Background
In the last few years the concept of “open science” has been getting increased attention in Norwegian and international research organizations. This concept is now included in strategy documents, guidelines, and regulations and has become an important part of academic curricula with a corresponding increase in the amount of time spent advising and supporting open science. Many funding agencies and publishers have also included openness as a prerequisite.
Along with the increasing focus on open science has come a focus on research integrity, which was already in the spotlight because of a lack of transparency and a widespread use of dubious research practices. We have seen that the relationship between open science and research integrity has become more obvious, since the former is about ethical values as much as it is about technical solutions and initiatives.
Ph.D. candidates are the next generation of researchers. They should be given instruction and advice about good research practices which is targeted to their level and which prepares them to meet the requirements and expectations they face, in a considered, informed manner.
The project
This research project is a multi-institutional study of research integrity and open science (open access publication and open data) with a focus on Ph.D. candidates in Norway. These concepts are explored individually and in relationship to each other. By investigating the knowledge, attitudes, and norms associated with these areas (research integrity and open science) the project has the following goals: 1. To improve the education and training that is offered to Ph.D. candidates. 2. To assist in the development of relevant support services offered by universities and university colleges
3. To contribute to research both regionally, nationally and internationally by providing empirical data.
Data are collected through focus group interviews and a survey. The project is hoping to identify differences between participants based on how far along they are in their Ph.D projects as well as by research field and type of institution. For this reason the project will collect a minimal amount of personal information which will be managed according to the relevant regulations.
The project is approved by the Norwegian Centre for Research Data (NSD) with the project reference number 960709.
Title
The full title of the project is Research integrity and open science: Knowledge, attitudes, and norms among PhD candidates i Norway. An already much used abbreviation is RIOS-PHD.