What constitutes "research misconduct"?

"Research misconduct" is defined primarily by actions that undermine the integrity of the research process. The correct choice, which identifies fabrication, falsification, and plagiarism, encapsulates the core violations of ethical research practices.

Fabrication involves making up data or results and recording or reporting them, which directly misrepresents the research findings. Falsification refers to manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing or omitting data to misrepresent the research. Plagiarism is the appropriation of another person's ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit, which not only violates ethical standards but also discredits the originator of the work.

Understanding these definitions is crucial because they highlight deliberate and dishonest actions aimed at misleading others in the academic community. This contrasts with other options, which may refer to difficulties or limitations in the research process but do not reflect the ethical violations that constitute misconduct. For instance, unexpected challenges during data collection, lack of participant engagement, and inaccurate data entry can all occur without any intent to deceive and therefore do not constitute research misconduct in the same way.