queensland university of technology cricos no. 00213j managing your research: the researcher’s...

Queensland University of Technology

CRICOS No. 00213J

Managing your Research: The Researcher’s Toolkit

Research Conduct, IP and Ethics

Dr Paige Maguire

Oct 2012

CRICOS No. 00213Ja university for the worldrealR

Aims for today

• To understand the research environment today– Today’s Research Context– IP in the context of my research– Research conduct

• To examine and understand best practices in research practices and research management

• To identify your training, development and support needs


Topics to be covered today

• Context of Research Environment• IP and Managing Research Outcomes (IP)• Research ethics and legal issues• Managing your career and identifying needs


Context of the Academic Research Environment Today

• Universities use internal, external and government funds to finance research

• External and government funds stipulate conditions on use of funds and rights to research outcomes

• Universities promulgate policies which direct research practices, ethical considerations, ownership of research, management of research funds and personnel, and supervision of students

• External funding might not be inline with these policies

• Researchers generally also have teaching responsibilities

• Universities are benchmarked on research quality (publication impact factor etc), funding quantum and quality (ERA) and teaching statistics, and increasingly community benefit (eg commercialisation)

• Best practice research management are central to most of these


Many responsibilities of a research leader in today’s environment

1. Must understand the policies and cultural principles of their employer

2. Must understand funding environment and any stipulations relating to funding

3. Must manage staff and promote good research practices

4. Must mentor and supervise students and early career researchers

5. Must increase quality and impact of research

6. Must seek and manage research funds

7. Must ensure all ethical considerations are followed


Researching

Supervising

Budgeting

Grant writing Publishing

Teaching

Managing IP

Funding Obligations

Collaboratio

ns


What does this mean for a researcher?

Must develop and apply skills in:• Managing and developing a research project to achieve key

research goals (despite funding uncertainties)• Supervising and managing individuals on technical and non-

technical matters• Managing conflicting and competing needs of individuals, teams,

line-managers• Managing reporting and financial obligations• Motivating, appraising and mentoring• Developing and applying ‘best practices’ in line with institutional

policies• Managing your own career needs


So....

• Researchers must understand and devise strategies to:– Manage research and research outcomes (IP)– Ensure research conduct is best practice and ethical– Understand their funding, policy and procedural

environment


What is Intellectual Property (IP)?• New ideas, discoveries, inventions, concepts. . . that are the

result of intellectual endeavour• IP is any right that results from ‘creations of the mind’• Doesn’t need to be a registered right to be IP• Doesn’t need to be “commercialisable” to be IP• Can be:

• Owned• Bought• Sold• Rented• Destroyed• Improved

. . . just like physical property


Defining IP

• Common misconception that there “is no IP” in research projects

• In the research context: IP = research outcomes, not necessary that they are patentable outcomes

• When discussing IP, most are actually referring to the methods to protect the IP or the rights that reside in the IP


Who develops, manages or uses QUT research IP?


Types of IP protection

• Non-registered rights– Confidential information / trade secrets– Copyright ©– Circuit layout rights– Non-registered trade marks TM

• Registered rights– Patents– Trademarks ®– Registered designs– Plant breeders rights

CONFIDENTIAL


Types of IP protection

Intellectual Property Rights

Patents

Trademarks

Registered Designs

PBRs

Trade Secrets

Copyright

CLRs

Non-Registered Trademarks

Unregistered(green)

Registered(pink)


Applying IP rights to the research context

• Patent – a new polymer, formula, device, agent, chemical, biological, gadget, mechanism etc

• Copyright – a manuscript, report to industry, survey instrument, artistic work, code, teaching materials, abstracts, grant reports etc

• Trade Secret - methods, knowledge, know how and your expertise which are not in the public domain

• Circuit layout rights - Circuit to control a device • Plant Breeders rights – new plant variants• Registered design – new design• Trademark – branding, usually only for University- wide branding


Unregistered IPRs

• Automatically exist upon the creation of the work

• Do not require formal legal protection or registration

• Are often exchanged/used in informal collaborations

• Go unchecked until formalisation of relationships is required


Copyright

• Protects the original expression of ideas, NOT the ideas themselves

• Right is automatically and free (ie no registration required)

• Covers original works of art, literature, music, films, broadcasts and software from copying– Student thesis– Publications

• Generally lasts 70 years from the year of the author's death or from the year of first publication.


Copyright is a bundle of rights which allows the owner exclusive rights to:

CopyrightCopy or

reproduce work or subject

matter

Publish

Perform in public

Communicate work/subject

matter in public

Make an adaptation

Rent articles containing ©

e.g. CDs

Prevent importation of

infringing works

Assign (sell) or licence these

rights


Copyright (cont.)

