J Korean Med Sci.  2023 Aug;38(31):e240. 10.3346/jkms.2023.38.e240.

The Acceptable Text Similarity Level in Manuscripts Submitted to Scientific Journals

• Habibzadeh F

• KMID: 2544959
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2023.38.e240

Abstract

Plagiarism is among commonly identified scientific misconducts in submitted manuscripts. Some journals routinely check the level of text similarity in the submitted manuscripts at the time of submission and reject the submission on the fly if the text similarity score exceeds a set cut-off value (e.g., 20%). Herein, I present a manuscript with 32% text similarity, yet without any instances of text plagiarism. This underlines the fact that text similarity is not necessarily tantamount to text plagiarism. Every instance of text similarity should be examined with scrutiny by a trained person in the editorial office. A high text similarity score does not always imply plagiarism; a low score, on the other hand, does not guarantee absence of plagiarism. There is no cut-off for text similarity to imply text plagiarism.

Keyword

Plagiarism; Verbatim; Journalism; Text Similarity; Publication Ethics; Scientific Writing

Reference

1. US Office of Research Integrity. ORI policy on plagiarism. Accessed May 30, 2023. https://ori.hhs.gov/ori-policy-plagiarism .

2. Vessal K, Habibzadeh F. Rules of the game of scientific writing: fair play and plagiarism. Lancet. 2007; 369(9562):641.

3. Habibzadeh F. Plagiarism: What does the future hold for science writing? Eur Sci Ed. 2014; 40(4):91–93.

4. Gupta L, Tariq J, Yessirkepov M, Zimba O, Misra DP, Agarwal V, et al. Plagiarism in non-Anglophone countries: a cross-sectional survey of researchers and journal editors. J Korean Med Sci. 2021; 36(39):e247. PMID: 34636502.

5. Memon AR. Similarity and plagiarism in scholarly journal submissions: bringing clarity to the concept for authors, reviewers and editors. J Korean Med Sci. 2020; 35(27):e217. PMID: 32657084.

6. Memon AR, Mavrinac M. Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of plagiarism as reported by participants completing the authorAID MOOC on research writing. Sci Eng Ethics. 2020; 26(2):1067–1088. PMID: 32067186.

7. Mahian O, Treutwein M, Estellé P, Wongwises S, Wen D, Lorenzini G, et al. Measurement of similarity in academic contexts. Publications. 2017; 5(3):18.

8. Peh WC, Arokiasamy J. Plagiarism: a joint statement from the Singapore Medical Journal and the Medical Journal of Malaysia. Med J Malaysia. 2008; 63(5):354–355. PMID: 19803289.

9. Sollaci LB, Pereira MG. The introduction, methods, results, and discussion (IMRAD) structure: a fifty-year survey. J Med Libr Assoc. 2004; 92(3):364–367. PMID: 15243643.

10. Habibzadeh P, Moghadami M, Lankarani KB. The effect of potential therapeutic agents on QT interval in patients with COVID-19 Infection: The importance of close monitoring and correction of electrolytes. Med Hypotheses. 2020; 143:109847. PMID: 32460209.

11. Habibzadeh P, Sajadi MM, Emami A, Karimi MH, Yadollahie M, Kucheki M, et al. Rate of re-positive RT-PCR test among patients recovered from COVID-19. Biochem Med (Zagreb). 2020; 30(3):030401. PMID: 32774117.

12. Manley S. The use of text-matching software’s similarity scores. Account Res. 2023; 30(4):219–245. PMID: 34569370.

13. Li Y. Text-based plagiarism in scientific publishing: issues, developments and education. Sci Eng Ethics. 2013; 19(3):1241–1254. PMID: 22535578.

14. Shashok K. Plagiarism: Intention and diagnostic criteria. Saudi J Anaesth. 2012; 6(2):188. PMID: 22754453.

15. Zielinski C, Winker MA, Aggarwal R, Ferris LE, Heinemann M, Lapeña JF, et al. Chatbots, Generative AI, and Scholarly Manuscripts. WAME Recommendations on Chatbots and Generative Artificial Intelligence in Relation to Scholarly Publications. Updated 2023. Accessed June 2, 2023. https://wame.org/page3.php?id=106 .

16. Salvagno M, Taccone FS, Gerli AG. Can artificial intelligence help for scientific writing? Crit Care. 2023; 27(1):75. PMID: 36841840.

17. Sallam M. ChatGPT utility in healthcare education, research, and practice: systematic review on the promising perspectives and valid concerns. Healthcare (Basel). 2023; 11(6):887. PMID: 36981544.

18. International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals. Updated 2023. Accessed June 12, 2023. https://www.icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf .

19. Doskaliuk B, Zimba O. Beyond the keyboard: academic writing in the era of ChatGPT. J Korean Med Sci. 2023; 38(26):e207. PMID: 37401498.

20. Heumann M, Kraschewski T, Breitner MH. ChatGPT and GPTZero in research and social media: a sentiment-and topic-based analysis. Updated 2023. Accessed June 12, 2023. https://ssrn.com/abstract=4467646 .

21. Habibzadeh F. The future of scientific journals: the rise of UniAI. Learn Publ. 2023; 36(2):326–330.