Making an allegation
At Murdoch University, a breach is defined as ‘research conduct that does not meet the principles and responsibilities of the Murdoch University Research Integrity Policy and Procedures and/or the Code. It may refer to a single breach or multiple breaches in research conduct’ (Research Integrity Policy, under development).
Breaches can occur on a spectrum from minor (less serious) to major (more serious) breaches. Research misconduct is a possible outcome of an Investigation conducted under the processes in the Research Integrity Procedure (under development).
Minor breaches are usually dealt with at the Preliminary Assessment stage while major breaches may require an Investigation. Matters that relate to research administration (eg unintentional administrative errors, clerical errors or oversights) are usually resolved at the local level. Our Flowchart maps out the process.
The 2018 Guide to managing investigating potential breaches provides examples of potential breaches as follows:
Obtain Advice
If you think your concern requires action, first obtain advice from a Research Integrity Advisor.
Form
When you have sought advice on your concern and are ready to make an allegation about a potential breach in research integrity, visit and download the Research Integrity Allegation Form.
Examples of research misconduct
'"Fraud takes place where there's very little chance of getting caught and if there is a cover-up institutions or individuals are very, very slow to blow the whistle, refuse to blow the whistle or do anything about someone that's accused. In that sort of situation fraud will flourish." - John Talent, 2005
The revised Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research focuses on breaches of the Code. Previously allegations of research misconduct focused predominantly on fabrication, falsification and plagiarism, and did not necessarily represent the full range of potentially unacceptable research behaviour. Generally misconduct is rare, but can be serious when it occurs. Examples from Australia and internationally provide useful information.