Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) at WSU

What is RCR? It is appropriate and ethical practice of research, scholarship or creative activity OR- don’t lie, cheat or steal However, it is not quite as simple as that

Is RCR Mandatory at WSU? It is currently directed at undergraduate students, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. The NSF training requirement is mandatory and applies to all new NSF research proposals submitted on or after January 4, 2010 and subsequently funded. It applies to certain NIH grants such as training grants where the PI must submit a plan with the proposal. As time goes on, other agencies may adopt it. It is best to go through the training now.

Elements of RCR (Modules) Introduction to RCR Collaborative Research and Collaborations with Industry Data Acquisition, Management, Sharing and Ownership Publication Practices and Responsible Authorship Conflict of Interest and Commitment Mentoring/trainee responsibilities Research Misconduct and Policies Peer Review As required by the nature of the project: –Protection of Human Subjects –Welfare of Laboratory Animals –Safe Laboratory Practices TRAINING INVOLVES TAKING A NUMBER OF MODULES RELEVANT TO YOUR ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE

Where are the rules and campus information on RCR? Wright Way Policy Office of Research Integrity (ORI) of NIH- “Introduction to the Responsible Conduct of Research” by Nicholas H. Steneck (Salient points of this workshop come from this source)

Another source? Francis L. Macrina “Scientific Integrity” Third Edition. ASM press. Washington DC ISBN Website companion:

Where Can I Find Training in RCR? Workshops such as this one Selected courses given by WSU faculty Mentors who have been certified CITI (Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative) online training

How do I Prove that I Received Training? Research and Sponsored Programs (RSP) will issue a certificate noting the module completed and the date of completion. RSP serves as the record keeper. If relocating to a new institution, you may request that your training documentation be sent to the new institution. Contact Jackie Frederick, Director of Preaward Services, RSP, or

Handout Sample of the Certificate

RSP’s role RSP monitors grants, contracts and cooperative agreements bound by RCR rules for compliance.

How Quickly Must I Train? Graduate Students and Postdocs: Within 90 days of signing on for a covered project. Exception- A student concurrently taking an approved ethics class may get credit for the modules covered upon completion of the class. Undergraduate students ASAP. For 90 day projects or less, complete training within first 30% of the project period. Student can be mentored by qualified faculty or receive training through Office of Undergraduate Research.

RCR Requirements are Discipline Specific. Wright State Requires the Following* *Note: the training material is discipline-specific as well. Codes: R=Required; D= sub-discipline specific. D= refers to certain studies within a discipline that the student is engaged in. For example, if it is an ecology project, then they would not need human subjects training or even safe lab practices. If the project is biomedical in a laboratory then human subjects, lab animals and safe laboratory practices are required. If the box is blank then it is not required. Module Biological Biomedical Engi- neering Arts & Human. Physicial Sciences Social & Behavioral Res. Admin. Intro to RCRRRRRRR Authorship & Publication RRRRR Collaborative Res. with industry DR D Data Acquisition & Management RRRRRR Publication Practice RRRRR Collaborative Research with others RRRRRR Conflict of InterestRR RRRR Mentoring/traineeR RRRR Research Misconduct RRRRR Peer ReviewR RRR Human SubjectsDD DR Lab AnimalsDD DD Safe Lab PracticesDD D

A Brief Sampling of What each Training Module Provides In the following section, some of the hot topic areas in the module are discussed

Collaborative Research Roles and relationships Management Across the university and different universities Keeping up your end of the bargain

Data Acquisition, Management, Sharing and Ownership Acquisition- How do you collect the data and protect it? Management- Power analysis, statistics and other problems Who can see the data? Who owns the data?

Elements of a Data Management Plan Data description Designated Archive Access & Sharing Metadata I.P. rights Ethics and Privacy Archive and Preservation Storage and Backup This can be for years after the conclusion of a project

Authorship and Publication What effort qualifies you for publication? Who goes first on the paper? Elements of a responsible publication. Practices to be avoided.

Publication Practices There are strategies to publication. There is an obligation to publish. If you commercialize, does that preclude publication?

Mentoring/Trainee Responsibilities Researchers are teachers The Student to Faculty Pathway Mentors and trainees must spend the time Mentors lead by example Trainees must put forth the effort Letting go

Conflict of Interest Conflict of: Research interest Financial Commitment Personal (eg. You shouldn’t review the work of someone you dislike personally) Reporting and Managing

Research Misconduct Policy 2101 Reporting problems Responding to problems Confidentiality The process Timeliness Agency concerns Cleaning up the mess Legal issues

Peer Review Meeting deadlines Assessing quality of publication grants careers Judging importance Preserving confidentiality

Other Important Issues Protection of human subjects Laboratory animal welfare Laboratory safety

Questions/Further Information Contact Research and Sponsored Programs: Telephone: (937) Web: Last updated: 1/24/11