Drivers and penalties of retraction: An empirical study of Chinese medical researchers

This study quantitatively analyzes 373 researchers with retracted papers from 20 leading medical institutions in China and examines their characteristics, retraction drivers, and career impacts based on their publication histories. The results show that: (1) young researchers with retractions show weaker academic performance than their non-retracted peers, while senior researchers exhibit higher productivity, influence, and larger collaboration networks; (2) output-driven incentives strongly correlate with misconduct-related retractions, and younger researchers face higher misconduct risks; (3) peer pressure among researchers within the same institute does not significantly influence the institute’s overall retraction frequency; and (4) retractions significantly reduce citations (–41.5%), collaborations, and career mobility, with early career researchers being the most affected. Midcareer researchers suffer primarily from citation decline. (5) Retractions due to scientific error have a greater negative impact on the authors’ subsequent career development. Their annual citation numbers decrease by 61.8%, and the number of co-authors decreases by 23.6%, which are 1.6 times and 1.4 times the decreases in the academic misconduct group, respectively. These findings provide critical insights into current retraction trends.