Retraction of “Construing Collective Concerns: Increasing Cooperation by Broadening Construals in Social Dilemmas”

Abstract

The following article has been retracted by the Editor and publishers of Psychological Science at the request of the lead author, Lawrence J. Sanna:

Sanna, L. J., Chang, E. C., Parks, C. D., & Kennedy, L. A. (2009). Construing collective concerns: Increasing cooperation by broadening construals in social dilemmas. Psychological Science, 20, 1319–1321. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02458.x

In a letter to the Editor (Eric Eich), Dr. Sanna wrote:

The data reported in this article are invalid and should not be considered part of the scientific literature. The responsibility for this problem rests solely with the first author, Lawrence J. Sanna. Coauthors Edward C. Chang, Craig D. Parks, and Lindsay A. Kennedy are in no way responsible for this problem.

In response, the Editor noted that Psychological Science follows the retraction guidelines developed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Dr. Sanna was urged to follow these guidelines carefully in drafting a retraction notice, particularly with respect to stating the reasons for the retraction, to distinguish misconduct from honest error.

To assist Dr. Sanna with this task, the Editor provided Dr. Sanna with a copy of the COPE guidelines (http://publicationethics.org/resources/guidelines) and a link to a retraction notice that was published in Psychological Science last year. This notice was considered a “model” by Retraction Watch, and Dr. Sanna was advised that, in keeping with this notice, he “must specify clearly the reasons for the retraction in such language that all of your coauthors agree to it.”

While awaiting Dr. Sanna’s reply, the Editor sought to contact Dr. Sanna’s three coauthors. Although one coauthor was aware of Dr. Sanna’s request to retract the 2009 Psychological Science article, the other two were not. All of the coauthors have agreed to retraction of the article, and each has received a copy of this notice.

Dr. Sanna replied by noting with regret that “research errors” have made it necessary for him to request retraction. The letter concluded with the following: “At the direction of legal counsel, I am unable to say anything further than that contained in my previous letter at this time.”

Because it is unclear when, if ever, details on these research errors will be forthcoming, the Editor owes it to the journal’s readership to retract the article now, even though this notice does not reflect COPE guidelines or journal policy.