These three video vignettes explore dilemmas often experienced by graduate students in areas of research misconduct, conflicts of interest, and authorship designation. Each is followed by a set of questions to stimulate discussion among viewers.
Use
If you are interested in showing these vignettes for your group, contact Dan Vasgird, Ph.D., Director of Research Compliance Services in the Office of Research Responsibility. We may be able to provide a DVD with higher-resolution video or a representative to help facilitate the discussion.
Credits
These vignettes are provided by the UNL Office of Research and Graduate Studies with funding from the National Science Foundation and the Council of Graduate Schools. The vignettes were produced by Nebraska Educational Television with a cast of actors from the Department of Theatre Arts in the roles of professors and students in realistic laboratory and office settings.
Situation 1: Research Misconduct
3:07.05, 6.89 MB
Cast of Characters:
Dr. Parker - male, professor, directs the research conducted by Khatira and Marie
Khatira - female, international graduate student
Marie - female, post-doctoral student
Discussion:
Was it appropriate for Dr. Parker to act in the way in which he did, and did he contribute to the situation that occurred?
Data collection and proper record keeping are important responsible conduct of research topics. Independent of the possibility that Khatira may be involved in manipulating research data, what issues surround the way in which she used her laboratory notebook?
If science and engineering are fields of study that are inherently self-correcting due to their discovery replication requirements, why are federal laws and institutional regulations against research misconduct even necessary?
Khatira seems a bit skeptical of Marie's assertion that all is well with her research. What is her responsibility given Marie's assurances? Who can Khatira speak to about this situation?
Situation 2: Conflict of Interest
3:17.53, 7.39 MB
Cast of Characters:
Courtney - female, graduate student, works under the direction of Dr. Wallis
Javier - male, graduate student, works under the direction of Dr. Carson
Discussion:
Why are conflict of interest issues of any importance to a university?
What conflict of interest issues are portrayed in this vignette?
Is Dr. Wallis acting properly in the way he uses his time, and is it in violation of any of the university's policies?
What responsibility does Javier have to inform Dr. Carson about his new employer's expectation that he will use his dissertation research at Richardson Pharmaceuticals?
Who can Courtney speak to about this situation?
Situation 3: Authorship
2:41.49, 5.85 MB
Cast of Characters:
Hiro - male, international graduate student, works under the direction of Dr. Kim
Sam - male, graduate student
Dr. Jones - female, professor and senior colleague to Dr. Kim
Discussion:
What is proper authorship, and why does it matter?
Although many journals subscribe to standard practices for authorship designation, some don't. What are the implications and responsibilities for submitting papers where all authors have not contributed significantly to the research?
What authorship issues affected both Hiro and Sam?
Was it appropriate for Dr. Jones to be listed as the second author?
Why might Hiro have been so quick to defend the authorship designation of Dr. Jones?
Who can Sam and Hiro speak to about their authorship issues?
