Is Academic Editing Ethical?
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When I first began editing academic manuscripts in the late 1970s, the field of academic editing was relatively new. In fact, many people questioned the ethics of assisting graduate candidates with their dissertations, reasoning that if a student could not write without assistance, perhaps that student did not deserve the degree and the distinction of doctor.
There are a few issues to consider:
Most students are guided in the preparation of their dissertations, both with respect to the content and the writing. This task has historically been provided by the dissertation chair. Yet, if a student is, for instance, a nonnative speaker, this can be quite burdensome and time consuming for the chair.
Students who contend with learning disabilities (LDs) often need extra help, and in my experience, these students work much harder and put significantly more time and effort into their studies than their non-LD cohorts. The accommodations now offered for LD students are evidence of a marked change in attitude with respect to who warrants the acquisition of a college or postsecondary degree. From my own experience working with these students, I welcome this change as they so often have a tremendous amount of talent – and often extra heart and commitment to making this a better world.
Finally – perhaps most importantly – reverence for the written word and the ability to write well have become increasingly devalued in our society. Typographical errors are pervasive. For example, while waiting for my doctor, I noticed an announcement for a workshop that read in part: “the negative affects of overeating.” Yikes! Sadly, my own students couldn’t identify the problem: that affect is most often a verb; effect is the noun, so it should have read “negative effects of overeating.”
Even worse, I recently walked through the campus of Georgetown University School of Medicine and noticed a sign that read: “park at owners risk.” (We’re talking basic grammar here, folks: Rule 1 in The Elements of Style reads, “Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding ’s” (p. 1). So, this sign should read: “park at owner’s risk.”
Thus, my own small contribution to making this a better world is to elevate respect for the art of writing. If a photographic image provides a snapshot of one’s physical well-being, then consider that one’s writing provides a snapshot of one’s cognitive and conceptual abilities. That is, a well-written essay reflects the ability to think well just as one’s speech reflects the care and skill with which one articulates one’s thoughts.