Research Integrity Workshop, Supervision Enhancement, Oct 2015

A GUIDE FOR HDR SUPERVISORSResearch Integrity

Dr Ben PitcherResearch Integrity [email protected]

Today’s session

2RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY I RESEARCH OFFICE

• An introduction to the Research Integrity Office

• A quick look at policy and guidelines• Some examples of cases involving HDR

candidates and supervisors• Discussion of your experiences with

research integrity

What would you do?


• Michael is supervising a candidate who is conducting research abroad.

• The candidate is not a native English speaker and has needed extensive assistance with writing in the past.

• The candidate is sending results and draft chapters back to Michael.

• Michael notices that the standard of writing has improved dramatically.

• What should Michael do?

The Research Integrity Team

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RESEARCH INTEGRITY OFFICE (BEN PITCHER & MARGAUX LE GUAY):[email protected] 1031

DIRECTOR, RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY (KANDY WHITE):[email protected] 7854

PROF LESLEY HUGHES, PRO-VICE CHANCELLOR (RESEARCH INTEGRITY AND DEVELOPMENT)

WEB:WWW.RESEARCH.MQ.EDU.AU/RESEARCH_INTEGRITYRESEARCH OFFICE I RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY

mailto:[email protected]


http://www.research.mq.edu.au/research_integrity

What do we do?

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EDUCATION:• For all research staff and students• Web-based content• Face-to-face sessions• Supervisor training

INVESTIGATION:• Preliminary investigation of allegations• Coordinate further investigation• Report to the DVCR

The Research Integrity Team

RESEARCH OFFICE I RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY

The policy framework

The Australian Code

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FOR THE RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH

• Endorsed by NHMRC, ARC and Universities Australia in 2007

• Why is it important? Promote research integrity Describes best practice in

research for researchers and institutions

Compliance is a requisite for NHMRC and ARC funding


The Macquarie Code

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Available on Policy Centralhttp://mq.edu.au/policy/category.html#research

MAIN TOPICS ADDRESSED:• General principles of responsible research• Management of research data and primary materials• Supervision of research trainees• Publication and dissemination of research findings• Authorship• Peer Review• Conflicts of Interest• Collaborative research across institutions

FOR THE RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH


http://mq.edu.au/policy/category.html#research



Research Misconduct

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BREACHES:Unintentional failures to comply with principles or specific policies

RESEARCH MISCONDUCT:Breaches of principles or policies that are intentional, reckless or grossly & persistently negligent, e.g.• Fabrication or falsification of data or results• Plagiarism• Failure to manage risks to humans, animals or environment

or obtain & maintain appropriate ethical approval• Misleading ascription of authorship• Non-disclosure of conflicts of interest

AND BREACHES OF THE CODE


Research Integrity


THE MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY CODE FOR THE RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH• Sets out the standards expected of our researchers• http://mq.edu.au/policy/category.html#research

• DOES NOT differentiate between HDR candidates and staff

HDR CANDIDATES

The Changing PhD, Discussion Paper, March 2013, The Group of Eight

HDR Candidates as Researchers


DO THE PRIORITIES OF CANDIDATES AND THE UNIVERSITY MESH?• The value of HDR research vs training

WHAT COULD GO WRONG?• Plagiarism• Fabrication / falsification• Compliance with legislation / policy• Contract cheating…

The Fraud Triangle

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http://www.organizingcreativity.com/2014/08/using-the-fraud-triangle-to-explain-scientific-misconduct/


Some HDR cases

Authorship

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• Five cases involving authorship in 18 months• All cases involve research students• Two cases where HDR candidates were removed from papers• Two cases where supervisors allegedly used candidate’s work

without appropriate attribution

RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY I RESEARCH OFFICE

To be an author you must make a substantial contribution to a combination of:1. Conceiving or designing the project,2. Analysing and interpreting the data,3. Writing or critically revising the intellectual content of the

output.AND

• Give final agreement to the version to be published

Authorship

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• Getting funding, collecting data, giving technical assistance or materials don’t automatically count for authorship

• People who don’t qualify as authors should be acknowledged

• Discuss authorship and have a written record of discussions/agreementsRESEARCH OFFICE I RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY

Contract cheating


WHAT IS IT?• Contracting others to complete a piece of academic

work• Typically a bespoke piece of writing on a particular

topic, but may be other work, e.g. source code • Essay mills (custom writing services -

“ghostwriting”)• Auction sites (tendering for services)• Essay banks (pre-written essays)WHO DOES IT?• Largely seen as a problem amongst undergraduate

students• Emerging as a problem amongst postgraduates• Very rare amongst research staff

Contract cheating

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• Three recent cases at Macquarie under investigation• Two cases - Allegations of candidates using professional writers

via online services• “Editorial services” or “writing coaches”• One cases - Reports of PhD candidates and/or supervisors

employing postdocs to write papers for inclusion in a thesis

• Detected by: changes in writing style, metadata in files, tipoffs


Your experiences

Tips for supervisors

Tips for supervisors

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• Ensure you and your candidate are familiar with the Macquarie Code

• Discuss data management and keep a copy of the data when they leave

• Talk about authorship and keep records of discussions• Check they understand plagiarism• Train candidates in peer review• Discuss conflicts of interest and how to manage them• Meet regularly with your candidates

• If things aren’t going well raise it in the Progress Reports• Seek advice…RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY I RESEARCH OFFICE

Using Professional Editors

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GUIDELINES FOR EDITING RESEARCH THESES

• Agreement by the Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd) and the Deans and Directors of Graduate Studies (DDoGS)

• http://iped-editors.org/About_editing/Editing_theses.aspx

• Supervisors will provide editorial advice relating to matters of substance and structure; language (including matters of clarity, voice and tone, grammar, spelling and punctuation, specialised and foreign material); and use of illustrations and tables. They may also assist with copyediting and proofreading.


http://iped-editors.org/About_editing/Editing_theses.aspx

http://iped-editors.org/About_editing/Editing_theses.aspx

Using Professional Editors

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GUIDELINES FOR EDITING RESEARCH THESES• Professional editing should be restricted to copyediting and proofreading

• May draw attention to problems in matters of substance and structure, but should not provide solutions

• If used in any form, the name of the editor and a brief description of the service rendered, should be included as part of the list of acknowledgements.

• Copyediting: grammar, spelling, capitalisation, punctuation, hyphenation and overall correctness and consistency.

• Proofreading: verification of copy, integrity check, proofing, conformity with house style, format


Research Integrity Advisors

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• Associate Deans of Higher Degree Research and Research

• RIAs can provide advice on good research practice Talk about issues before they become problems

• RIAs also provide advice about reporting breaches

• If researchers have concerns: Talk to any RIA, not just in their faculty Talk in hypotheticals Get their help and advice in preparing a complaintRESEARCH OFFICE I RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY

Contact us

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RESEARCH INTEGRITY OFFICE (BEN PITCHER & MARGAUX LE GUAY):[email protected] 1031

DIRECTOR, RESEARCH ETHICS AND INTEGRITY (KANDY WHITE):[email protected] 7854

WEB:WWW.RESEARCH.MQ.EDU.AU/RESEARCH_INTEGRITY

OR contact a Research Integrity Advisor

THE RESEARCH INTEGRITY TEAM




http://www.research.mq.edu.au/research_integrity

Research Integrity Workshop, Supervision Enhancement, Oct 2015

Education