Research ethics and good research practice
Courses/lectures on research ethics
What is good research practice?
Good research practice rests on some fundamental principles: that one can be assured that research is of high quality; that research is conducted and reported in a truthful way and with respect to important societal values; and that researchers take responsibility for their research and its consequences.
When serious deviations from good research practice occurs, the research can be reported as fraudulent, which at the University is defined in brief as falsifying, misrepresenting or plagiarising research. The researcher also might not have the necessary permits to conduct research or might specify someone as an author (participant in the research) who is not entitled to this.
Uppsala University places great emphasis on awareness of research ethics and compliance with good research practice. Society, the public and businesses need reliable scientific results, and it is important that the public has confidence in research. To this end, it is self-evident that every researcher should ensure that irreproachable procedures are followed.
The Swedish Higher Education Act stipulates that in “higher education institutions shall uphold academic credibility and good research practice”. A university or a university college that is informed about suspected deviations from good research practice has an obligation to handle the suspicions, and to send the case to Nämnden för prövning av oredlighet i forskning when it concerns possible misconduct in research.