• Does not require registration, automatically exists

• Important to consider for research environment:– Preservation of right to publish– Preservation of ownership and right to important research tools (databases,

survey tools, risk assessment keys, training kits, key indices and tables)– Compliance with agreements/funding rules (must have the rights to give)– Alignment with research goals (abstracts, seminars, web sites, future plans)– Reports in contract research, consultancies, or grant requirements in which

ownership of reports (copyright) is given

Good management of copyright is very important for research and funding success


Patents

• Grants the owner an exclusive right to benefit from its invention in exchange for teaching the public something new

• Exclusive right to exploit (make / hire / sell / use / import)

• Bargain with the government:

– Full public disclosure of the invention

– Right to exclude others from commercially using the invention for a period of 20-25 years

• Basis for suing infringers

• Very $$$$


To register an invention in a patent:

• Three criteria for a granted patent– It must be novel – no one can have already done or thought of or

used it before = must not be publically known (anywhere)

– It must be non-obvious/inventive – cannot be obvious to someone else in your field

– It must have commercial utility / be useful – can’t be unachievable e.g. time machine (you must be able to demonstrate that it works as described)


Typical patent process & costs

$0

$50,000

$100,000

$150,000

$200,000

ProvisionalApplication

PCTApplication

NationalPhase Entry

Examination Renewals

Months

0 12 30

Patent granted

Cumulative cost

Defence>$1m


Not all patents are commercially savvy


Open Access

• Relatively new• Provides rights to use IP for free• Users must attribute original author• Mostly free use of material• But are sometimes conditions on use:

– That they are not used for commercial purposes – No derivatives to made– Make their use available to others

• Most common for copyright (written work, software, e-repositories, journals)• Not relevant to some areas of research, not well understood• Common terms: creative commons licence, open source code, GPL


IP policy??

• D/3.1 MOPP• IP created by staff at QUT is owned by QUT (unless stated

otherwise by contracts etc)• IP created by students is owned by students BUT most IP is jointly

owned• Any net benefit of commercialisation of QUT IP is split 3 ways

between uni, faculty and creators (including students)• But assignment is required in order to commercialise• IP may also be dealt with in external stipends• Students should always seek advice if unsure

http://www.mopp.qut.edu.au/D/D_03_01.jsp


Why is understanding IP relevant to my research?

• Many funding agencies and industry partners require the university to demonstrate and provide research results that are able to be protected and which are not already owned/leased to others

• Australian Code of Conduct for Research requires IP to be managed appropriately

• Good research management = more research income, higher research profile, more collaborations, improved ERA rankings etc

So.......researchers must:• Manage research outcomes (IP)• Manage research dissemination and confidentiality• Manage research integrity


Management of research outcomes should be considered during the following activities:

• New funding applications (new requirements and existing obligations)• Publication of information (formal submissions, abstracts, web sites, media,

seminars)• Sharing information or materials with others outside your university (formal

or informal)• Providing advice or reports to industry• Student seminars• Collaborations• New research agreements/contracts


How do I manage research outcomes/IP?

• Keep good records & laboratory notebooks (Data management)

• Managing dissemination of research outcomes ( i.e. Publications, confidentiality etc)

• Keep your university manager/ research office informed

• Maintain good research practices and integrity in your environment

• Know value of the likely outcomes of any collaboration & what you want from the relationship

• Attend any workshops offered in relation to these concepts

• Seek advice early on best mechanisms & outcomes


Best practice data management

Legal, ethical and policy driven directives to adhere to best practice data management:

• Use hard bound notebooks with numbered pages when manually recording data (no loose leaves)

• Date and sign each page, particularly new data, ideas, or inventions• Don’t erase or remove errors, rather cross over the mistake • If capturing data electronically, ensure that the data is stored in an

appropriate version-controlled repository • Ensure that all data/books are stored within the laboratory or office and kept

confidential from visitors


Research Dissemination - What is a publication?

• Peer reviewed article in a journal• Book• Conference poster, abstract, presentation• Grant abstract, review

Also...• Seminar, external and internal?• Discussions with external colleagues or industry• Web postings• Media articles/interviews• Providing consulting reports• Testing your research outcomes in public


Before you publish...

