What to Expect from Building Confidence in Research Integrity

“Research conducted with a high level of integrity is more trustworthy – and trusted – by other researchers, by users of research and by society in general.” – UKRI

Research integrity is fundamental to knowledge production and the work of ARMA members in so many ways, not only because the ‘Concordat to Support Research Integrity’ will shortly be refreshed and because research integrity will likely be a key part of REF People, Culture and Environment, but because there is an increasing prevalence of questionable research practices, which research professional staff can help to identify and address. Embedding research integrity throughout everyone’s work and culture is important to ensure trustworthy results and public confidence, leading to a greater impact of research.

Have you ever wondered why some findings are more reproducible than others?

Research integrity is often, wrongly, thought of as a topic that is only relevant to those directly engaged in research. In fact, the key elements of research integrity; honesty, rigour, transparency and open communication, care and respect, and accountability, apply to most roles. Whether it is helping to establish a culture of accountability and recording keeping or translating research findings in a responsible, accessible, and inclusive way, research integrity is important to your work. It is not sufficient for research integrity principles to be communicated top-down. Time and again we have seen article retractions and irreproducibility of research to be due to the actions of a small number of individuals or a collective absence of accountability for a piece of research.

There are currently many evolving areas relevant to research integrity that you likely already have some knowledge or understanding of i.e. research culture, trusted research, due diligence, open research, data protection, AI, and ethics without necessarily linking these to research integrity. With emerging technologies and shifting norms, it is more important than ever to align whole communities on the principles of research integrity.

However, it is important to recognise that often there is a gap between policy and its implementation, between best practices and research reality. Acknowledging this is the first step in bridging the gap between theory and practice and will equip you to be ready for changes in the research landscape. There are new initiatives and national and international developments which involve research integrity considerations, and this training will help you to make sense of developments in the landscape and how they might impact your role.

In this training, we want to not only give you a grounding in the theory of research integrity and why it is important but also provide the tools to have the necessary conversations to make positive changes in your team, department, and institutions. This training will focus on how research professional staff can support and encourage research integrity and include real-life examples, helping you put principles into practice. By focusing on practical examples and interactive discussions, attendees will build confidence in having those sometimes difficult conversations.

This training will benefit you if you are in a governance, compliance, ethics, culture, library or legal role and you want to understand how your role fits into the broader environment. This training is also for you if you are an experienced research professional in pre-award or post-award, working closely with academics, and would like to understand how to promote best practice.

The training will help you to realise the broader context of research integrity, why it is important and how you can help encourage academics to work in ways that promote trust in research. By each person in the research cycle contributing to research integrity, together we can  improve standards, expectations, and trust in research.

The training will provide a diverse perspective on research integrity reality from both a research institution and publisher. We are:

Carole Harris has worked in research management for the past 16 years, in a variety of roles at the University of Warwick, and for the past five years has headed up the Research Culture, Governance and Compliance team. Her role includes oversight for Research Integrity, as well as for research culture, ethics, trusted research, and other areas of research governance. She works closely with colleagues across the University to upskill and raise awareness of research integrity matters as covered in this training.

Dr. Gráinne McNamara has 15 years experience as a researcher and research integrity professional. Since 2017 she has been working in research integrity for journal and book publications. Responsible research communication, Open Research and emerging challenges to research integrity are part of her daily work and will be covered during this training.

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