of the extensive support options offered by the Open Science Office at the University of Mannheim and the Research Data Center at the University Library.
6. Research and projects: Support projects that deal with combating fake science. One example is the “Retraction Watch” project, which collects data on retracted scientific publications and addresses the issue of scientific integrity. Another project is “Fake-ID”, which deals with fake images and aims to detect them with the help of artificial intelligence.