The data is ready, I need to publishBUT- Best Practice is to establish a publication checklist:

1. What are the institutional policies?

2. What is required by the publisher/recipient of information?

3. Are there obligations on the research?

4. Is the data ready? (Code of conduct)

5. Does this fit with my research plan and objectives?


Before you publish (cont).• Most will have policies on research publication as guidelines for

academics• Australian universities guided my Australian Code of Conduct

(provided) See section 4.1 – SA equivalent?• Policy requires/advises:

– New knowledge should be disseminated– Data should be peer reviewed before release to an unsophisticated audience

(media, industry?)– Reporting to key stakeholders before media– Relevant work cited– Accuracy in data, suppression or selective publication of data– Work only published once (not multiple articles on the same data)* tricky – let’s

discuss in next section– Researcher must consider all of these when deciding if publication can proceed

http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/file/publications/synopses/r39.pdf


Good research conduct = establish a checklist

• Research which has been funded under an agreement may impose obligations relating to publication and confidentiality:– May impose a time period after which publication is allowed or veto it– May require review and approval before publication– May restrict inclusion of certain types of information in publication or in certain fields of

research– If not adhered to, the university is at risk of breach of contract

• Checklist – AM I ABLE TO PUBLISH THIS ? DO I HAVE FUNDING OBLIGATIONS? STUDENT FUNDING OBLIGATIONS?

• Most institutions will have policies which require researchers to report any commercially interesting findings so they can be reviewed for patentability or IP protection – this must be done before public dissemination

• Checklist – DO I NEED TO SPEAK WITH THE UNI IP MANAGERS?


Checklist (cont.)

• Most journals will have editorial requirements and guidelines• Checklist – CAN I COMPLY WITH THE JOURNAL REQUIREMENTS?

COPYRIGHT REQUIREMENTS?

• I want to share my research outcomes to external colleagues or industry. • Checklist – AM I ABLE TO DO THIS? DO I REQUIRE A FORMAL

AGREEMENT?• An agreement may be required:

– Will define who owns and controls the use of the information of the material, the outcomes and any publications

– Very important tool


Checklist (cont.)

• Is my data ready, does it fit with my research plan, have I considered authorship etc? (Code of conduct)

• Checklist – DOES THIS PUBLICATION COMPLY WITH THE CODE OF CONDUCT? HAVE I COMPLIED WITH AUTHORSHIP GUIDELINES?


Research Ethics

3 main areas relevant to the research setting:• Research integrity• Authorship and publication• Formal ethics approvals


Research Ethics: Research Integrity

Most institutions will adhere to a code of good practise

QUT’s core values:• respect for the law and system of government• respect for persons• integrity • diligence • economy and efficiency

How are these embedded in your research practises?


Most codes based on the following principles:

• honesty• competence and care• integrity • objectivity• confidentiality• respect (for life and law/policies)• responsibility


Ethical norms applied to:• Maintaining good scientific practice – upholding the Code • Keeping good records• Questioning your own findings• Attributing contribution properly• Reporting honestly• Supervision

Research Ethics: Research Integrity


Research ethics in practice- Code of Conduct as guidelines

• D/2.6 QUT Code of Conduct for Research in the MOPP• Based on Australian Code for Responsible Conduct of Research• Embeds moral norms in every research practice:

• Research practices - research practices should be justifiable and not unnecessary; should be performed competently and skilfully; all care should be taken; should be done with objectivity and without bias towards an outcome; should be performed in accordance to regulations and laws.

• Supervision – supervision of staff and student should be respectful and competent; should not be biased; should be done responsibly and without discrimination; should be helpful and constructive.

• Collaboration – collaboration with colleagues should be honest and respectful, should be in accordance with institutional policies and obligations.

http://www.mopp.qut.edu.au/D/D_02_06.jsp


• Data collection – data should be collected and interpreted with honesty, objectivity and competency; care should be taken in storing data and related correspondence; critical examination of data and relevant peer data should be frequent.

• Dissemination – publication should be for the advancement of research and not wasteful or careless; research outcomes, procedures and protocols should be reported honestly without fabrication, misrepresentation or falsification; respect for public, peers, funders and the institution should be utmost in honest reporting; institutional obligations should be observed; contribution should be acknowledged fairly and without bias.

Research ethics in practice- code guidelines (cont.)


• Obligations – respect for confidentiality of peers, personnel, funding arrangements, and experimental subjects should be observed; obligations relating to funding and policies should be observed; care should be taken in relation to publication and collaboration; researchers should be honest and disclose conflicts of interest in relation to funding or personal gain.

• Professional development - responsibility in advancing skills and competence throughout one’s career should be practised.

Research ethics in practice- code guidelines (cont.)


