Knowledge of Scientific Misconduct in Publication among Medical Students in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Background: The recent requirements from the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties encourage medical students to conduct more research to increase their chances of acceptance in residency programs. This may influence the students to focus on publishing with less emphasis on avoiding scientific misconduct. Aim: To assess the knowledge of scientific misconduct in publication among medical students at King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Settings and Design: A questionnaire based cross-sectional study was conducted at the College of Medicine in KSAU-HS, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methods: The 3rd and 4th year male medical students were selected by purposive sampling after their Problem based learning (PBL) sessions. The questionnaire included questions related to publication ethics and scientific misconduct. The SPSS version 22 was used for data analysis and management. Chi-square test was used for comparing the correct response for each question in the questionnaire with the academic year of the students. Results: A total of 117 (3rd year=56, 4th year=61) students participated in the study. There were 87 (74%) students who had heard about the term "publication ethics". Of the participants, 19 (16%) had correct knowledge about fabrication in research and 42 (36%) knew what gift authorship is. Knowledge about the fabrication of data was found to be statistically higher in the 3rd year (25%) vs. 4th year (8%) students, (p=0.01). Conclusion: The study identified areas of deficiencies in knowledge of different aspects of publication ethics among medical students at KSAU-HS. There is a need to raise awareness of publication ethics in research among medical students during their academic years.