Introduction to Research Integrity

(AKA “Responsible Conduct of Research”

or “Research Ethics”)
Dr.  Lisa  Rasmussen  
Department  of  Philosophy  
UNC  Charlo9e  
June  2015  
 Outline  
•  IntroducCon  
•  Moral  FoundaCons  of  Research  
•  Main  areas  of  Focus  in  Research  Integrity  
–  Research misconduct (falsification, fabrication and plagiarism)
–  Collaboration issues (authorship, data ownership and
management)
–  Peer review
–  Conflicts of interest or obligation
–  Complicity and funding sources
–  Animal subject research
–  Human subject research
•  Conclusion
 I’m a good person. Why do I need to
worry about research ethics?

•  It’s true that we can’t do much about the bad

person who is determined to do evil things.

•  However, research ethics isn’t just – or even

mostly - about bad people doing bad things.
•  It’s also about imperfect people doing
imperfect things, for a variety of reasons:
–  Socially acceptable practice we later deem wrong
–  Accident
–  ‘Misdemeanor’-level wrongs that we try to justify (e.g., taking
shortcuts)
–  Missing something, especially with new methods or technology
–  One can become involved in research ethics violations through
the wrongs of others
–  Sometimes the right thing to do just isn’t clear
–  Self-deception and other psychological tendencies
 Professional  Pressures  
•  Publish  or  perish  
•  Tenure/retaining  a  job  
•  “Keeping  up”  with  peers  
•  Securing  grants  
•  Being  first  to  a  discovery  

à  All  of  these  encourage  shortcuts  and  

“misdemeanors,”  or  worse  
 Example:  socially  acceptable  pracCce  
•  “Example 18. Melanoma was transplanted from a daughter to her
volunteering and informed mother, ‘in the hope of gaining a little better
understanding of cancer immunity and in the hope that the production
of tumor antibodies might be helpful in the treatment of the cancer
patient.’ Since the daughter died on the day after the transplantation of
the tumor into her mother, the hope expressed seems to have been more
theoretical than practical, and the daughter’s condition was described as
‘terminal’ at the time the mother volunteered to be a recipient. The
primary implant was widely excised on the twenty-fourth day after it
had been placed in the mother. She died from metastatic melanoma on
the four hundred and fifty-first day after transplantation. The evidence
that this patient died of diffuse melanoma that metastasized from a
small piece of transplanted tumor was considered conclusive.”
•  Beecher, H. 1966. “Ethics and Clinical Research.” NEJM 274(24), 1354-1360. (This
paper has many such examples, published by physicians with the most prestigious
credentials, in the most prestigious journals.)
 More  examples  
•  ‘Misdemeanor’-level wrongs we may try to justify
or shortcuts we take:
–  See cases 1 and 2

•  Sometimes the case isn’t clear

–  See cases 5 & 6

•  Sometimes we have to think about the

implications of an action in order to see the
research ethics issues
–  See case 3
Example:  Just-­‐retracted  study  in  Science  
(reason  for  misconduct  unclear  so  far)  
 What  are  the  moral  foundaCons  of  
research?  
—  Doing  good  for  humans,  animals,  the  planet,  future  
generaCons,  etc.  via  the  pursuit  of  truth  and  
knowledge  
—  Our  duty  to  respect  individuals  
—  Our  possible  duCes  to  animals  
—  Our  obligaCons  to  society  
 
à  Various  obligaCons  derive  from  these  
foundaCons,  and  they  can  be  in  tension  with  one  
another.  
 Example:  Ethical  guidelines  stemming  from    
research  as  the  pursuit  of  truth  
•  “The  truth,  the  whole  truth,  and  nothing  but  the  
truth.”  
   -­‐  The  truth:  Be  honest  about  your  research.  
   -­‐  The  whole  truth:  Omission  of  parts  of  
 research  findings  might  consCtute  research  
 misconduct  or  violate  other  moral  norms.  
   -­‐  Nothing  but  the  truth:  It’s  also  dishonest  to  
 puff  up  one’s  results  by  adding  irrelevant  or  
 misleading  informaCon,  or  overstaCng  their  
 significance.  
 To whom do we owe the truth,
and why?
•  The public, for its funding support
•  Individual research participants, out of respect for
their autonomy
•  Colleagues and collaborators, whose research may be
based on our research
•  Funding institutions, for giving us resources
•  Research institutions/universities (our employers), for
employment, resources, and because their reputations
can be affected by what we do
à Clearly, many obligations of research stem from its
nature as the pursuit of truth and knowledge.
 Some areas of research ethics:
1.  Research misconduct (falsification,
fabrication and plagiarism)
2.  Collaboration issues (authorship, data
ownership and management)
3.  Peer review
4.  Conflicts of interest or obligation
5.  Complicity and funding sources
6.  Animal subject research
7.  Human subject research
 1.  Research  misconduct:    
The  NaConal  Science  FoundaCon  definiCon  
Research misconduct means fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in
proposing or performing research funded by NSF, reviewing research
proposals submitted to NSF, or in reporting research results funded by
NSF.
(1) Fabrication means making up data or results and recording or
reporting them.
(2) Falsification means manipulating research materials, equipment,
or processes, or changing or omitting data or results such that the
research is not accurately represented in the research record.
(3) Plagiarism means the appropriation of another person’s ideas,
processes, results or words without giving appropriate credit.