Authorship

• 2.6.8 Authorship• The Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research defines authorship as

being based on substantial contributions in a combination of:• conception and design of a project• analysis and interpretation of research data • drafting significant parts of a work or critically revising it so as to contribute to the

interpretation.

• Important to understand with Code in respect to authorship• QUT provides valuable resources to assist in data management and planning for

dissemination of your research see: Dissemination Plan

http://cms.qut.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/220760/dissemination-plan.pdf


What is Plagiarism?

• When you represent someone else’s work as your own.• Quite often it is easily detectable by others (supervisors and markers)• Academic integrity is vital to good research conduct and practices

• Many resources available to help you ensure that you check your work• Submission of work for review through milestones and publications during

candidature is a good strategy for ensuring that the quality of your writing has been considered.


Plagiarism and SafeAssign• In response to an increasing number of instances of plagiarism in HDR theses, the

Research Students Centre in conjunction with the Research Degrees Committee has developed an educative Blackboard site for understanding plagiarism and avoiding it.

• SafeAssign is QUT’s preferred software program for assisting students to identify instances of potential plagiarism in written work and promote appropriate citation.

• QUT strongly recommends that student’s work is submitted to SafeAssign and discussed with their supervisors prior to Confirmation of Candidature. At Confirmation of Candidature, students will note whether they have submitted documents to SafeAssign or not.

• HDR candidates have also been provided with the opportunity of loading other documents into SafeAssign (eg. Confirmation, Final Seminar). Please speak to your supervisors about each report outcome.

http://www.els.qut.edu.au/blendedlearning/blackboard/safeassign.jsp

http://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_89398_1%26url%3D

http://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_89398_1%26url%3D


• Only perform work you are competent in• Be fair and equitable when supervising and collaborating• Ensure research follows ethical standards and requirements• Make sure research is performed safely• Ensure research is recorded accurately and is valid• Seek training to update your skills• Report to and take advice from your manager on ethical conduct• Report and discuss any conflicts of interest with your superiors• Be fair and ethical when reviewing others work under the peer

review system

Research Ethics: How to apply them


Case example

Laura was a final year PhD student and was having some technical difficulties with her project. As a result she decided to try and develop a new method to overcome the problems she was having and so she could produce some data to include in her thesis. Without discussing this with her supervisor, she developed the procedure and produced some initial data which seemed promising.

When Laura discussed this with her supervisor and showed him the data, his response was that it was too late in her PhD to be starting something new and that she should stick with the agreed plan. Laura followed this advice and discontinued the development of this method. A few years later, Laura was a postdoc at a different institution and noticed that her PhD supervisor had published a new paper which used the method Laura had developed.

(fictitious scenario)


Discuss case

• Should Laura have been an author on the paper?• Should Laura discuss this with her ex-Supervisor?• Should Laura alert the journal or the institution at which

she did her PhD studies?• Has her Supervisor breached any codes of conduct?• If you were Laura’s new Supervisor, what would you

advise her to do?


Decision test

1. Is this illegal or breaching any regulations?

2. Does this comply with the code of conduct of my organisation?

3. Does this conform to the spirit of the code of conduct?

4. How would it look in the newspaper or to the general public?

5. What will be the consequences of my decision?


• Formal research ethics at universities based on commitment to uphold:– Research Code of Conduct and best practices– Legal requirements and regulatory compliance– Funding requirements

• Managed and supervised by network of senior advisors which provide advice and direction on research integrity and compliance

• Institution should provide regular training sessions on ethical standards and requirements

• Formal permissions required in areas of human, animal and GM/Biosafety research

Research Ethics: Ethical Requirements


Ethics Approvals

• For research involving humans, animals, GM/biosafety .• Institutions must be accredited for this work (by regulatory bodies

and accreditation is subject to continued compliance)• Work must be done according to National code of conduct

(researchers should be aware of this)• Institution will form ethics committees around each type of work

(composed on internal and external stakeholders)• Researchers should follow guidelines outlining application

processes and submit to the relevant committee• Work cannot proceed until approval has been given


Debrief

• Any reflections on:– Publication checklists?– IP management?– Ethics?


Thanks• Questions?

• Did you know that QUT now has a Graduate Certificate and Masters in Research Management and Commercialisation which is offered 100% online ??

• For more information see:• http://www.egradschool.edu.au/whategsaoffe/awardlevelqu/index.jsp

• If we have time….

http://www.egradschool.edu.au/whategsaoffe/awardlevelqu/index.jsp

http://www.egradschool.edu.au/whategsaoffe/brochures/GCRC_MRMC%20BROCHURE.pdf

queensland university of technology cricos no. 00213j managing your research: the researcher’s...

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