Findings of Research Misconduct, 61361-61362 [2011-25537]

Agencies

• Office of the Secretary
• DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 192 (Tuesday, October 4, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61361-61362]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-25537]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Office of the Secretary


Findings of Research Misconduct

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Office of Research Integrity 
(ORI) has taken final action in the following case:
    Scott Weber, Ed.D., MSN, University of Pittsburgh: Based on the 
letters from the Research Integrity Officer at the University of 
Pittsburgh (UP), ORI's oversight review, and an admission by the 
Respondent, ORI found that Dr. Scott Weber, former Assistant Professor, 
Health and Community Systems, School of Nursing, UP, engaged in 
research misconduct by (1) plagiarizing text and falsifying data from 
two publications supported by U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) funding 
(P30 MH60570; HS5 SM52671; PHS employee generated article) in two 
unpublished manuscripts, and (2) including significant portions of that 
plagiarized text in two grant applications to the National Institutes 
of Health (NIH) (1 L30 NR010444-01; 1 R03 HD062761-01).
    ORI found that the Respondent engaged in research misconduct by 
plagiarizing text, falsifying data and references, and fabricating data 
from two publications (Mufson, L., Dorta, K.P., Wickramaratne, P., 
Nomura, Y., Olfson, M., Weissman, M.M. ``A randomized effectiveness 
trial of interpersonal psychotherapy for depressed adolescents.'' Arch 
Gen Psychiatry 61(6):577-84, 2004 June; hereafter referred to as 
``Mufson et al. 2004;'' and Cho, M.J., Mo[sacute]cicki, E.K., Narrow, 
W.E., Rae, D.S., Locke, B.Z., Regier, D.A. ``Concordance between two 
measures of depression in the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination 
Survey.'' Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 28(4):156-63, 1993 
August; hereafter referred to as ``Cho et al., 1993'') supported by PHS 
in two journal article submissions. Specifically, ORI found that the 
Respondent plagiarized more than 90 percent of the text from Mufson et 
al. 2004 in a manuscript entitled ``A randomized effectiveness trial of 
psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner-administered interpersonal 
psychotherapy for sexual minority adolescents with depression in 
primary care clinics'' and submitted to the Journal of the American 
Academy of Nurse Practitioners (JAANP MS). Furthermore, the Respondent 
plagiarized approximately 66 percent of the text from Cho et al. 1993 
in a manuscript entitled ``Assessing the diagnostic predictive power of 
a screening tool for depression: Concordance between the CES-D and DIS 
in the Parent Identity Survey'' and submitted to the Journal of GLBT 
Family Studies (JGMS MS).
    In both manuscripts, the Respondent falsified and fabricated tables 
and figures by using all or nearly all of the data in tables and graphs 
from the plagiarized articles while altering numbers and changing text 
to represent data as if from another subject population; he also copied 
most of the original bibliographic references but

[[Page 61362]]

falsified 35% of the copied references from JAANP MS and 25% of the 
copied references from JGMS MS, by changing volume numbers and/or 
publication years, apparently to hinder detection of the plagiarism. 
The data fabrication occurred when the Respondent altered or added 
values to Table 2 in each manuscript describing the demographic 
characteristics of the study population that was never studied.
    ORI also finds that the Respondent engaged in research misconduct 
by plagiarizing text from Cho et al. 1993 in two NIH grant applications 
(1 L30 NR010444-01 and 1 R03 HD062761-01) by copying substantial word-
for-word portions of the text describing the test instrument to be used 
in the proposed study without citing the Cho et al. 1993 paper.
    Dr. Weber has voluntarily agreed for a period of three (3) years, 
beginning on September 7, 2011:
    (1) To exclude himself from any contracting or subcontracting with 
any agency of the United States Government and from eligibility or 
involvement in nonprocurement programs of the United States Government 
referred to as ``covered transactions'' pursuant to HHS' Implementation 
(2 CFR part 376 et seq.) of OMB Guidelines to Agencies on 
Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension, 2 CFR part 180 (collectively 
the ``Debarment Regulations''); and
    (2) to exclude himself from serving in any advisory capacity to PHS 
including, but not limited to, service on any PHS advisory committee, 
board, and/or peer review committee, or as a consultant.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Director, Division of Investigative 
Oversight, Office of Research Integrity, 1101 Wootton Parkway, Suite 
750, Rockville, MD 20852, (240) 453-8800.

John Dahlberg, Ph.D.,
Director, Division of Investigative Oversight, Office of Research 
Integrity.
[FR Doc. 2011-25537 Filed 10-3-11; 8:45 am]
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