Abstract
Ghostwriting has been reported as a particular problem in China, and this article aimed to discover the extent of ghostwriting activity and attitudes by surveying Chinese authors and editors. Three questionnaires were created and distributed via WeChat: an author questionnaire for healthcare professionals, an editor questionnaire for medical journal editors, and a questionnaire for ghostwriters. A total of 1,073 healthcare professionals, 78 medical editors, and 23 ghostwriters responded; 33 (3.075%, 95% confidence interval: 2.041–4.110%) authors reported hiring ghostwriters, most of whom were clinicians (5.06%) or nurses (7.86%) and were in the 31–50 years old group. There was a negative correlation with the level of education. Editors reported few papers identified as ghostwritten, and most of them would immediately reject such articles. The majority of ghostwriters reported working part time as a ghostwriter for less than 1 year and earning little money from the work. The majority of respondents recognized ghostwriting as unethical, but only on the edge of law and ethics, and with few repercussions for the authors.
Published Version
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