Research misconduct does not include honest error or

differences of opinion.
- From NSF regulations, section 689.1
 Examples of research misconduct:
•  Image manipulation
•  Data fabrication or falsification
•  Data omission/suppression
•  Plagiarism from the work of another - could also
be ideas gleaned from peer review and used as
one’s own work
•  Sabotage
•  See case 5 (case 2 may also be an example of this)
•  See www.retractionwatch.com for many examples
of articles retracted from journals
 Image  ManipulaCon  Example    
(from  h9p://www.councilscienceeditors.org/events/annualmeeCng07/presentaCons/Krueger.ppt)      

rotated Scope  of  Falsified  Images  

rotated

duplicated
 2.  CollaboraCon  issues  
What kinds of research ethics issues can you
think of that might stem from collaboration?

* Authorship
* Intellectual Property
* Rigor with which the experiment is
conducted
* Good recordkeeping
* Accurate calculations
 CollaboraCon  Issues  Example  1:    
Authorship  Credit  
•  The following individuals contributed in some way to the work reported in a
manuscript to be submitted for publication. Who should and should not be
listed as an author, and in what order?
 
1) Lab chief – Contributed to the design of the experiments, and analysis and
interpretation of the data; edited several drafts of the manuscript.
2) Program director – Obtained the funding for the research project, including
the salaries, supplies and equipment necessary for the research.
3) Technician –Trained graduate student in the techniques used for their
research; did all of the surgical procedures and some of the biochemical
analyses.
4) Postdoctoral fellow – Questions arising from their research spurred the lab
chief to examine this research topic. Contributed to discussions regarding the
design of the experiments and the analysis and interpretation of the data.
[case continues on next slide]
 (Authorship  credit  conCnued)  
5) Graduate student – Contributed to the design of the experiments; conducted the
experiments; responsible for most of the analysis and the interpretation of the data; wrote
the first draft of the manuscript, and edited several subsequent versions.
6) Undergraduate research assistant – Performed some of the sample analysis.
7) Glassware washer – Employed special procedures for washing and sterilizing
glassware to meet the strict requirements in the experimental protocol.
8) Animal caretaker – Provided specialized care needed to ensure the survival of the
animals in the study.
9) Departmental colleague – Read a complete draft of the manuscript and provided
extensive comments on both the organization and style.
10) Colleague at another university – Shared with the lab chief a unique reagent that
they (the colleague) had developed, was not commercially available, and was central to the
experiments.
• BA Fischer & MJ Zigmond
• Survival+@pitt.edu
 CollaboraCon  Issues  Example  2:  
Management  of  and  Access  to  Data    

•  Who ‘owns’ the data, and who can make use of

it in the future?
•  Can lab notes and materials be taken off-site?
•  What responsibilities do lab workers/student
assistants have in documenting lab work?
•  See cases 3, 4, and 5
 3.  Peer  Review  
•  What do you do if you learn something
from reviewing a manuscript that could
help your own research?
•  What can you do to protect your
intellectual property during the review
process?
•  Can graduate students read manuscripts
on behalf of their professors?
 4. Conflict of interest
•  A situation in which one experiences conflicting pulls from
one’s personal interests and from one’s professional
obligations.
•  Most direct example: being paid to say something untrue.
•  Indirect example: Knowing that if you say something
positive about a company that gave you a grant, you may be
more likely to get a grant from them again in the future.
•  Another indirect example: A funding agency may stipulate
that they have a right to decide whether you can publish
your findings or may delay publication.
•  ‘Ghostwriting’ and ‘ghost management’ in the medical
literature is rampant and raises these questions.
 4. (cont’d) Conflicts of Obligation
•  Having duties to 2 or more parties at the
same time.
–  For example, the duty to research and the
duty to teach
•  Not to mention the duty to one’s family,
friends and self
 5. Complicity and funding
•  Moral issues beyond scientific misconduct
can arise depending on one’s field of
research and funding source. Examples:

