Code of Conduct in Research
It is a basic assumption that researchers are committed to the highest standards of professional conduct when undertaking and supervising research. They have a duty to maintain the highest standards of probity in research applicable to their discipline and to the good standing of the University. Researchers in this context are University staff members and postgraduate students.
These standards include:
- rigorous opposition to all forms of fraud, including misrepresentation and falsification of results
- observance of the highest standards of safety in relation to themselves, their co-workers and research participants
- maintenance of confidentiality where appropriate and full attribution of the sources of assistance and guidance
- acknowledgement of authorship of all published material.
Researchers should participate only in work which conforms to agreed ethical standards and which they are competent to perform.
Disclosure of potential conflict of interest
Disclosure of any potential conflict of interest is essential for the responsible conduct of research. Such disclosure must be made to the relevant authorities which will include a funding or sponsoring agency and the chairperson of the relevant department or research centre of the University. Any such declarations to outside organisations should be made through the Research & Enterprise Office and will require the approval of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research.
Health and safety
Institutions and research workers have a responsibility to ensure the safety of all those associated with research. Staff should ensure that all research workers and candidates under their supervision are aware of the relevant codes and policies on health and safety, and receive appropriate instruction and information of such codes and policies.
Misconduct in research
| Fabrication of data | by claiming results where none have been obtained |
|---|---|
| Falsification of data | by changing records or falsely claiming the use of techniques, methods or levels of precision |
| Plagiarism | including the direct copying of handwritten, typed, printed or published text or notation; use of other people's data, arguments or literature reviews without appropriate acknowledgement or permission; and deliberate use of published or unpublished ideas from other people without adequate attribution or permission for such use |
| Misleading ascription of authorship | including listing of authors without their permission where this is relevant, attributing work to others who have not contributed to the research, and failing to acknowledge work primarily produced by a postgraduate student, trainee or associate |
| Other practices that deviate from those accepted within the research community | for proposing, conducting or reporting research, such as intentional infringement of the University's code of ethical behaviour. |
Misconduct does not include honest error or honest difference in the interpretation or judgement of data.
Procedures for dealing with misconduct in research are set out in detail in the "Handbook for Research and Outside Professional Activities" available to University of Waikato staff on the website or from the Research & Enterprise Office.
Inclusion of a candidate’s published work in their doctoral thesis
Doctoral candidates are encouraged to publish material they have developed as part of their doctoral thesis research during the time of their doctoral enrolment.
There are two ways of including this material in the thesis submission. One way is through a PhD with Publication which includes the actual publications as chapters in the thesis. The other way is by referencing the publication(s).
If you are not submitting the publications as part of the thesis, you cannot duplicate material from those publications in the thesis. You need to appropriately and fully reference the work as you would any publication by other authors that are in the public domain.
Referencing your own previously published work is known as self-citation. It is important to give citations when ideas, data, etc have been discussed in your previous publications. Correct self-citation conveys the level of originality in a publication accurately and enables readers to understand the development of ideas over time.
If you have produced publications from the thesis research that are not included in the thesis in their entirety, but which play an important role in the original contribution made to knowledge by the thesis research, you should, within the body of the thesis and likely in the introduction, detail the publication that has come out of the thesis research. This is in addition to fully referencing that publication. If the publication was co-authored you should provide details of your contribution and the other authors’ contributions to that publication. You should also complete a Co-authorship Form and include this in the thesis appendices.
Guidelines for Authorship of Publications from Theses and Dissertations
The Guidelines for Authorship of Publications from Theses and Dissertations are designed to provide students and staff with clarity around the authorship and publication of work contributing to and deriving from student research theses/dissertations/and projects. The guidelines seek to ensure that all contributing and participating authors of a published work developed out of, or as part of, a thesis/dissertation/project receive the appropriate level of recognition for their work.