UK CEED seeks to promote the highest standards of scientific and professional integrity in its research and other projects and to give due consideration to the issues arising from its activities. The following code incorporates the guidelines in the Joint Statement by the Director General of the Research Councils and the Chief Executives of the UK Research Councils, Safeguarding Good Scientific Practice (December 1998), and the Medical Research Council’s guide to Good Research Practice (2000). It reflects the Research Councils’ requirement that institutions should formulate and disseminate codes of good scientific practice for their own use, and that such codes should be acceptable to, and binding on, all the staff in those institutions; should be a key element in training schemes; and should also be succinct and easy to comprehend.
Institutional Strategy
UK CEED’s strategy is to establish structures, procedures and guidelines sufficient to ensure that any ethical issues arising from its research activities are given due consideration.
UK CEED has and seeks to develop a culture of institutional practice wherein consideration of economic, social, environmental and ethical issues becomes embedded in its decision-making activities. In reaching difficult ethical judgements, UK CEED will be guided by application of the ultimate test of reasonableness.
UK CEED seeks to raise awareness of ethical issues amongst its staff to provide such procedures, guidelines and codes as are necessary to ensure that good practice is adopted across the breadth of its activities. The development and review of these procedures, guidelines and codes of practice is an ongoing process.
The institutional code of ethical practice also extends to, and underpins, UK CEED’s interactions with external organisations and individuals.
Corporate Responsibility for Ethics
The Board of Directors of UK CEED, as governing body of the institution, has corporate responsibility for the approval and development of its institutional code of ethics. In approving such a code, the Trustees furthers UK CEED’s aim to strive for the highest standards of professional integrity.
Corporate responsibility for addressing the ethical, social and environmental issues arising from the UK CEED’s research activities and institutional practice is discharged by the Executive Director and reported into the Finance and General Purposes Committee of the Board of Directors
All formal committees of the UK CEED, in discharging their routine business, will seek to raise awareness of ethical considerations and to disseminate best practice appropriate to their terms of reference.
Implementation of the Institutional Strategy
The Board of Directors, through the conduct of its own business, and that of its sub-committees, the Board of Directors and Executive Director seek to promote the highest standards of ethical, social and environmental responsibility.
Each line manager is responsible for monitoring the conduct of the Centre’s research activities and reporting to the Executive Director. The Executive Director will thus report progress on a quarterly basis to the Board of Directors.
Responsibilities of Members of Staff
Individual members of staff are responsible for ensuring that any ethical issues arising from their research, teaching, professional practice and consultancy activities are considered in accordance with their line manager and adhere to UK CEED’s code of ethical practice. In addition, they are responsible for ensuring that ethical issues are given due consideration as they arise within our business activities. In particular, staff should ensure that they should be aware of issues surrounding their professional ethics.
All members of staff are responsible for ensuring that they implement such guidelines, codes of practice and procedures relating to ethical issues as are relevant to the nature of their employment.
Code of Good Practice
UK CEED’s code of good practice in scientific research (as set out in the Joint Statement by the Director General of the Research Councils and the Chief Executives of the UK Research Councils) covers the following aspects:
- fundamentals of scientific work such as:
- maintaining professional standards;
- documenting results;
- questioning one’s own findings;
- attributing honestly the contribution of others;
- leadership and co-operation in research groups;
- taking special account of the needs of young researchers; andsecuring and storing primary data.
The first bullet point on ‘good scientific practice’ quoted above from the joint Research Councils’ statement applies to all staff engaged in all aspects of scientific research at UK CEED.
Irrespective of subject discipline, researchers should agree to abide by this Code of Practice by:
- demonstrating the highest standards of integrity and professionalism in their work;
- observing fairness and equity in their dealings with colleagues internally and externally;
- agree to take advice where appropriate from their line manager, Executive Director or Board of Directors on the ethical conduct of their research;
- participate only in work which conforms to accepted ethical standards;
- participate only in work which they are competent to perform;
- agree to participate in appropriate professional development and training opportunities to ensure continued competencies and develop new competencies;
- ensure validity and accuracy in the collection and reporting of data;
- ensure the safety of those associated with the research.
