A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF RETRACTED ARTICLES IN NIGERIA AND SOUTH AFRICA BETWEEN 2016-2020

Retraction of public domain articles to self-correct research is expedient to remedy misleading and false findings in the scientific community. This paper, therefore, examined the trends and prevalence of article retraction in Nigeria and South Africa. The comparative cross-sectional survey used www.retractiondatabase.org to sample 51 retracted articles from Nigeria (20) and South Africa (31) between 2016 and 2020. Data was analysed at univariate and bivariate levels. Findings revealed that while Elsevier retracted more articles from South Africa, Taylor and Francis had the most retracted publications from Nigeria. Medical scientists were more likely than authors from other fields to have their publications withdrawn. While errors and concerns about methods and analysis were the primary reasons for the retraction of articles from South Africa, plagiarism was the primary reason for retractions from Nigeria. It is, therefore, imperative that manuscripts be allowed to pass integrity tests before being published.