Abstract
A Scientific Integrity Consortium developed a set of recommended principles and best practices that can be used broadly across scientific disciplines as a mechanism for consensus on scientific integrity standards and to better equip scientists to operate in a rapidly changing research environment. The two principles that represent the umbrella under which scientific processes should operate are as follows: (1) Foster a culture of integrity in the scientific process. (2) Evidence-based policy interests may have legitimate roles to play in influencing aspects of the research process, but those roles should not interfere with scientific integrity. The nine best practices for instilling scientific integrity in the implementation of these two overarching principles are (1) Require universal training in robust scientific methods, in the use of appropriate experimental design and statistics, and in responsible research practices for scientists at all levels, with the training content regularly updated and presented by qualified scientists. (2) Strengthen scientific integrity oversight and processes throughout the research continuum with a focus on training in ethics and conduct. (3) Encourage reproducibility of research through transparency. (4) Strive to establish open science as the standard operating procedure throughout the scientific enterprise. (5) Develop and implement educational tools to teach communication skills that uphold scientific integrity. (6) Strive to identify ways to further strengthen the peer review process. (7) Encourage scientific journals to publish unanticipated findings that meet standards of quality and scientific integrity. (8) Seek harmonization and implementation among journals of rapid, consistent, and transparent processes for correction and/or retraction of published papers. (9) Design rigorous and comprehensive evaluation criteria that recognize and reward the highest standards of integrity in scientific research.
Highlights
In the twenty-first century, scientists work in a research environment “that is being transformed by globalization, interdisciplinary research projects, team science, and information technologies” (Interacademy Partnership 2016)
In early 2017, ILSI North America convened a meeting of the Scientific Integrity Consortium (“the Consortium”), hosted by Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable (GUIRR) at the National Academy of Sciences building in Washington, DC
Members of the Consortium concluded that while their institutions and organizations may differ in the strategies they use to promote scientific integrity and the extent that they implement them, there must be consensus and alignment around the necessity for scientific integrity standards and their content
Summary
In the twenty-first century, scientists work in a research environment “that is being transformed by globalization, interdisciplinary research projects, team science, and information technologies” (Interacademy Partnership 2016). The Consortium agreed that for the purposes of these principles and best practices, the terms “scientific integrity” [as defined by the U.S Department of the Interior (DOI)], “research misconduct” (as defined by the U.S Federal Research Misconduct Policy), and “detrimental research practices” (as defined by the U.S National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine 2017 report Fostering Integrity in Research) would be used in the development of the principles and best practices for scientific integrity. These definitions are as follows: Scientific integrity The DOI developed a definition of scientific integrity that was adopted in various forms by five other federal agencies. Design rigorous and comprehensive evaluation criteria that recognize and reward the highest standards of integrity in scientific research
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