What most accurately describes the practice of ghost authorship?

The practice of ghost authorship is best described as a situation where the individual who actually wrote the manuscript is not listed as an author. This definition captures the essence of ghost authorship, which involves the ethical violation of not giving credit to the person who contributes significantly to the writing process. In academic publishing, transparency and proper attribution are crucial, and ghost authorship undermines both the integrity of the research and the recognition due to the writer.

The other options refer to different ethical issues related to authorship. Listing authors who did not contribute significantly relates more to honorary authorship, while posthumous authorship involves granting authorship to someone who has passed away, which is a separate matter. Financial support provided by authors does not equate to authorship, as authorship typically requires significant intellectual contribution rather than just funding. Therefore, option A captures the specific concern surrounding ghost authorship in scholarly communication.