Scholarly Communications: Publication Ethics
This guide provides useful information on scholarly publishing, such as finding the best journal, author identity, or promoting publications and communications.
Ethical Research & Publishing Practice
Ethical research and publishing practice is fundamental in upholding academic and research integrity. Several types of ethical issues and problems can arise throughout the publishing process including:
- Plagiarism and self-plagiarism
- Definition and attribution of authorship
- Failure to acquire ethics approval or participant consent
- Data falsification or manipulation of results
- Failure to disclose conflicts of interest
- Breaches of copyright
- Duplicate submissions of manuscripts
- UCD Office of Research EthicsPolicies and guidelines for researchers at UCD, as well as information on ethical best practice.
- European Code of Conduct for Research IntegrityPublished by ALLEA, the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities.
- European Network of Research Integrity OfficesIncludes documents and links to codes and guidelines on research integrity, good practices, misconduct, training and education.
- Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)COPE provides advice to editors and publishers on all aspects of publication ethics, including guidance on retraction, plagiarism and other ethical concerns.
- What is Ethics in Research & Why is it Important?Article by Dr. David B. Resnik, Bioethicist and Chair of the US National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences IRB. - Publishing & Research Ethics (Elsevier)Online tutorials and other learning materials from Elsevier publishers discussing the major types of scientific misconduct and how to avoid them.
Research Ethics and Integrity for Social Scientists by ISBN: 9781446207499Publication Date: 2014This book surveys the recent developments and debates around researching ethically and with integrity and complying with ethical requirements.
Research Ethics by ISBN: 9780521187084Publication Date: 2013Part A introduces egoism and explains that it is in the individual's own interest to avoid misconduct, fabrication of data, plagiarism and bias. Part B explains contractualism and covers issues of authorship, peer review and responsible use of statistics. Part C introduces moral rights as the basis of informed consent, the use of humans in research, mentoring, intellectual property and conflicts of interests.
Ethics and Authorship
Publication Ethics in UCD
UCD has a number of authorship and research integrity policies with which you should familiarise yourself. Clicking on the links below will download a PDF version of the policy for you to read:
UCD Policy on Research Integrity
UCD Procedure for the investigation of misconduct in research
UCD Authorship policy
- What constitutes authorship? COPE Discussion DocumentA discussion document from the Committee on Publication Ethics aimed at publishers, but may also provide guidance for researchers in cases where defining authorship can be problematic e.g. collaborative groups and where there are multiple authors and collaborators.
- Defining the Role of Authors and ContributorsGuidance from the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors on the role of authors and non-author contributors.
- How to determine who should be an author of a paper?A workable procedure for determining authorship that authors can follow during the preparation and publication of an article. Produced by The European Association of Science Editors (EASE).
Ethics and Peer Review
Peer reviewers also have ethical obligations and responsibilities in helping to uphold research integrity. The links below provide guidance and advice for reviewers, authors and others involved in the publishing process:
- COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer ReviewersThe COPE Ethical Guidelines for
Peer Reviewers set out the basic principles and standards to which all peer reviewers should adhere during
the peer-review process. - Peer Review Resources by Yale UniversityIncludes a guide for manuscript reviewers and an overview of ethical issues in peer review.
Peer Review and Manuscript Management in Scientific Journals by ISBN: 9781405131599Publication Date: 2007Peer Review and Manuscript Management in Scientific Journals provides guidance on all aspects of peer review, from manuscript submission to final decision.
- Tutorial: Peer ReviewTutorial produced by University of Manchester - covers things to consider before agreeing to serve as a reviewer and good practice when writing reviews.
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