TRUELL HYDE VICE PROVOST FOR RESEARCH SINDA VANDERPOOL ASSISTANT VICE PROVOST FOR ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT LINDA CATES DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY Research Misconduct & Academic Integrity at Baylor University

Honor Code Baylor University students, staff, and faculty shall act in academic matters with the utmost honesty and integrity.

Responsible Conduct of Research TRUELL W. HYDE VICE PROVOST FOR RESEARCH

Responsible Conduct of Research All Baylor researchers are expected to engage in research with a level of ethical and moral behavior, supportive of and consistent with the university’s Christian mission Researchers must also adhere to applicable laws, regulations and relevant funding agency standards

Responsible Conduct of Research Federal regulations are tightening and now require all students (graduate and undergraduate) working on funded research to complete responsible conduct in research (RCR) training. Beyond these regulations, RCR training is strongly encouraged for all researchers, regardless of funding source or field of study.

Responsible Conduct of Research General topics covered in any basic RCR training program include: Publication Practices and Responsible Authorship Peer Review Mentor and Trainee Relationships Conflicts of Interest and Commitment Collaborative Research Data Acquisition, Sharing, and Ownership Research Misconduct Protection of Human Subjects Animal Welfare Contemporary Ethical Issues in Science

Preventing Issues Before They Happen Familiarize yourself with relevant standards and best practices for your academic discipline Check your funding agency’s website for specific requirements Review the Baylor University Statement on Misconduct in Research

Preventing Issues Before They Happen Consider integrating RCR topics into your curricula. (A number of academic programs at other universities are already doing so.) Strongly encourage your research faculty and students (particularly those with external funding) to take RCR training

Responsible Conduct of Research Baylor offers this training through CITI To get started, visit the OVPR website at: Training is offered to all faculty (research active or not). While not required, faculty are encouraged to complete the training as a refresher and to spark discussion with students on proper research standards

What is Research Misconduct? Two areas in which issues have arisen at Baylor during the past few years.  Plagiarism  Conflict of Interest

What is NOT Research Misconduct Research misconduct means fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing, performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results Misconduct in Research is NOT: Honest error or difference of opinion Questions of authorship

Standard of Proof To support a finding of research misconduct: (1) There must be a significant departure from accepted practices of the relevant research community (2) The misconduct must have been committed intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly (3) The allegation must be proven by a preponderance of the evidence (42 CFR )

Preventing Issues Before They Happen Clarify authorship up-front  Early in the project, come to agreement with your collaborators and students regarding each team member’s expected level of contribution and which members will be recognized as authors of any publications  Setting expectations early in the research project can prevent a claim of plagiarism later if an investigator does not receive the credit he/she is expecting

If You Witness Misconduct in Research Baylor researchers are expected to report any observed, suspected, or apparent research misconduct Misconduct may be reported: – To the Research Integrity Officer, Frank Mathis – To the accused person’s immediate supervisor – To an appropriate administrative official (department chair, dean, research center director) – Through Baylor’s third-party reporting system, available at

DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY Linda Cates

Upholding Academic Integrity Reporting Honor Code violations is expected of all faculty members.

Assigning Sanctions A. Faculty has discretion in sanctions, including, but not limited to: 1. Failure/grade penalty on assignment 2. Rewriting the assignment 3. Failure/grade penalty on test 4. Failure/grade penalty in course B. Honor Council recommends sanctions based on precedent. 1. Those sanctions listed above 2. Plus probation, suspension, expulsion, etc. 3. Sanctions are issued by Provost, not Honor Council. C. For assistance with consistent sanctions, go to Web site – see Honor Council Reports. What are appropriate and consistent sanctions?

Honor Code Violation Statistics % ( 108) handled by Faculty 20% (27) handled by Honor Council 135 Guilty 0 Not Guilty 56% Male violators 44% Female violators Top violations: Plagiarism Other’s Work Not Obeying Professor’s Instructions Top schools/colleges reporting: Business 41% Arts & Sciences 49% Engineering/CS 11% Education 4% 4 Suspensions 2 Expulsions

Types of Violations Seen Most Often Note: Number in parenthesis is from Sec. II of the Honor Code Plagiarism (2) Misrepresenting Facts (11) Other’s Work (1) Obtaining Information (8) Altering Documents (16) Not Obeying Professor’s Instructions (12)

Reminders Report all violations of AI Spread the word to other faculty about process Please contact any of us with suggestions, questions, or concerns

Office of Academic Integrity Director, Linda Cates Judicial Affairs Associate Dean, Bethany McCraw Provost Assistant Vice Provost for Enrollment Management, Sinda K. Vanderpool Academic Integrity Web site Student Policies and Procedures Web site TurnItIn Plagiarism Detection Service Available Resources

ASSISTANT VICE PROVOST FOR ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT Sinda Vanderpool

Creating a Culture of Academic Integrity Recent survey of students revealed:  40% remember learning about the Honor Code from Orientation  70% remember learning about it from a specific professor in a class Faculty and academic leaders are key in creating the right culture

Best Practices: Prevention and Education Set up clear expectations  Consistent message from Baylor: “above reproach”  Discuss openly at the beginning of the semester  Put a statement in the syllabus  Remind students at key points in semester Be specific  Spell out by giving examples (plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, etc.) from your discipline  Give examples of proper citations, authorized collaboration, etc.  Give special instructions for group projects, take home exams, using internet sources, etc.  Tell them, “when in doubt, ask!” Create a classroom environment that fosters academic integrity  Safety for students not inclined to cheat

Prevention and Education: Graduate Students At time of application During teaching/pedagogy training, address – appropriate relationships with students – expectations of fair treatment – employment issues – future consequences for missteps

Questions?