I’ve blogged about the role of psychologists in the torture of detainees a number of times. This past week, there have been some stunning developments as complaints have been filed against two psychologists , Col. Larry James (pdf) and Maj. John Leso that could result in them losing their license as psychologists. And now, the American Psychological Association has issued a statement that it supports the investigation of allegations against James Mitchell. The complaint against Mitchell was filed last month in Texas by Jim Cox, PhD. The complaint against Leso was filed by the Center for Justice & Accountability, and the complaint against James was filed by Harvard University’s International Human Rights Clinic.
In the past, state boards declined to open investigations, but in light of new/additional revelations, they might open up cases.
Certainly the APA cannot investigate or take action against someone who is not a member of the APA. But I am left wondering, yet again, what horrors might have been prevented had the APA taken a firmer stand earlier.
Jim Bohlen, a founder of Greenpeace, died this week. Greenpeace tells of his role in their roots, here.
Jim Bohlen, Paul Cote, and Irving Stowe.
From a press release this week from the Office of the United States Attorney, Western District of Wisconsin:
Madison, Wis. – Stephen P. Sinnott, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Elizabeth B. Goodwin, Ph.D., Upton, Mass., pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to fraudulently submitting a grant progress report containing falsified data that misrepresented the progress of genetic research at a University of Wisconsin-Madison lab that Goodwin directed.
Specifically, Goodwin admitted today that she included manipulated data in the progress report an effort to convince reviewers that more scientific progress had been made with her research than was actually the case. Sentencing is scheduled for September 3, 2010, at 1:30 p.m. She faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
Goodwin was an Associate Professor at the UW-Madison Laboratory of Genetics from 2000 until her resignation on February 23, 2006. In her plea agreement, Goodwin admitted that her conduct constituted
“misconduct in science.” Further, Goodwin has agreed to be voluntarily excluded for three years from involvement in federal government research and will pay $50,000 in restitution to the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services.
In the current issue of Scientific American, there’s a book review by Michael Shermer of a new book by David Goodstein, On Fact and Fraud: Cautionary Tales from the Front Lines of Science (Princeton University Press, 2010). Here’s a snippet from what sounds like an interesting read:
Knowing that scientists are highly motivated by status and rewards, that they are no more objective than professionals in other fields, that they can dogmatically defend an idea no less vehemently than ideologues and that they can fall sway to the pull of authority allows us to understand that, in Goodstein’s assessment, “injecting falsehoods into the body of science is rarely, if ever, the purpose of those who perpetrate fraud. They almost always believe that they are injecting a truth into the scientific record.”
The timing of the review unfortunately coincides with an update on another case of scientific fraud, one that may well go down in the books as the scientific fraud of the century and that will hopefully change how institutions and journals review manuscripts and research reports. Lee Howard of The Day reports:
Continue reading 'When Scientists Sin'»
Long-time readers may recall blog entries I wrote here about the media frenzy when Britney Spears was hospitalized and how I was horrified and infuriated that some people who were identified as “media psychologists” would publicly speculate about her mental health or diagnoses. As a health care professional, patient privacy is a serious issue for me.
Last year, this blog and I were sued by Dr. Lillian Glass over those blog entries.
You can read more about the lawsuit on the main site (here) and if you wish to comment on it, you can comment over there.
Despite the misguided litigation, I will continue to blog about issues that I think are of public concern, whether it is conduct that I view as unethical, the media’s failure to critically examine claims made about techniques that are not as scientifically supported as their promoters or marketers might have you believe, or our government’s actions that erode our privacy rights.
Meanwhile, back at the gig: the piano player was taking his solo and was really taking it way out there, or as Hubby would later tell me, “past the property line.”
Hubby was having no trouble keeping track of where they were up to, but the bass player was having difficulty and looked at both men with the confused look that asks, “Where are we?”
The pianist nodded his head slowly, and as he hit a chord, helpfully said, “1.”
“Shit,” mumbled the bass player. “I was on 3.”
“I was on 4,” piped up Hubby, who can never resist an opportunity to make a joke.
“So what does that add up to?” the bassist retorted.
By that point, all three were laughing so hard that they just had to stop cold and start playing all over again.
Thank goodness it wasn’t a quartet…
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