Addressing research misconduct in the UK

What is the issue?

Research conducted with integrity encourages public participation in research, garners public support for research funding, ensure the results of research are mobilised effectively, enable research translation and maintain and strengthen a country’s reputation as scientific leader and desirable partner for international research collaboration.

The United Kingdom (UK) Higher Education Institution (HEI) research system relies on a self-regulated approach to upholding the principles of research integrity and addressing poor research practices and misconduct. This means the responsibility for investigating and overseeing research misconduct rests with the individuals and institutions that make up the research system.

Although there is little formal evidence to suggest that the UK’s self-governed model has more misconduct issues than peer countries or countries with other governance models,¹ there are cross-sector concerns about whether the current system for managing research misconduct in UK HEIs is sufficiently robust.² There is also a lack of evidence on effective practices for managing research misconduct and the contexts in which they work best.

How are we helping?

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), on behalf of the UK Committee on Research Integrity (UKCORI), has commissioned RAND Europe to examine the current landscape of practices for addressing research misconduct in the UK HEI research sector and provide evidence on how the current system might be strengthened. This study will deliver evidence and analysis that will guide efforts by the UK Committee on Research Integrity and their cross-sector working group addressing poor research practice and research misconduct. Insights will help to promote research integrity and build consensus, confidence and co-ownership across the UK’s research system. The study will also support international practices for addressing research misconduct by assessing practices within the context of international cross-border collaborations.

To achieve these aims, we will:

1. Produce evidence on current practices in the UK HEI research sector for addressing research misconduct, including how the system manages and reports on individual and institutional instances of misconduct and how these are managed and reported within the HEI sector;
2. Explore research misconduct governance and practices in comparable international models to understand how these systems operate within their respective HEI research sectors;
3. Provide evidence on assurance mechanisms used by non-research sectors to prevent and address instances of misconduct; and
4. Identify opportunities to strengthen or amend current UK practices to address research misconduct.

The study will be carried out through three complementary and intersecting workstreams. Workstream 1 will focus on characterising the governance of research misconduct in the UK HEI research sector at the national and institutional levels, through desk research, roundtable discussions, literature review, and interviews. Workstream 2 will provide evidence on international models for managing research misconduct, using case studies of comparator countries to inform potential adaptations to the UK system. Workstream 3 will explore different models of assurance and governance in sectors outside or adjacent to the UK research system, identifying features that could benefit the UK HEI research sector. The work is informed by the Committee’s cross sector working group on poor research practice and research misconduct. Findings across workstreams will offer insights into how the UK might better address research misconduct in HEIs, exploring beneficial adaptations and how these could be incorporated into the existing system.

It is expected that findings from the report will inform future recommendations by the UK Committee on Research Integrity on how we can strengthen the sectors’ commitment to governance of research integrity and the promotion of good research practice.

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