Research Integrity Policy

This policy applies to all research staff, students, supervisors, and other researchers who are involved in the design and delivery of University research and related activities.

To articulate the responsibilities within the University community for conducting research in accordance with the highest standards of research integrity.

These responsibilities are designed to:

• reflect the University’s purpose and values,
• enhance trust and confidence in research by promoting Good Research Practices (GRPs) and avoiding research misconduct and Questionable Research Practices (QRPs),
• enable an honest and ethical research culture by requiring adherence to Good Research Practice principles (derived from the Singapore Statement 2010, and 2019 update) -
  • Honesty - in all aspects of research work,
  • Accountability and rigour - in development, conducting and reporting of research,
  • Fairness – in working with others,
  • Good stewardship – on behalf of others,
  • Transparency – of research process, presentation of results, declaring interests,
  • Clarity - communication to be understandable, explainable and accessible,
  • Recognition - value and respect the diversity, heritage, knowledge, cultural property of mana whenua, tangata whenua, iwi, hapū, Pacific peoples and other communities.

Guidance to fulfil these responsibilities is available in the Good Research Practice (GRP) Guidance.

University Responsibilities

The University is responsible for:

1. Developing and maintaining a Research Integrity Promotion Plan to foster a culture of research integrity and the good research practice, giving consideration to diverse types of research and groups, including Māori and Pacific research and researchers.

2. Providing policies, pathways and ethics and regulatory committees for researchers to obtain the necessary guidance and ethics or regulatory approvals where required.

3. Maintaining guiding principles to enable the approval and functioning of the University’s institutional human ethics committees according to the requirements of the Health Research Council and National Ethics Advisory Committee.

4. Maintaining a Code of Ethical Conduct to enable the Animal Ethics Committee to review and approve animal research, testing and teaching activities, and that states the University’s commitment to the principles of Replacement, Reduction and Refinement (the 3Rs) in all animal research, testing and teaching.

5. Supporting the responsible dissemination of research findings and, where necessary, taking action to correct the scientific record in a timely manner.

6. Providing mechanisms for receiving, investigating and resolving concerns or complaints about potential breaches of this policy.

7. Providing mechanisms and protecting those who disclose concerns or allegation of research misconduct.

8. Adopting policies from external institutions where required to satisfy the provision of grant funding from those institutions to University researchers provided that those policies do not conflict with the University’s policies and procedures.

Researcher Responsibilities

Researchers are responsible for:

9. Attaining familiarity with, and adhering to, all laws, institutional policies, contractual obligations, ethical requirements, data sovereignty principles and other regulatory and compliance obligations that apply to the research and related activities.

10. Obtaining all necessary institutional approvals as well as ethics committee and regulatory approvals when required, and ensuring that the conditions of such approvals and undertakings made to human participants are adhered to during and after the research activities.

11. Engaging with research participants, communities and collaborators in accordance with applicable University policies and procedures, including those relating to privacy and ethics.

12. Ensuring that any research involving animals is undertaken in accordance with applicable codes of conduct, ethics committee approvals, and the principles of Replacement, Reduction and Refinement (the 3Rs).

13. Ensuring that the research design is transparent and well-considered, the research methods are appropriate for the aims of the research and that the conclusions are supported by the results.

14. Sharing positive, negative and null research findings openly, honestly and accurately in ways that facilitate verification or replication.

15. Ensuring transparency in communications about the assumptions influencing the research and the robustness of the evidence, including limitations of the research and remaining uncertainties and knowledge gaps.

16. Recognising the authorship of those researchers who made a significant intellectual or scholarly contribution to a research output, and acknowledging the work and contributions of those who do not meet the criteria for authorship.

17. Giving proper credit to the original work and ideas of others.

18. Ensuring that errors or inaccuracies in published research records are corrected once identified.

19. Acknowledging affiliation with the University on publications and other presentations.

20. When participating in peer review processes internal and external to the University, providing fair and rigorous evaluations.

21. Undertaking relevant professional development to obtain and maintain knowledge and competencies, including any essential learning required by the University.

22. Maintaining full and accurate records of research activities to enable transparency and reproducibility in publication of research work, including where appropriate data, metadata, protocols, code, software and other research data and primary materials.

23. Ensuring the appropriate use and storage of research data in accordance with the Research Data Management Policy and Research Data Classification Standard.

24. Ensuring that risks associated with conducting research are assessed and managed.

25. Adhering to University policies and standards pertaining to the use of artificial intelligence (including Generative Artificial Intelligence), including generating research data, and disclosing the use of such tools in research outputs and funding applications.

