Research policies and guidelines are a set of principles, regulations, and procedures that govern the conduct of research within an organization or institution. They provide a framework for ensuring ethical practices, integrity,
and compliance with relevant laws and regulations. Research policies and guidelines typically cover a wide range of areas related to research activities.
The common components of SPIDER’s Research Policies and Guidelines are:
Ethical Considerations: Research policies outline ethical standards and considerations that researchers must adhere to. These may include guidelines for obtaining informed consent from participants, protecting the rights and welfare of human subjects, ensuring privacy and confidentiality, and addressing potential conflicts of interest.
Research Integrity: Policies on research integrity promote honesty, transparency, and accountability in research. They define expectations for data collection, analysis, reporting, and authorship. These policies may address issues such as plagiarism, data fabrication or falsification, and responsible data management and sharing. Funding and Grant Management: Guidelines for research funding and grant management ensure proper administration and stewardship of research funds. They outline processes for proposal development, budgeting, financial reporting, and compliance with funding agency requirements.
Intellectual Property: Policies related to intellectual property address ownership, protection, and commercialization of research outcomes. They specify the rights and responsibilities of researchers, institutions, and sponsors regarding patents, copyrights, trademarks, and technology transfer.
Research Collaboration and Partnerships: Guidelines for research collaborations and partnerships define expectations and procedures for working with external organizations, including industry partners, other research institutions, and international collaborators. They may address intellectual property, data sharing, confidentiality, and conflict resolution.
Research Misconduct: Policies on research misconduct define and address actions that violate ethical standards or research integrity. They outline procedures for reporting, investigating, and addressing allegations of research misconduct, including fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, or other unethical behavior.
Human Subjects Research: Guidelines for human subjects research ensure compliance with ethical and regulatory requirements for research involving human participants. They provide procedures for obtaining informed consent, conducting ethical review and oversight, and protecting the rights and welfare of participants.
Animal Research: Policies and guidelines related to animal research focus on the ethical and humane treatment of animals in research. They establish protocols for animal care, handling, use, and ethical review to ensure compliance with relevant laws and regulations.
Data Management and Research Integrity: Policies on data management outline procedures for data collection, storage, retention, and sharing. They address issues such as data security, data ownership, data sharing agreements, and adherence to data protection regulations.
Research Ethics Committees: Guidelines for research ethics committees (also known as institutional review boards or ethics review boards) outline their composition, roles, responsibilities, and review processes for ensuring ethical conduct of research involving human participants.