Page 41 - Becoming Metric Wise

30 Becoming Metric-Wise

meet the above criteria for authorship. We think, however, that such
groups are in fact a special case and one should leave decisions on author-
ship to the leaders of such groups instead. Indeed, in such cases member-
ship does not lead to visibility. Some journals demand specific author
contribution statements. In such cases information is required about who
designed, directed, coordinated, provided conceptual guidance, provided
technical guidance, planned, performed experiments, analyzed data, gen-
erated and characterized constructs, contributed, provided essential
reagents, stem cells, tissues or other body parts (e.g., mice brains), com-
mented on the design of experiments, and wrote documentation.
Davenport and Cronin (2001) proposed a three layer division of
authors, depending on their contribution. They made a distinction
between core, middle layer and outer layer tasks. This idea was taken up
by Danell (2014) in an analysis of author contributions published in
Nature Neuroscience (2012 2013). Table 2.2 shows this three-tier contri-
bution taxonomy. Of course, the examples shown in Table 2.2 depend on
the field. These tasks would mean little to a colleague in the formal
sciences, for whom providing a clear and logical chain of thoughts, is a
core task.
Obviously the division between core- and middle-layer tasks in a con-
crete investigation is open for discussion. Core tasks are mainly leadership
tasks performed by principal investigators. This implies that often the
most important intellectual contribution may come from middle layer
authors. Sometimes even collecting data, as in biological field work, may
need the most ingenuity. Although outer layer tasks generally do not
qualify for authorship according to the ICMJE criteria, Danell (2014)

Table 2.2 A three-tier publication contribution taxonomy
Type of contribution Examples of tasks
Core task • Conception and design
• Writing the manuscript
Middle layer tasks • Conducting experiments
• Data analysis
• Interpretation of data
• Project management
Outer layer tasks • Obtaining funding
• Providing samples/data
• Providing technical assistance
• Collecting data