Responsible Conduct of Research 2011-2012
Individual, Institutional, and Professional Responsibility for Ethical Practice& Integrity in Research/Scholarship
Graduate Education & Postdoctoral Training at Michigan State University
Our collective goal is to prepare students and postdoctoral researchers to become globally-engaged citizen-leaders. Central to achieving this goal is the ability to conduct quality research/scholarship as the foundation for strong professional reputations for individuals, their departments and graduate programs, and Michigan State University (MSU). For students and postdoctoral trainees, professional development occurs under the guidance and leadership of individual faculty through partnerships intended to be mutually beneficial. To be successful, these partnerships must be based on a shared commitment to responsible research/scholarly practices based on key principles of research integrity. This workshop series will highlight these key principles and repeatedly emphasize that research and scholarly integrity is a fundamental characteristic of quality research/scholarship in all disciplines.
Schedule of Presentations
Being an Early Career Scholar As of 9/12/11, this workshop is FULL.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
Scientific Communications, Rights to Data, and Authorship As of 9/14/11, this workshop is FULL.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
Crediting the Works of Others and Avoiding Plagiarism As of 9/14/11, this workshop is FULL.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
Record Keeping, Data Management, and Sharing of Information This workshop is FULL.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
Misconduct in Research & Creative Activities
As of 1/9/12, this workshop is FULL.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
Protecting Human Research Participants
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
The Care and Use of Animals in Research
Thursday, February 2, 2012
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
Conflict of Interest, Peer Review, & Collaboration/Teamwork
As of 1/20/12, this workshop is FULL.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Room 103 Erickson Hall (the Kiva)
Why is this Workshop Series Offered?
Pursuing a graduate degree and undertaking a research training experience is intensely personal; however, it is critically important that early career scholars understand that their research/scholarly work impacts others and contributes to the research/scholarship of others in important ways that may not always be clear. Work is often supported by public funding or with funding from private sources to address issues and questions important to individuals, companies, national interests, etc. Regardless of the scope of the impact, interested parties (both individuals and groups) trust that new information, and the reported outcomes they support, is accurate, true, and carefully considered. Inaccurate or flawed results can occur for many reasons ranging from mistakes or chance alone to malicious misrepresentations where individual researchers are responsible for violating important accepted principles of research integrity.
Students and trainees are accountable for deviations from and violations of established policies and professional standards concerning academic and research integrity. This is particularly important for students to understand, because the most serious violations can affect completion of individual courses and jeopardize enrollment as a student in a degree program. Findings of research misconduct in theses and dissertations after granting of a degree can even lead to revocation of the degree.
All interested individuals and parties who support, conduct, oversee, and use the results of research/scholarship share a common commitment for the importance of maintaining the integrity of research/scholarly enterprises. This includes a commitment that early-career scholars receive appropriate education and training in the responsible and ethical conduct of research. As part of this commitment, the Federal government implemented a requirement that students and post-doctoral trainees supported by Federal funds be educated and trained in the responsible and ethical conduct of research. MSU departments and graduate programs developed plans to provide this education and to assure compliance to the Federal government as the primary funder of university research/scholarship.
This workshop series is intended to support the efforts of departments and graduate programs which have the primary responsibility for educating and training students/trainees to understand, apply, and foster responsible research/scholarly practices within their departments and graduate programs according to national, university, and professional standards. The expectation is that student/trainee research/scholarship will be of higher quality and that students/trainees will be better able to avoid and respond to situations involving irresponsible research/scholarly practices and behaviors.
Expectations of Your Participation in this Series
1) As a student or postdoctoral trainee at MSU, it is your responsibility to do your own work to take full advantage of the opportunities presented to you. Departments, Schools and Interdisciplinary Programs are responsible for establishing requirements and developing plans for appropriate training and oversight in the ethical and responsible conduct of research. Many decided to require attendance at this workshop series as a key aspect of their educational strategies. The Certificate of Attendance offered after completing all workshops is the way that The Graduate School certifies to departments and programs, as well to the Federal government, that students and trainees have fully participated in the workshops. Taking short cuts or misrepresenting the extent of your participation deprives you of the value of this educational opportunity and devalues the time and effort of others. It is deceptive (i.e., a lie) to certify your attendance by signing the attendance sheet and then leave or ask another person to falsely sign your name.
2) It is your responsibility and duty to read and understand MSU’s policies and procedures on academic and research integrity and misconduct. Misrepresenting your participation would be considered a violation and invalidate granting of a Certificate of Completion.
