Responsible Conduct of Research
Objectivity & Conflicting Interests in Academic Research

"A conflict of interest is a situation in which someone in a position of trust, such as a lawyer, insurance adjuster, a politician, executive or director of a corporation or a medical research scientist or physician, has competing professional or personal interests. Such competing interests can make it difficult to fulfill his or her duties impartially.  A conflict of interest exists even if no unethical or improper act results from it.  A conflict of interest can create an appearance of impropriety that can undermine confidence in the person, profession, or court system.  A conflict can be mitigated by third party verification or third party evaluation ... but it still exists."  [from Wikipedia]

"As the only land-grant institution in the state, Michigan State University is committed to providing equal educational opportunity to all qualified applicants; to extending knowledge to all people in the state; to melding professional and technical instruction with quality liberal education; to expanding knowledge as an end in itself as well as on behalf of society; to emphasizing the applications of information; and to contributing to the understanding and the solution of significant societal problems. Michigan State University's adherence to academic freedom and open scholarly inquiry supports these essential academic functions."  [from MSU's Mission Statement approved by the Board of Trustees on June 24-25, 1982].  Michigan State University is now advancing a strategic commitment to become recognized worldwide as the United States’ leading land-grant research university for the 21st century.

One of the foundations for earning this recognition is public trust, in Michigan and worldwide.  One factor contributing to public trust is faith that university efforts are carried out as objectively as possible. The Spring 2007 issue of the Research Integrity Newsletter addresses the meaning of "objectivity" and the importance of striving to minimize bias.  This workshop will highlight and discuss issues and examples from varying disciplinary perspectives, including why objectivity is important to graduate students and why graduate students themselves should strive to be objective.

Resources

MSU Conflict of Interest Environment

Michigan State Law
    - Contracts of Public Servants with Public Entities

Board of Trustees
    - Bylaws - Outside Employment

University Policies
    - Conflict of Interest in Employment
    - Conflict of Interest in Educational Responsibilities Resulting from Consensual Amorous or Sexual Relationships
    - Standards of Official Conduct for Deans, Separately Reporting Directors, and Executive Managers

Academic Human Resources Policies
    - Supervision of Academic Work by Relatives
    - Outside Work for Pay
    - Conflicts of Interest, Faculty

Research & Creative Activity Guidelines
    - Conflict Situations
    - Interim Guidelines for Potential Conflicts of Interest in Academic Areas of the University
    - Guidelines for Potential Conflicts of Interest Pertaining to Applications for NSF and PHS Research Support
    - IRB Member and Investigator Conflict of Interest

MSU Extension
    - Conflict of Interest

Business Procedures: Section 76 – Independent Contractors
     - Professional, Personal Services Contract with Independent Investigator

Research Mentoring Task Force Report
     - Guidelines for Integrity in Research and Creative Activities

U.S. Public Health Service, Office of Research Integrity
    - Responsible Conduct of Research Resources - Conflicts of  Interest

Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
     - Financial Conflicts of Interest in Research-- Shared Responsibility, Individual Integrity

Council on Governmental Relations
     - Recognizing and Managing Personal Financial Conflicts of Interest

Association of American Universities
    - Report on Individual and Institutional Financial Conflict of Interest

National Institutes of Health - Conflict Of Interest, Confidentiality And Non Disclosure Rules For NIH Peer Reviewers
    - Information For Reviewers Of Grant Applications And R&D Contract Proposals
    - NIH Pre-Review Certification Form
    - NIH Post-Review Certification Form

Publications

J. E. Bekelman, Y. Li and C.P. Gross. 2003. Scope and Impact of Financial Conflicts of Interest in Biomedical Research: A Systematic Review. JAMA 289(4):454-465.

Laura M. Brockway and Leo T. Furcht. 2006. Conflicts of interest in biomedical research— the FASEB guidelines. The FASEB Journal 20:2435-2438.

Catherine D. DeAngelis.  2006.  Editorial: The Influence of Money on Medical Science.  JAMA 296:996-998.

Council of Science Editors.  Approved September 13, 2006.  White Paper on Promoting Integrity in Scientific Journal Publications.  71 pp.

FASEB Fact Sheet.  Released May 23, 2005.  Academia-industry-government relations in research.  11 pp.

FASEB White Paper.  Released July 14, 2006.  Shared responsibility, Individual Integrity: Scientists Addressing Conflicts of Interest in Biomedical Research.  28 pp.

International Committee on Medical Journal Editors. Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals: Writing and Editing for Biomedical Publication.  February 2006 Revision.
     - Conflicts of Interest

MSU Research Integrity Newsletter.  Spring 2007.  Objectivity and Conflict of Interest.  24 pp.

The New England Journal of Medicine Editorial Policies.

Pimple, K.D. 2002. Six Domains of Research Ethics: A Heuristic Framework for the Responsible Conduct of Research. Science and Engineering Ethics 8:191-205. (by permission through the Poynter Center, Indiana University)

Registration

Registration at least one week before the workshop is required.

Register by Email: gradwrsp@msu.edu - Please provide your name, phone number, email address, and department.

Persons with disabilities should contact the Graduate School at 517-353-3231 to request special arrangements no later than one week prior to the session date. Requests received after this date will be met when possible.