26. Disclosing and managing any actual, potential or perceived conflicts of interest in accordance with the University’s Conflict of Interest Policy.

27. Ensuring proper and conscientious use of research funds in accordance with funder and institutional requirements, and submitting reports as required by Funding bodies according to the Research Reporting Policy.

28. Not engaging in any form of research misconduct, including plagiarism, fabrication and falsification, or Questionable Research Practices, and refraining from putting others under pressure to engage in research misconduct or Questionable Research Practices.

29. Adhering to the requirements of research integrity or research misconduct policies of external institutions, as adopted by the University where relevant to their research.

Note - This includes the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Public Health Service Policies on Research Misconduct (42 CFR 93; Final Rule).

30. Reporting any suspected breaches of this policy. 

Supervisor Responsibilities

Supervisors are responsible for:

31. Ensuring all University policies and procedures relating to supervision of students are adhered to.

32. Providing guidance and support to students on the application of this policy to student research projects, including research data management, research record keeping, and supporting students to undertake appropriate training where required.

33. Providing guidance and support to students on ethical publication practices, including guidance about authorship criteria according to the Authorship and Publication Guidelines.

General

34. Researchers and supervisors must carry out their responsibilities as set out in this policy.

Note - Non-compliance with the responsibilities set out in this policy will be investigated and if found to be research misconduct, the Academic Staff Disciplinary Procedures, Professional Staff Disciplinary Procedures or the Student Academic Conduct Statute will apply (as applicable). If the non-compliance is a QRP, appropriate corrective action of the research record or other remedies will be required.

The following definitions apply to this document:

• Authorship has the meaning set out in the Authorship and Publication Guidelines.
• Conflict of interest has the meaning set out in the Conflict of Interest Policy and the Conflict of Interest Procedures and the Conflict of Interest Guidelines.
• Fabrication means making up data or results and recording them as if they were real.
• Falsification means manipulating research materials, equipment, images, or processes, or changing, omitting, or suppressing data or results without justification.
• Generative Artificial Intelligence has the meaning set out in the Generative Artificial Intelligence Usage Standard.
• Plagiarism means using other people’s work, including ideas, processes, results or words without giving proper credit.
• Related activities include engagement activities and routine standard practice such as data collection.
• Research has the meaning adopted by the University, currently based on the Tertiary Education Commission guidance (as updated from time to time).
• Research data has the meaning set out in the Research Data Management Policy.
• Research Misconduct includes fabrication, falsification, plagiarism and other research conduct that is in serious breach of the responsibilities set out in this Policy and can include repeated or sustained QRPs.
• Questionable Research Practices (QRPs) are deviations from the responsibilities set out in this Policy that do not meet the threshold of research misconduct.

Note: Honest errors are not considered to be a QRP or research misconduct.

• Research staff means all staff members employed to undertake research as part of their employment agreement with the University.
• Researcher includes research staff, students, honorary appointees, adjunct appointees, visitors and contractors that undertake research at the University or using University resources, or otherwise on behalf of the University.
• Student means any person enrolled in a degree, diploma or certificate course at the University whose enrolment includes undertaking research.
• Supervisor has the meaning set out in the Doctoral Supervision Policy and Procedures and the Masters by Research Supervision Guidelines.
• University means Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland and includes all subsidiaries.

• Conflict of Interest Policy
• Doctoral Supervision Policy and Procedures
• Ethics Review of Research Involving Human Participants Policy
• Honorary Appointment Policy and Procedures
• Intellectual Property Created by Staff and Students Policy
• Open Access Policy
• Openness in Animal Research and Teaching Policy
• Research Data Management Policy
• Research Reporting Policy
• Code of Ethical Conduct for the Use of Animals for Research, Testing and Teaching
• Generative Artificial Intelligence Usage Standard
• Research Data Classification Standard
• Authorship and Publication Guidelines
• Good Research Practice Guidance
• Masters by Research Supervision Guidelines
• Guiding Principles for Conducting Research involving Human Participants
• Research Charter for Aotearoa New Zealand
• Singapore Statement on Research Integrity
• Taumata Teitei – Vision 2030 and Strategic Plan 2025
• Te Mana Raraunga Principles of Māori Data Sovereignty
• United States Public Health Service Policies on Research Misconduct

Owner: Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research & Innovation
Content manager: Director, Te Puna Tiketike|Research and Innovation Office
Approved by: Vice-Chancellor
Date approved: 3 February 2025
Review date: 3 February 2030