The issues of credit and accountability in scientific authorship are crucial not only for individual careers and research institutions but also for the integrity of the scientific community as a whole. An article published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) argues that those who claim authorship must also assume accountability for the research. The authors assert that the foundation of responsible authorship rests on three principles: transparency, credit, and accountability.
To uphold the integrity of scientific publications, a multidisciplinary team comprising scholars, scientists, and journal editors has proposed a set of authorship recommendations. The article stresses that “a responsible authorship culture requires a principle-based reflection by research teams on what it means to be an author, supported by research institutions.” The three interconnected principles—transparency, credit, and accountability—are intended to guide this reflection.
This research is a product of a committee from the Strategic Council of the National Academy of Sciences, led by Véronique Kiermer, chief scientific officer of PLOS (Public Library of Science). The co-authors include notable figures such as Magdalena Skipper, editor-in-chief of Nature; Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and JAMA Network; Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania; and Sofie Adams, a program coordinator at the APPC who conducted research on authorship guidelines across nearly 150 top-tier U.S. research universities.
A 2024 review conducted by the researchers revealed that while nearly all top-tier research institutions have authorship guidelines, only 42% explicitly link authorship credit to accountability. Furthermore, an examination of various journal authorship guidelines indicated significant variability in their formulations.
The article provides several recommendations aimed at fostering responsible authorship:
- Authorship decisions should be anchored in the principles of transparency, credit, and accountability.
- A fair and structured process for discussions on authorship, including author order, should be established.
- Descriptions of contributions must be transparent.
These principles are designed to tackle prevalent issues in authorship conflicts, including harmful practices such as gift or honourific authorship, ghost authorship, and coercive authorship, as identified in a 2017 report by the National Academies. The authors also highlight that traditional criteria for authorship have not kept pace with the evolving landscape of research practices. “The way research is conducted is always evolving, and authorship habits need to evolve accordingly,” Kiermer noted. “Only a principle-based approach can stand the test of time.”
Contemporary research often involves large, multidisciplinary teams, where it is not feasible for every author to be accountable for all aspects of the work. Despite this, the article asserts that “all authors who deserve credit must remain accountable for their own contributions,” emphasising that some authors must take responsibility for ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the work.
The authors urge all stakeholders in science—including research institutions, journals, and scholarly societies—to collaborate in fostering a “responsible authorship culture,” which is deemed essential for a responsible research enterprise.
The paper titled “Creating a responsible authorship culture in science: Anchoring authorship practices in principles of transparency, credit, and accountability” was published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on March 11, 2026. It was authored by a diverse working group including researchers at different career stages and representatives from various institutions. Alongside the previously mentioned authors, the group included Yensi Flores Bueso (University College Cork, Ireland, and University of Washington), Joerg Heber (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory), Mohammad Hosseini (Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine), Ana Marušić (University of Split School of Medicine, Croatia), Beau Nielsen (National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Strategic Council for Research Excellence, Integrity, and Trust), Geeta K. Swamy (Duke University), and Susan M. Wolf (University of Minnesota).
While the paper reflects the views of the working group, it is important to note that it does not constitute an official publication of the National Academies or the Strategic Council. The Annenberg Public Policy Center, established in 1993, aims to educate the public and policymakers about the role of communication in advancing understanding of political, scientific, and health issues at various levels.