What are the best practices? (Has Best Practice)
From The Embassy of Good Science
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The European Code of Conduct'"`UNIQ--ref-00000005-QINU`"' states that good research practice with regard to collaborations are based on the following principles:
*"All partners in research collaborations take responsibility for the integrity of the research.
*All partners in research collaborations agree at the outset on the goals of the research and on the process for communicating their research as transparently and openly as possible.
* All partners formally agree at the start of their collaboration on expectations and standards concerning research integrity, on the laws and regulations that will apply, on protection of the intellectual property of collaborators, and on procedures for handling conflicts and possible cases of misconduct.
*All partners in research collaborations are properly informed and consulted about submissions for publication of the research results. "(ECC 2017, section 2.6)
Vicens and Bourne (2007) suggest the following rules'"`UNIQ--ref-00000006-QINU`"':
#Do Not Be Lured into Just Any Collaboration
#Decide at the Beginning Who Will Work on What Tasks
#Stick to Your Tasks
#Be Open and Honest
#Feel Respect, Get Respect
#Communicate, Communicate, and Communicate
#Protect Yourself from a Collaboration That Turns Sour
#Always Acknowledge and Cite Your Collaborators
#Seek Advice from Experienced Scientists
#If Your Collaboration Satisfies You, Keep It Going
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While some COIs might be inevitable (e.g. in case of scientists who move between academia, industry, and government), disclosure and providing extra information is believed to empower readers to place credence on presented data. '"`UNIQ--ref-00000006-QINU`"'
Conflict of interests is explained in numerous guidelines . For example, Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) has issued several guidelines for dealing with conflict of interest, from both reviewers’ and readers’ point of view. COPE guidelines for reviewers can be found [https://www.embassy.science/theme/A%20lot%20has%20been%20said%20about%20conflict%20of%20interest.%20For%20example,%20Committee%20on%20Publication%20Ethics%20(COPE)%20has%20issued%20several%20guidelines%20for%20dealing%20with%20conflict%20of%20interest,%20from%20both%20reviewers%E2%80%99%20and%20readers%E2%80%99%20point%20of%20view.%20COPE%20guidelines%20for%20reviewers%20can%20be%20found%20here here], and guidelines for readers can be accessed [https://www.embassy.science/theme/A%20lot%20has%20been%20said%20about%20conflict%20of%20interest.%20For%20example,%20Committee%20on%20Publication%20Ethics%20(COPE)%20has%20issued%20several%20guidelines%20for%20dealing%20with%20conflict%20of%20interest,%20from%20both%20reviewers%E2%80%99%20and%20readers%E2%80%99%20point%20of%20view.%20COPE%20guidelines%20for%20reviewers%20can%20be%20found%20here here].
International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) also addressed the issue of conflict of interest, and defined purposeful failure to disclose conflicts of interest as a form of misconduct. They categorize conflict of interest as following: financial relationships (such as consultancies, stock ownership or options, honorary payments, patents…), personal relationships or rivalries, academic competition, and intellectual beliefs. A more detailed ICMJE explanation and guide can be found [https://www.embassy.science/theme/International%20Committee%20of%20Medical%20Journal%20Editors%20(ICMJE)%20also%20addressed%20the%20issue%20of%20conflict%20of%20interest,%20and%20defined%20purposeful%20failure%20to%20disclose%20conflicts%20of%20interest%20as%20a%20form%20of%20misconduct.%20They%20categorize%20conflict%20of%20interest%20as%20following%3A%20financial%20relationships%20(such%20as%20consultancies,%20stock%20ownership%20or%20options,%20honorary%20payments,%20patents%E2%80%A6),%20personal%20relationships%20or%20rivalries,%20academic%20competition,%20and%20intellectual%20beliefs.%20A%20more%20detailed%20ICMJE%20explanation%20and%20guide%20can%20be%20found%20here here].
A separate ICMJE declaration of conflict of interest form can be accessed [http://www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/ here]. Completed ICMJE COI declaration is often a requirement for submitting an article to a scientific journal.
