We have been contacted by an author of a published article who has requested to be removed from the author list. The author is third in the author list and is neither a lead author nor a corresponding author. The CRediT statement for the article reports that the author’s contribution to the work included investigation, validation, formal analysis and data curation.
The author says that they have made this request because they no longer want to be associated with the research for reasons of religious belief. They further state that, because they now consider a lot of applications of knowledge in their field to be sinful, they do not want their name to be associated with activities that they no longer agree with, and they do not want to be recognised as someone who is involved in such research.
The author has not called into question the accuracy of the data in the article and has not made any allegation of fraud or misconduct. We have not received any indication from the other authors of the article that they are aware of this request. In the opinion of the journal, the content of the article is not directly connected to an area of research that is generally considered ethically controversial.
We have serious concerns that, although they might now feel unable to support the work, removing the author from the author list means that they will no longer be accountable for their contribution to the research. We request the advice of COPE on whether the reasons given by the author for removal from the author list are acceptable.
Question for the Forum
- Do the reasons given by the author justify removing them from the author list (if all other authors agree to this action)?
- If so, should the resulting correction notice name the author being removed, or is it acceptable to remove the author’s name from the article and publish a correction that notifies readers of the change in an anonymous manner?
- If it is appropriate to fulfil the author’s request, we think it would be best for the author to initiate the process of contacting the other authors to obtain their agreement. Would this be the best way to proceed?
The Forum agreed with the presenter of the case that accountability for the article is the most important consideration. Since there is nothing wrong with the article itself the author must retain their affiliation with it. While a ‘silent correction’ is possible where an author has requested a name change, that does not apply in the current case since the author is asking for their name to be removed altogether. Publishing a correction notice might actually draw further attention to the author’s association with the article; a point which could be made to the author.
The journal should, however, consider whether the author is in any personal danger because of their connection with the research. If that were the case then it might be possible to remove their name, but their contribution would still need to be acknowledged in anonymous form. It is not possible to remove an author entirely from their responsibility for the article’s content.
On question 3, the COPE flowchart on removing authors after publication indicates that it should be the editor who contacts the other authors to verify any changes to authorship, but without entering into an author dispute.