Good Scientific Practice

Target group

Doctoral candidates and postdoctoral researchers of all faculties. Postdoctoral researchers at the faculty of medicine are not permitted to participate in the workshop.

Objectives

The major objective of the course “Good Scientific Practice” is to know and understand the basic rules and values of the responsible conduct of research in all its stages, according to local, national and international regulations and guidelines. The participants will explore the differences and grey areas between good scientific practice, questionable research practice and scientific misconduct. They will learn how misconduct can be prevented and should be addressed and dealt with in case it occurs, and what damage it can cause if handled improperly. The participants will learn to develop appropriate solutions for difficult situations in the process of science. They are encouraged to speak with colleagues about mistakes and problems.

Content

The content of the course follows the curriculum “Good scientific practice” which was commissioned by and developed in cooperation with the German Ombudsman für die Wissenschaft:

• Definitions of good scientific practice and scientific misconduct
• Degrees and extent of scientific misconduct
• Examples for responsible and irresponsible conduct of research
• Areas of science that are prone to conflict
• Data management
• Authorship and the process of publication
• Mentoring and supervision
• Conflicts of interest and scientific cooperation
• Conflict management: how to deal with scientific misconduct
• Reactions to scientific misconduct

The course encourages the active involvement of the participants and features the following didactic elements: case discussions, problem based learning in small groups, plenary discussion, information input.