THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING

Avoiding Self-Deception in Science

Author(s): Terry Ann Krulwich

"On Being a Scientist" has a fine description of self-delusion as a major problem of the scientist. We are always influenced by our working hypothesis or preconceived notions.

• How do we avoid letting those notions influence how rigorously we test them and how we interpret data?
• We generally trust our co-workers, colleagues, collaborators, mentors etc..How do we know when we should question and recheck data that they may have presented as fact?

A student is hard at work on an interesting research project. The professor is going to a meeting, a Gordon conference, in two weeks. She tells the student that she wants a certain set of experiments completed in time for presentation at the conference. The student works night and day and indeed compiles some data. The professor is thrilled because the data seem to support the professor's hypothesis. The student is worried because all the controls have not been done to the student's satisfaction.

• What should the student do? If he argues that the data should not be presented, the professor may insist, get angry or both. What should the student do then?

A student pursues a long series of experiments that was designed together with the professor on a project of mutual interest. The student works for several years without much progress. The professor is still sure that the experiments should work. Perhaps the student is not working hard or well enough. The student is beginning to wonder about the soundness of the original idea.

• What should the student do?

by Terry Ann Krulwich, Dean of Graduate School

Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY

• Return to Problems and Standards in Research Ethics: Scenarios and Situations Common in Medical Schools

• Plagiarism

• What is Cheating?

National Academy of Engineering

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