Teaching academic integrity
Within all bachelor’s and master’s programmes, depending on the type of programme, attention is paid to ensuring that academic research is carried out scrupulously. For each programme, this is done in a way that is appropriate for the discipline in question.
The Netherlands Code of Conduct for Research Integrity lays down the five basic principles of academic research, which in turn serve as guidelines for all employees and students of Leiden University.
Five principles
The Code includes the five principles which form the basis of integrity in research:
Honesty
Honesty means, among other things, reporting the research process accurately, taking alternative opinions and counterarguments seriously, being open about margins of uncertainty, refraining from making unfounded claims, refraining from fabricating or falsifying data or sources and refraining from presenting results more favourably or unfavourably than they actually are.
Scrupulousness
Scrupulousness means, among other things, using
methods that are scientific or scholarly and exercising
the best possible care in designing, undertaking,
reporting and disseminating research.
Transparency
Transparency means, among other things, ensuring that it is clear to others what data the research was based on, how the data were obtained, what and how results were achieved and what role was played by external stakeholders. If parts of the research or data are not to be made public, the researcher must provide a good account of why this is not possible. It must be evident, at least to peers, how the research was conducted and what the various phases of the research process were. At the very least, this means that the line of reasoning must be clear and that the steps in the research process must be verifiable.
Independence
Independence means, among other things, not allowing
the choice of method, the assessment of data, the
weight attributed to alternative statements or the
assessment of others’ research or research proposals
to be guided by non-scientific or non-scholarly
considerations (e.g., those of a commercial or political
nature). In this sense, independence also includes
impartiality. Independence is required at all times in the
design, conduct and reporting of research, although not
necessarily in the choice of research topic and research
question.
Responsibility
Responsibility means, among other things, acknowledging the fact that a researcher does not operate in isolation and hence taking into consideration – within reasonable limits – the legitimate interests of human and animal test subjects, as well as those of commissioning parties, funding bodies and the environment. Responsibility also means conducting research that is scientifically and/or societally relevant.
In the Code, these five principles are further elaborated into 61 standards for good research practices.
Suspicion of an academic integrity violation
Students and employees can report a suspected integrity violation against a current or former employee / PhD candidate. All information will be handled in confidence.
Procedure for students
Procedure for employee >>