3) Workshops will begin promptly at 6 p.m. and end at 7:30 p.m. Please arrive early, sign the registration sign-in sheet, and pick up your materials by 5:50 p.m. so that everyone will be ready to begin the workshop at 6 p.m. Delays for late arrivals would disrupt the start and inconvenience others who arrive on time. Sign in is required, because certificates are provided for those who complete the full series as a requirement by many graduate programs and/or to meet NSF-mandated training and education for continued funding of your assistantship. Sign out will be required for two sessions chosen at random.
4) Preparation prior to each workshop is required in order to make the best use of our 90 minutes together. Pre-workshop readings and specific tasks are listed under each workshop topic to facilitate learning and discussions, but it will be impossible in just 90 minutes to cover every important aspect of topics. Therefore, key issues and examples will be emphasized as case studies.Every student is responsibility for reading and considering the Pre-Workshop Readings and completing the Pre-Workshop Tasks as a prerequisite for identifying the issues and questions that are most important to their own interests.
5) Short writing exercises will be included in each session to evaluate pre-workshop planning and understanding about key issues regarding the specific content of the session.
6) Because these sessions are designed to promote discussions, no cell phones or laptops will be allowed on desks or be used during the workshops.
7) Each participant will be provided a folder by the Graduate School to use at each session as a name card, to identify your department or training program, and to return writing exercises for review after individual workshops. This folder must be returned at the end of each session with writing assignments enclosed.
Issuance of a Certificate of Attendance
All individuals (including faculty or other university employees) who desire to receive a Certificate of Attendance will be expected to participate and engage in all seven workshops as described in this syllabus. Everyone is welcome to attend both the workshop on “Protecting Human Research Participants” and “The Care and Use of Animals in Research”, but attending only one of the two is required in order to receive a Certificate of Attendance. We understand that not everyone does research on one or the other, but understanding the ethical responsibilities for review by Institutional Boards and application of approved protocols is an important principle. There are other Institutional Boards that are required to oversee and review research protocols that will not be considered directly in the workshops.
Responses provided through the “short writing exercises” will be read and assessed as to whether or not they are responsive to the question asked. Attendance at all workshops (or excused absences from portions of workshops) as well as “suitable responses” to 80% of the writing exercises will be required as the basis for issuance of a Certificate of Attendance.
It is difficult for anyone to insure individuals will become committed to applying ethical standards and responsible research practices. However, we are serious about insuring that individuals are informed and educated about the key principles of research integrity.
A list of students completing the series will be provided to the graduate programs that require this series. You should also enter your name and completion information into the Research Training Tracking System (RTTS).
Workshop Series Outcomes
Attendees are expected to commit to thinking about and discussing their understanding of responsible research practices both at workshops and with their student/trainee/faculty colleagues in their Departments, Schools and Interdisciplinary Programs. All attendees will be expected to participate actively by reading assigned materials in advance, contributing to group discussions, reflecting on and their understanding of professional principles and standards; and sharing views about responsible and ethical conduct of research/scholarship in their academic field of study. At the end of the workshop series, attendees will be expected to understand and be able to explain:
- MSU’s rules concerning academic integrity, including possible disciplinary actions regarding allegations of academic or research misconduct;
- MSU’s requirements for training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research;
- Where to find their department’s or program’s plan for training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research;
- The Key Principles of Research Integrity and core values of responsible and ethical conduct of research/scholarly practices;
- How to properly credit other’s works in order to avoid accusations of plagiarism;
- How to reason logically and critically evaluate ethical dilemmas and professional situations to guide responsible and ethical actions in the conduct of research/scholarship;
- How their research/scholarship affects others, both professionally and personally; and
- How to responsibly collaborate with others in research/scholarly teams.
Accommodations
Persons with disabilities or special needs should contact the Graduate School at 517-353-3231 to request arrangements no later than one week prior to the session date. Requests received after this date will be met when possible.
Series Coordinator
Terry A. May
TGS/OVPRGS
432-7140
mayte@msu.edu
Faculty Director
Stephanie W. Watts, Professor
Pharmacology & Toxicology
353-3724
wattss@msu.edu
Dean & Associate Provost
Karen L. Klomparens
The Graduate School
353.3220
kklompar@grd.msu.edu
Prior Registration is Required for All Workshops!
New for 2011-12, the graduate school has implemented an online registration system. Please go to http://grad.msu.edu/workshops/webreg.aspx and follow the directions for registering.
Registration preference will be given to graduate students and postdocs from departments who regularly attend the RCR series in the past ten years (list of departments). Additionally, preference will also be given to students and post-docs funded by NSF grants.
For those students/postdocs funded by NSF, please include the following additional information: the title of grant, faculty PI, and MSU CGA grant number.
You may register for the entire series (recommended) or for an individual session. The deadline for registering for a session is one week before the session.
Persons with disabilities should contact the Graduate School at gradwrsp@msu.edu to request arrangements no later than one week prior to the session date. Requests received after this date will be met when possible.