The Foundations of Research Ethics for Engineers: A Proposal to Develop a Curricular Package for Graduate Engineering Programs

尽管过去20年有关研究伦理的文献越来越多地集中在对研究不当行为的调查和定义上，但很少有工作涉及如何向新兴研究人员--我们的研究生--传授负责任的行为和研究传播。媒体和学术界对研究和出版不当行为的指控比比皆是。随着研究和出版手段每天都被新发现的数字能力所倍增，知识产权方面的是非问题变得越来越复杂。围绕以下问题的持续辩论加剧了这种困惑：不同领域之间的抄袭或数据呈现规则有何不同；互联网如何改变知识产权的边界。一些人认为，现在是彻底重新审视我们的版权和合理使用概念的时候了。因此，难怪研究生们对学术研究的挑战毫无准备。在这个项目中，绩效指标将建立在最近为其成功的工程专业责任模块(PRIME)项目开发的基于网络的框架之上，该框架支持灵活、有吸引力和有吸引力的模块交付。PIS将与来自德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校和三所外部机构(北卡罗来纳州立大学、华盛顿大学和弗吉尼亚理工大学)的工程伦理和工程教育领域的专家和从业人员合作，开发、评估和传播一套统一的课程包，为工程学研究生在进行研究、出版和传播数据时可能面临的伦理冲突和困境做好准备。最终，该项目将产生四个基于网络的学习单元：关于研究的伪造和捏造、关于剽窃、关于数据的呈现和关于知识产权。这些模块既可以作为独立的单元并入现有课程，也可以作为工程师研究伦理基础的短期课程一起教授。这些单元将专门针对研究生受众，并由教师指南提供支持。他们将培养研究生和教职员工对研究中涉及的复杂伦理问题的更深层次的理解，并提高他们分析、综合和判断此类问题的能力。广泛的影响：拟议的项目将通过提供目前很少(如果有的话)的材料，对研究生水平的工程研究伦理教学方法产生重大而实质性的影响。资深教员将在几所大学教授和传播这些材料，并开始更广泛的传播进程。此外，由于许多拟议材料的目标受众本身都在准备进入学术界的职业生涯，该项目将产生深远的影响。首先，课程包将使所有接触到它的研究生受益。提高对研究挑战的认识和理解是这些学生在获得研究生学位后带来的好处。那些自己成为学术研究人员和教职员工的人，将把这种增长的理解带给下一代学生。作为教师，当他们向学生介绍研究伦理学时，他们也可以利用该项目的定制教育材料。

Although the literature of the past 20 years on research ethics has focused increasingly on investigation and definition of research misconduct, little of that work has addressed how to teach emerging researchers - our graduate students - about responsible conduct and dissemination of research. Charges of research and publication misconduct abound in the media and in academia. Questions of what is right and what is wrong with respect to intellectual property become increasingly complicated, as the means of research and publication are multiplied every day by newfound digital capabilities. The confusion is compounded by ongoing debates over questions such as how do the rules of plagiarism or presentation of data differ between different fields; and how does the Internet change the boundaries of intellectual property. Some argue that the time has come for a complete re-examination of our notions of copyright and fair use. So it is no wonder that graduate students are unprepared for the challenges of academic research. In this project, the PIs will build upon the web-based framework recently developed for their successful Professional Responsibility Modules for Engineering (PRiME) project, which supports flexibile, appealing and engaging module delivery. In collaboration with experts and practitioners in the fields of engineering ethics and engineering education from UT Austin and three outside institutions (North Carolina State University, University of Washington, and Virginia Tech), the PIs will develop, assess, and disseminate a unified curricular package that prepares graduate engineering students for the ethical conflicts and dilemmas they are likely to face as academic and professional researchers in the conduct of research and in publication and dissemination of data. Ultimately, the project will result in four web-based learning modules: on falsification and fabrication of research, on plagiarism, on presentation of data, and on intellectual property. These modules can either be incorporated as discrete units into existing courses, or taught all together as a short course on Foundations of Research Ethics for Engineers. The modules will be specifically aimed at a graduate audience, and supported by an instructor's guide. They will foster a deeper understanding by graduate students and faculty of the complex ethical issues involved in research, and increase their ability to analyze, synthesize, and judge for themselves as such issues arise.Broader Impacts: The project proposed will have significant and substantial impact on approaches to teaching research ethics in engineering at the graduate level by providing materials where currently there are few if any. Senior faculty will teach and disseminate the materials in several universities and begin the process of wider dissemination. Moreover, because many of the target audience of the proposed materials are preparing to enter careers in academia themselves, the project will have far-reaching impact. First of all, the curricular package will benefit all graduate students exposed to it. The increased awareness and understanding of research challenges are benefits those students will carry with them after they receive their graduate degrees. Those who become academic researchers and faculty themselves will carry that increased understanding to the next generation of students. As faculty, they too can avail themselves of the project's customizable educational materials when they introduce their students to research ethics.