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Academic English & Research vocabulary · Research Ethics and Integrity

Retraction

Meaning in academic english & research, with examples

/rɪˈtrækʃn/nounCommon term

In academic english & research, retraction means: The formal withdrawal of a published article by a journal because its results are unreliable or because of misconduct or serious error.

In Turkish: geri çekme, yayının geri çekilmesi

How it is used

The article stays online but is marked RETRACTED, with a notice explaining why. Journals usually follow COPE guidelines. Smaller problems are fixed with a correction (an erratum or corrigendum). The Retraction Watch database tracks retracted papers. The verb is retract.

Example sentences

  1. The journal issued a retraction after the authors could not provide the original data.

  2. Always check whether a paper has had a retraction before you cite it.

Common collocations

  • retraction notice
  • issue a retraction
  • retracted article
  • lead to retraction
  • academic integrityThe commitment to honesty, fairness and responsibility in study and research, including citing sources, reporting data truthfully and doing your own work.
  • fabricationInventing data, results or sources and reporting them as if they were real; one of the most serious forms of research misconduct.
  • journalA regular publication containing research articles in a particular field, usually checked by peer review before publication.
  • self-plagiarismReusing your own previously published text, data or ideas in a new work without citing the earlier publication.

More terms: Research Ethics and Integrity

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