Kalnins A U, Halm K, Castillo M
From the Department of Radiology (A.U.K.), Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, California.
American Journal of Neuroradiology (K.H., M.C.), Oak Brook, Illinois.
AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2015 Jun;36(6):1034-8. doi: 10.3174/ajnr.A4234. Epub 2015 Jan 29.
Self-plagiarism is a form of research misconduct that can dilute the credibility and reputation of a scientific journal, as well as the represented specialty. Journal editors are aware of this problem when reviewing submissions and use on-line plagiarism-analysis programs to facilitate detection. The American Journal of Neuroradiology (AJNR) uses iThenticate to screen several submitted original research manuscripts selected for review per issue and retrospectively assesses 3 issues per year. The prevalence of self-plagiarism in AJNR was compared with that in Radiology; the necessity and cost of more extensive screening in AJNR were evaluated.
The self-duplication rate in AJNR original research articles was compared with that in Radiology, a general imaging journal that screens all submitted original research manuscripts selected for review by using iThenticate. The rate of self-duplication in original research articles from 2 randomly selected 2012 AJNR issues was compared with the rate in the prior year to gauge the need for more extensive screening. A cost analysis of screening all submitted original research manuscripts selected for review by using iThenticate was performed.
Using an empiric 15% single-source duplication threshold, we found that the rate of significant self-plagiarism in original research articles was low for both journals. While AJNR had more articles exceeding this threshold, most instances were insignificant. Analyzing 2 randomly chosen issues of AJNR for single-source duplication of >15% in original research articles yielded no significant differences compared with an entire year. The approximate annual cost of screening all submitted original research manuscripts selected for review was US $6800.00.
While the rate of self-plagiarism was low in AJNR and similar to that in Radiology, its potential cost in negative impact on AJNR and the subspecialty of neuroradiology justifies the costs of broader screening.
自我剽窃是一种研究不端行为，会削弱科学期刊以及所代表专业的可信度和声誉。期刊编辑在审阅投稿时意识到了这个问题，并使用在线剽窃分析程序来协助检测。《美国神经放射学杂志》（AJNR）使用iThenticate筛选每期选定进行审阅的多篇投稿原创研究稿件，并对每年的3期进行回顾性评估。将AJNR中自我剽窃的发生率与《放射学》中的发生率进行比较；评估了AJNR进行更广泛筛选的必要性和成本。
将AJNR原创研究文章中的自我重复率与《放射学》（一本普通影像学杂志，使用iThenticate筛选所有选定进行审阅的投稿原创研究稿件）中的自我重复率进行比较。将2012年随机选取的2期AJNR中原创研究文章的自我重复率与上一年的进行比较，以评估是否需要更广泛的筛选。对使用iThenticate筛选所有选定进行审阅的投稿原创研究稿件进行成本分析。
使用15%的经验性单源重复阈值，我们发现两本期刊原创研究文章中严重自我剽窃的发生率都很低。虽然AJNR有更多文章超过这个阈值，但大多数情况并不严重。分析AJNR随机选取的2期原创研究文章中单源重复率>15%的情况，与一整年相比没有显著差异。筛选所有选定进行审阅的投稿原创研究稿件的大致年度成本为6800.00美元。
虽然AJNR中的自我剽窃率较低且与《放射学》中的相似，但其对AJNR和神经放射学亚专业的潜在负面影响成本证明了更广泛筛选的成本是合理的。