- stem cell research

- dual-use biological agents
- weaponizeable technology/DoD funding
 6. Animal subject research
•  May we use animals in research?
•  What are the arguments for or against?
•  Are there limits to how we might treat them, and if
so, what are they, and what justifies these limits?

•  Quick lesson in animal subject research: the “3 Rs”:

–  Refine: refining experiments to cause less pain
and distress
–  Reduce: reducing the number of animals used if
possible
–  Replacement: replace higher-order animals with
lower-order ones
 7. Human subject research
•  May we use human subjects in research?

•  Under what conditions?

•  Nuremberg Code: the first attempt to

answer these questions with guidelines for
the use of human subjects of research
 Nuremberg Code
1. The voluntary consent of the human subject is absolutely essential. This means that the person involved
should have legal capacity to give consent; should be so situated as to be able to exercise free power of choice,
without the intervention of any element of force, fraud, deceit, duress, over-reaching, or other ulterior form of
constraint or coercion; and should have sufficient knowledge and comprehension of the elements of the
subject matter involved as to enable him to make an understanding and enlightened decision. This latter
element requires that before the acceptance of an affirmative decision by the experimental subject there
should be made known to him the nature, duration, and purpose of the experiment; the method and means by
which it is to be conducted; all inconveniences and hazards reasonable to be expected; and the effects upon his
health or person which may possibly come from his participation in the experiment.
The duty and responsibility for ascertaining the quality of the consent rests upon each individual who
initiates, directs or engages in the experiment. It is a personal duty and responsibility which may not be
delegated to another with impunity.

2. The experiment should be such as to yield fruitful results for the good of society, unprocurable by other
methods or means of study, and not random and unnecessary in nature.

3. The experiment should be so designed and based on the results of animal experimentation and a knowledge
of the natural history of the disease or other problem under study that the anticipated results will justify the
performance of the experiment.

4. The experiment should be so conducted as to avoid all unnecessary physical and mental suffering and
injury.
 Nuremberg Code, cont’d.
5. No experiment should be conducted where there is an a priori reason to believe that
death or disabling injury will occur; except, perhaps, in those experiments where the
experimental physicians also serve as subjects.
6. The degree of risk to be taken should never exceed that determined by the
humanitarian importance of the problem to be solved by the experiment.
7. Proper preparations should be made and adequate facilities provided to protect the
experimental subject against even remote possibilities of injury, disability, or death.
8. The experiment should be conducted only by scientifically qualified persons. The
highest degree of skill and care should be required through all stages of the experiment of
those who conduct or engage in the experiment.
9. During the course of the experiment the human subject should be at liberty to bring the
experiment to an end if he has reached the physical or mental state where continuation of
the experiment seems to him to be impossible.
10. During the course of the experiment the scientist in charge must be prepared to
terminate the experiment at any stage, if he has probable cause to believe, in the exercise
of the good faith, superior skill and careful judgment required of him that a continuation
of the experiment is likely to result in injury, disability, or death to the experimental
subject.
 Conclusion  
•  Thinking about research ethics can’t make you a
good person.
•  But a study of research ethics can offer a “map” of
ethical issues so that you recognize them when you
encounter them.
–  It can’t solve the problems you might have, but it is
very helpful to have advance warning of where the
perils lie
–  It will also help you recognize when you (or someone
you know) are entering or in the middle of an ethically
challenging situation so that you can avoid it or
address it. “Prophylactic ethics” is a much better
approach than crisis management!
 Bo9om  Line:  
•  You must actually *think* about the ethical
components of what you do. Rules give very
little guidance in tricky situations.

•  Learning about research ethics can’t motivate

you to want to do the right thing, but it will
give you more tools with which to think about
difficult situations in the future.
 Suggested  references  
•  Office of Research Integrity: ori.hhs.gov
•  “The Lab” interactional video about
research misconduct: ori.hhs.gov/thelab
•  Retraction Watch: retractionwatch.com