Abstract

In 1999 Science and Engineering Ethics published a special issue “Scientific Misconduct” in which James Lubalin and Jennifer Matheson discussed the sequelae of allegations of scientific misconduct [1]. An important finding highlighted in their analysis is that a substantial majority of both those accused but exonerated of scientific misconduct and whistleblowers experienced negative consequences in their personal and professional lives. Professional reputation is critically important to career advancement and personal well-being. This Letter to the Editors discusses blacklisting, an insidious, ethically problematic process which is likely to produce the negative consequences described by Lubalin and Matheson. It is a topic that merits attention by the scientific community—SJB