Corruption and Irregularities in Academic Activities and Abnormal Academic Ethos

CORRUPTION AND IRREGULARITIES IN ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES AND ABNORMAL ACADEMIC ETHOS

Ge Jianxiong

In recent years, academic corruption has become more and more seri- ous in China, while academic irregularities and an abnormal academic ethos have also gone rampant on an unprecedented scale. According to a survey regarding the situation of scientific and technical workers across the country published by the China Society and Technology Association in July 2007, almost half of scientific and technical workers deemed academic irregularities as a universal phenomenon, and more than half of them stated clearly that this behavior was common among the researchers around them.1 In February 2009, a thesis fraud scandal involving He Haibo, a post-doctoral student from the College of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Zhejiang University, was exposed by the media. A series of academic papers published in international leading academic journals were recalled after He, the first author of such papers, was found to have been involved in improper practices, such as fabricating data and sending papers to different journals for publication. Other authors included key members of He’s research group and Li Lianda, a mem- ber of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and the dean of the university’s College of Pharmaceutical Sciences.2 In mid-June, What is “theory”, an article published in a well-known national journal of philosophy and co-authored by Lu Rongjie, the vice president of Lia- oning University and Yang Lun, a doctoral student at Beijing Normal University, was proved to be an 80% copy of lecture material prepared by Wang Lingyun, a lecturer at Yunnan University.3 At the end of June, it was reported that seven postgraduate students with scholarship

1 Sun Zifa, “The 2nd Survey Report on the Situation of National Scientiﬁc and Technical Workers,” China News Net, July 10, 2007. 2 Zhang You, “Academician Involved in Fraud Scandal,” 21st Century Economic Report, February 3, 2009. 3 Shi Jianfeng, “Vice President of Liaoning University Involved in Thesis Fraud,” Oriental Morning Post, June 15, 2009. 246 ge jianxiong honors from the Law School of Shanghai University published numer- ous papers in several national core academic journals through brib- ery.4 In July, Huang Qing, the vice president and doctoral tutor of Southwest Jiaotong University, was found to have committed copying and excessive reliance on other papers in his two papers published in 2000 and 2005.5 At the beginning of August 2009, a conference thesis co-authored by the president of Wuhan University of Technology, academician candidate Zhou Zude, and his doctoral student Xie Ming was proved to be a work of plagiarism.6 In mid-August, a 70-year old renowned doctoral tutor from the China Conservatory confessed to the school that he had sexual relations with a female student who was preparing for the doctoral exam and received a bribe of 100,000 yuan to help her succeed.7 In December, the international academic journal Acta Crystallographica issued an announcement claiming that at least 70 crystal structure reports published in its Sections C and E contained fabricated data, with the authors of these papers all com- ing from China’s Jinggangshan University. From 2006 to 2008, they published a series of papers just by changing one set of raw data.8

I. Main Manifestations of Academic Corruption, Academic Irregularities, and Abnormal Academic Ethos

Academic corruption refers to obtaining academic results, academic reputation, academic status and other academic interests for oneself or others through illegal or improper ways by using power, money or other material or psychological interests. Academic irregularities refer to violating academic ethics and academic norms deliberately, practicing plagiarism and fraud in academic activities, and perform- ing one’s duties in a perfunctory manner when doing academic

4 Lin Tianhong and Li Jing, “7000 RMB ‘page fee’ for 1500 RMB Scholarship, Why,” China Youth Daily, June 24, 2009. 5 Yin Yusheng, “New Development on the Investigation of Plagiarism,” Chengdu Business Times, July 15, 2009. 6 Zhang Guo, “President of Wuhan University of Technology Involved in Thesis Plagiarism,” China Youth Daily, August 4, 2009. 7 Tian Beibei, Geng Xiaoyong, and Zhang Ning, “Old Doctoral Supervisor ‘Hid- den Rule’ Girl Student,” New Beijing Journal, August 15, 2009. 8 Mei Jin, “International Journal Repeals 70 Theses by Chinese Scientists,” Science Net, December 25, 2009.