William Davis' paper in Dialogue evaluates Skousen and Carmack's Early Modern English model

[Everybody Wang Chung]

It's troubling that the Interpreter Foundation paid over $500,000 for this project and subsequently a very large percentage of the project's findings have turned out to be incorrect. As far as I know, the book is still for sale without any correction notice or any attempt by the Interpreter Foundation to retract the publication.

What is the ethical thing for the Interpreter Foundation to do in a situation like this? Hopefully, our resident academics can shed some light.


A.I. has this to say:

If an academic author discovers that their published book contains false results, the ethical course of action is to promptly inform the publisher and take steps to correct the record. This typically involves issuing a correction notice or, in cases of serious errors, retracting the publication.
Here's a more detailed breakdown:

1. Notify the Publisher:
The first step is to contact the journal editor or book publisher to inform them of the error.
Provide them with detailed information about the error and its potential impact on the published work.
2. Determine the Appropriate Action:
Correction Notice:

If the error is minor and doesn't fundamentally undermine the main findings, a correction notice (erratum or corrigendum) may be sufficient.
Retraction:

If the error is serious, affects the core findings, or is due to misconduct, a retraction of the publication may be necessary.

3. Transparency and Honesty:
Be transparent about the error and its implications.
Avoid attempting to cover up the mistake or downplaying its significance.
4. Collaboration and Communication:
Work with the publisher to determine the best course of action and to ensure a clear and accurate record is maintained.
Be prepared to collaborate with the publisher on drafting the correction notice or retraction statement.
5. Learning from the Experience:
Use the situation as a learning opportunity to improve future research practices.
Reflect on the reasons for the error and take steps to prevent similar mistakes in future work.
In essence, the ethical responsibility is to be forthcoming about the error, work with the publisher to correct the record, and strive to maintain the integrity of the academic literature.