Recently, I covered the case of Francesca Gino, a researcher specializing in dishonesty, who faced allegations of systematic data manipulation in several papers she co-authored. Harvard Business School placed her on administrative leave after these allegations surfaced, with some instances of data manipulation appearing quite overt. Upon examining Microsoft Excel version control, discrepancies in the data raised suspicions. Rows in a data spreadsheet seemed tampered with, altering the data’s trajectory to fit desired results.
Researchers Joe Simmons, Leif Nelson, and Uri Simonsohn addressed the issue by publishing four blog posts on their platform Data Colada, meticulously outlining instances of potential data manipulation in the papers. They also privately reported their findings to Harvard in 2021, resulting in an internal investigation that led to Gino’s administrative leave and the retraction of the implicated papers.
Gino has taken legal action against the trio of researchers who highlighted the alleged data manipulation in their blog posts, seeking damages of “not less than $25 million.” In addition to suing the researchers, Gino is also pursuing legal action against Harvard. She argues that the accusations of fraud have significantly damaged her professional reputation and cost her substantial income. (Harvard Business School professors often earn from speaking engagements and book deals.) Despite reaching out to Gino for comment, no response was received before the publication deadline.
Gino’s lawsuit contends that the researchers failed to consider alternative explanations for the data anomalies they identified. She also criticizes Harvard’s investigation for being “unfair and biased,” and deems the resultant punishment excessive compared to penalties imposed on male professors when credible accusations of research misconduct were made.While Harvard, being a wealthy institution with an endowment exceeding $50 billion, possesses ample resources for defense, Gino’s lawsuit targets not only the university but also the individual researchers—Simmons, Nelson, and Simonsohn—who are academics without billionaire status. For them, defending themselves against a defamation lawsuit poses a significant burden.However, the likelihood of Gino successfully securing millions from the researchers in a trial scenario is quite slim.”