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- Awareness of potential conflicts of interest
- Institutional oversight +
Researchers can consult the following guidelines on collaboration with communities:
* Kate Chatfield et al. (2018) Research with, not about, communities - Ethical guidance towards empowerment in collaborative research, a report for the TRUST project. http://trust-project.eu/
* Figueiredo Nascimento, S., Cuccillato, E., Schade, S., Guimarães Pereira, A. (2016) Citizen Engagement in Science and Policy-Making. doi:10.2788/40563 https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/communities/sites/jrccties/files/mc10_rio_sio-lopez_mobility_reading.pdf +
<span lang="EN-GB">Protecting the rights and well-being of children and adolescents is a key reason for requiring parental consent and child assent in research.</span>
According to the [https://cioms.ch/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/WEB-CIOMS-EthicalGuidelines.pdf International Ethical Guidelines for Health-related Research Involving Humans], prepared by the Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), published in 2016.
Children and adolescents should take part in health-related research unless there is a strong scientific rationale for excluding them. Their unique physiology and health needs require special attention from researchers and ethics committees. However, their developing emotional and cognitive abilities may render them more vulnerable;without proper support, they might not be able to fully protect their interests. Therefore, additional protections are essential to ensure their rights and well-being in research.
Before undertaking research involving children and adolescents, the researcher and the research ethics committee must ensure that: a parent or a legally authorized representative of the child or adolescent has given permission;and that the agreement (assent) of the child or adolescent has been obtained in keeping with the child’s or adolescent’s capacity, after having been provided with adequate information about the research tailored to the child’s or adolescent’s level of maturity.
In general, a child or adolescent's refusal to participate or continue in the research must be respected unless, in exceptional circumstances, research participation is considered the best medical option for the child or adolescent. +
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- Green Open Access
- Golden Open Access
- Collaboration between partners
- Creation of a national Open Access Platform
- Quality assurance and monitoring +
Data Practices, Data Management and FAIR Principles: An Educational Scenario by the EnTIRE project +
The aim of all eight scenarios is to allow researchers, research ethics committees ('RECs'), research integrity offices ('RIOs') and research administrators to focus their reflection on core principles and research contexts that enshrine good research practice as well as their local rules and practices. +
Resnik et al (2015) list four measures researchers can take to address deception by research subjects. '"`UNIQ--ref-00000003-QINU`"'
# Researchers can verify information by letting participants undergo physical exams and laboratory tests.
# Research subjects can be excluded from the study when deception is uncovered.
# Studies can consider rewarding research subjects when they provide accurate self-reported information.
# Researchers can require subjects to be registered in a clinical trial particpant registry. +
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The case provides some ideas of best practices in order to avoid such plagiarism allegations:
a) Create your own review model after you have read a number of different review examples, rather heavily relying on one single example
b) Acknowledge that the book review model used relies heavily on XX’s review by referencing appropriately +
The Irish national statement for research integrity <sup>7</sup> is developed in line with the ECoC.
- Principles of Research Integrity
- Research Misconduct
- Collaboratiosns +
The philosophical importance of dialogue has been elaborated in philosophical hermeneutics. '"`UNIQ--ref-00000004-QINU`"''"`UNIQ--ref-00000005-QINU`"'
Moral Case Deliberation is an example of group reflection on moral issues through dialogue.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000006-QINU`"' In MCD, a morally troublesome situation is investigated by a group, guided by a facilitator. During the investigation, the conflicting values in the situation are examined in dialogue.
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Failures to disclose conflicts of interests should be investigated on the basis of institutional codes of conduct for research integrity. +
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Core parts of the learning pathways are based on case studies because experience has shown that they are particularly suitable to promote knowledge and foster skills conducive to acting ethically and with integrity in research. More specifically, the case studies allow learners to reflect on what they have learned and to apply newly acquired skills to concrete examples. Moreover, learners can assess their knowledge by answering a set of questions and obtaining feedback on their responses via email. Thus, the ENERI Classroom is an interactive and responsive learning platform.