Data/Data Protection Matters
All researchers must ensure that where appropriate for the type of research being conducted:-
- research data must be recorded in a durable and auditable form, with appropriate references so that it can be readily recovered;
- research data must be retained intact normally for a period of [at least five years] from the date of any publication which is based upon it;
- any research project complies with the Data Protection Act, and that copyright is not breached;
- specific arrangements must be made to protect the security of research data;
- there are procedures for the retention of research data in a form which would enable retrieval by a third party, subject to any limitation imposed by the confidentiality of personal data and these procedures are complied with;
- research data related to publications must be available for discussion with other researchers, except where confidentiality provisions prevail;
- confidentiality provisions relating to publications which apply in circumstances where the UK CEED or the researcher has made or given confidentiality undertakings to third parties or confidentiality is required to protect intellectual property rights, must be complied with. It is the obligation of the researcher to enquire as to whether confidentiality provisions apply and of the line manager to inform researchers of the obligation with respect to these provisions;
- information necessary for annual or other reports of progress with research is provided as required by the relevant funding bodies, external sponsors or ethics Board of Directors, such information may include details of researchers.
Publications
All researchers must ensure that:-
(i) a publication must contain appropriate reference to the contributions made by all participants who have made what might reasonably be regarded as a significant contribution to the relevant research;
(ii) any person who has participated in a substantial way in conceiving, executing or interpreting at least part of the relevant research should be given the opportunity to be included as an author of a publication derived from that research;
(iii) any person who has not participated in a substantial way in conceiving, executing or interpreting at least part of the relevant research should not be included as an author of a publication derived from that research;
(iv) in addition to meeting the requirements of paragraph (ii) above, an author must ensure that the work of research students, research staff and support staff is recognised in a publication derived from research to which they have made a significant contribution as defined in paragraph (i) above;
(v) a publication which is substantially similar to another publication derived from the same research must contain appropriate reference to the other publication.
Conflicts of Interest
(i) A researcher must make full disclosure of any personal potential or actual conflict of interest in research. Conflict of interest means any personal or close family affiliation or financial involvement with any organisation sponsoring or providing financial support for a project undertaken by a researcher. Financial involvement includes direct personal financial interest, provision of personal benefits (such as travel and accommodation) and provision of material or facilities for personal use. (For the avoidance of doubt, the provision of sponsored studentships, or elements of travel/accommodation for a student, should be excluded from this definition);
(ii) A disclosure of a personal conflict of interest in research must be made to the line manager as soon as reasonably practicable;
(iii) A researcher must comply with a direction made by the line manager in relation to a personal conflict of interest in research. Line managers may seek advice from the Executive Director in cases of doubt.
Misconduct
A Definition of research misconduct
UK CEED has defined research misconduct by UK CEED staff to include the following, whether deliberate, reckless or negligent:
(i) failure to obtain appropriate permission and/or protocols to initiate a research project;
(ii) deception in relation to research proposals and the securing of research funding;
(iii) breaches of accepted standards of supervision of researchers and research students;
(iv) unethical behaviour in the conduct of research, for example in relation to research subjects;
(v) unauthorised use of material or information acquired confidentially where no permission for the proposed use has been given;
(vi) deviation from good research practice, where this results in unreasonable risk of harm to humans, other animals or the environment;
(vii) fabrication, falsification or corruption of research data;
(viii) distortion of research outcomes, by distortion or omission of data that do not fit expected results;
(ix) dishonest misinterpretation of results;
(x) publication of data known or believed to be false or misleading;
(xi) plagiarism, or dishonest use of unacknowledged sources;
(xii) misquotation or dishonest misrepresentation of other authors;
(xiii) inappropriate attribution of authorship;
(xiv) fraud or other misuse of research funds or research equipment;
(xv) attempting, planning or conspiring to be involved in research misconduct;
(xvi) inciting others to be involved in research misconduct;
(xvii) collusion on or concealment of research misconduct by others;
(xviii) breach of the University’s Financial Regulations in relation to the misuse of research funds or research equipment.
B Procedure
Where there may be grounds to believe that research misconduct may have taken place, the matter should normally be reported in the first instance to the Executive Director. The Executive Director will then undertake such investigations as may be necessary. In the event that disciplinary action appears to be appropriate this will be conducted in accordance with the UK CEED’s Misconduct/Disciplinary Procedure as contained in the Staff Contract.
Other References
Institutional Code of Ethics, University of Bath, undated
Academic Integrity: Code of Good Practice in Research, Open University, July 2003
Code of Conduct for Research, University of Central Lancashire, undated