Professor Stapel on dope. On the beautifying of social psychology

In the article discussed is the scandal concerning a Dutch psychologist Diederik A. Stapel, who systematically committed fraud with research data, and it remained uncovered for many years. Described are ways that he used and which let him become one of the most prolific and recognized social psychologists. Described were some findings and general recommendations for research practice, offered in report prepared by three university committees. The article presents data that suggest that Stapel's conduct was not exceptional, and that most psychologists admit fiddling with their research data in order to improve their publication chances. In the discussion, proposed is relaxation of the existing publication rules so that they do not put the excess pressure that may lead to irregularities. It is emphasized that replications of findings collected by other researchers is the valuable means of control and development of the discipline. peerReviewed publishedVersion