The cases in the resources section on the Embassy as well as the educational scenarios developed by the EnTIRE project that are available in the educational resources section can complement the ENERI Classroom by adding further issues of interest and/or elaborating existing ones. +
The ENERI Decision Tree summarizes and links to many important laws, regulations, codes and other documents that can help researchers to work ethically and with integrity and that can support RECs and RIOs in performing their roles adequately and fulfilling their responsibilities. More detailed information on all topics covered in the Decision Tree is available in the ENERI Manual on Research Ethics and Research Integrity. Besides, the [[Resource:C386dbba-2f69-4257-89c2-903898cf1f12|ENERI Classroom]] as well as the [[Guide:Bbe860a3-56a9-45f7-b787-031689729e52|VIRT2UE Training Guide]] provide access to educational materials on research ethics and research integrity that help fostering skills conducive to ethical reflection.
Furthermore, the [https://embassy.science/wiki-wiki/index.php/Special:BrowseData/Resource?_search_Resource_Type%5B0%5D=Cases cases] in the resources section of the Embassy as well as the educational scenarios developed by EnTIRE that are available in the [https://embassy.science/wiki-wiki/index.php/Special:BrowseData/Resource?_search_Resource_Type%5B0%5D=Education educational resources] section can be used for further reflections and deliberations on specific research ethics and research integrity problems. +
All European Academies (ALLEA) published a revised and updated European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity (ECoC), in which it emphasized the importance of addressing ethics and research integrity. The ECoC defines principles and practices of good research, and includes the virtues of reliability, honesty, respect and accountability. Usually philosophers consider honesty and the following characteristics to be epistemic virtues: attentiveness, benevolence (principle of charity), creativity, curiosity, discernment, humility, objectivity, parsimony, studiousness, understanding, warranty, and wisdom. '"`UNIQ--ref-00000004-QINU`"'
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- Exercising necessary care and competence, even in the face of pressure
- Exercise social responsibility
- Data management and publication practices
- Ensure that research is free from vested interests +
The ASA Ethical Guidelines present the responsibilities that researchers have with research participants, funders, sponsors, employers, host governments and the discipline of anthropology in general. +
<div>Addressing the ethical challenges of human digital twins requires a combination of technological, regulatory, and social approaches.</div><div>One important best practice is privacy-by-design, meaning that systems are designed from the beginning to minimize data collection, protect sensitive information (e.g., federated learning to avoid central data storage), and ensure strong cybersecurity measures.</div><div>Another key principle is transparent governance. Developers and organizations should clearly explain how digital twins are created, what data they use, and how predictions or simulations are generated via open-source audits or explainable AI tools. Transparency helps build trust and allows users to make informed decisions.</div><div>Dynamic and ongoing consent mechanisms are also essential. Because digital twins evolve over time, consent should not be a one-time agreement but an ongoing process allowing individuals to update or withdraw permissions as technologies change, with easy “kill switches” for twins.</div><div>In addition, fairness and bias mitigation strategies must be implemented in AI models that power digital twins. This includes diverse training datasets (prioritizing global representation), continuous monitoring of algorithmic performance, and independent audits.</div><div>Finally, multidisciplinary collaboration is crucial. Ethical governance of digital twins should involve not only engineers and data scientists but also ethicists, legal experts, healthcare professionals, and representatives of affected communities. Research communities should pilot these in controlled studies to refine standards.</div> +
Best practices in digital psychiatry focus on balancing innovation with patient rights and safety. Protecting privacy is key, as mental health data is sensitive and vulnerable to misuse. Transparency is essential—patients should know how digital tools work and how their data is handled.
AI and digital tools should support, not replace, human care. Digital mental health tools should undergo rigorous testing to prove their effectiveness and safety.
Improving digital literacy can help people make informed choices about their care. Ethical guidelines and clear regulations should evolve alongside technology to protect patients and ensure responsible innovation. By prioritizing fairness, privacy, and accountability, digital psychiatry can truly benefit those who need it most. +
