Strategic Publishing: Plagiarism and duplicate publications

Plagiarism and Duplicate Publications

Public Domain image from Pixabay

Academic research articles for publication must be original and not submitted to multiple publications simultaneously.

• Plagiarism is the act of using someone else's words, ideas, or work without proper credit, presenting it as one’s own. Its consequences include academic penalties, damaged reputation, article retraction, and legal action in severe cases.
• Duplicate submission or publication is the reuse of one’s own published work without proper disclosure. It can occur in various forms, such as literal duplication, partial duplication, or paraphrased duplication based on the same research.

Some journals strictly prohibit multiple papers from the same research, while others may allow it under specific conditions. Identifying duplicate content can be straightforward for identical texts but challenging when an author writes about their own research from different perspectives. After submission, journal editors will carefully compare relevant texts and ensure ethical publication practices are followed.

How to Avoid Duplicate Publication and Plagiarism?

• Submit to only one journal at a time and disclose any prior publications.
• Ensure each paper is unique if publishing multiple articles from the same research.
• Avoid self-plagiarism by properly citing previous work and not reusing large sections.
• Follow journal policies on prior publication and translations.
• Use plagiarism detection tools to check for unintentional duplication.

Check the University of Otago's Academic Integrity guidelines for more suggestions and resources regarding plagiarism and how to avoid it.