Austrian Agency for Research Integrity Guidelines for Good Scientific Practice
From The Embassy of Good Science
ResourcesGuidelines
Austrian Agency for Research Integrity Guidelines for Good Scientific Practice
What is this about?
The Austrian Agency for Research Integrity (Osterreichische Agentur fur Wissenschaftliche Integritat - OeAWI) works to raise awareness of the standards of good scientific practice among scientists and researchers as well as the general public. It also contributes to ensuring that violations of the standards of good scientific practice are identified and remedied. The organisation works to strengthen the ethos of science and research, and advocates adherence to the code of conduct derived from that ethos. Its activities focus on investigating and preventing misconduct in research and scholarship, not on imposing sanctions for misconduct. Given that violations of the standards of good scientific practice are not necessarily also violations of applicable law, the OeAWI performs its duties as a complement to – but not in competition with – the legal system. Legislation relevant to science and research, the principles of research ethics and the standards of good scientific practice all contribute equally to ensuring a high degree of integrity in research and scholarship.
Why is this important?
The quality of research is a precious asset for every society. Social progress, economic value creation, social living conditions and fairness between generations in shaping the future would all be unimaginable without reliable scientific and scholarly knowledge. Ensuring the quality of that knowledge is the duty of scientists and researchers themselves. Because scientific research can be highly specialised and complex, and because there are various links between science and research, politics, the business world and other actors in society, self-governance in science and research can only be effective if it is codified and institutionalised. As an organisation established by Austria‘s research institutions themselves, the OeAWI makes an important contribution to effective self-governance in the Austrian science and research system.
