According to U.S. Federal Research Misconduct Policy, fabrication involves what action?

The definition of fabrication in the context of U.S. Federal Research Misconduct Policy clearly identifies it as the act of making up data or results and then recording or reporting them as if they were real and accurate. This violation undermines the integrity of research, as it distorts the actual findings that should guide understanding and further investigation in a given field. It is critical for researchers to provide accurate and honest representations of their work, as any fabricated data can lead to erroneous conclusions and have broader implications for knowledge advancement, policy-making, and public trust in science.

Other options relate to different forms of research misconduct: plagiarism refers to the improper use of someone else's work, failure to include an author can involve ethical breaches concerning credit for contributions, and mismanagement of research funds deals with financial ethics rather than data integrity. Each reflects serious breaches in research conduct, but they don't fall under the definition of fabrication as mandated by the policy.