Our 2023 E³ panel discussion will focus on the issue of professional misconduct in the research context, understood as bullying, harassment, discrimination, and inappropriate conduct creating a hostile work environment for any and all researchers here at the University of Utah.

The NIH has recently changed their reporting requirements for funded PIs who are sanctioned for professional misconduct by their home institutions, and we hear that the University of Utah will of course be complying with this federal requirement.

We aim for our faculty, staff, and students to all be aware of what professional misconduct is—ideally, to keep it from ever happening in the first place; but also, so that reporting and correction can occur when necessary. Both preventative and responsive measures are necessary and this E³ event will help serve both these aims.

Addressing topics such as:

Enrolling participants in a research study or clinical trial is not always easy, and it can be hard to get the number of participants needed to generate significant results.  Also, researchers sometimes work on problems which apply not just to others but themselves too.  For instance, study personnel working on COVID vaccines might want to be a part of that study and be a part of the development of those vaccines.

This E³ asks: when study personnel are potentially a part of the population under study, should these personnel also be eligible for enrollment in the study?  Additionally, when that study offers compensation for participation (especially, financial compensation) should these personnel-slash-participants be compensated in the same way, or at the same level, as non-personnel participants?  This event will begin with contributions by expert panelists, but the floor will soon open for audience input and group discussion.

Date & Time: Wednesday April 13, 2022 from 3:00pm to 4:00pm (ZOOM)

Panelists

• Leslie Francis - Distinguish Professor, College of Law
• Rachel Hess - Professor, Internal Medicine
• Ann Johnson - Director, Institutional Review Board
• Brian Watts - Deputy General Counsel, General Counsel

Moderator

• Joyce Havstad - Associate Professor, Philosophy

The Belmont Report's ethical principles align with the need for equity, diversity, and inclusion in human subject research. In order to respect and protect the best interests of research participants, the University of Utah Human Research Protection Program and IRB will discuss best practices for improving EDI in research, as well as common and innovative approaches used by IRBs across the country.

The University of Utah is committed to the advancement of research and discovery on a global level, while managing the risk of potential undue foreign influence. The Office of Research Integrity and Compliance’s Foreign Influence unit works to educate, identify, and implement reporting requirements and best practices to prevent and combat undue foreign influence. What is Foreign Influence?  How does/could this affect the university? What is being done to mitigate this risk?

Date & Time: Thursday March 18th, 2:00pm - 3:00pm (ZOOM)

Panelist: Trent Foxley: Associate Director, International Engagement and Compliance

According to recent scholarly work, bullying is defined as physical, social, and/or verbal actions that cause harm to a person or a group.  These repeated actions present negative consequence for the victim(s) as well as the bully.  Bullying, one form of unprofessional behavior, "always involves aggressive behavior" and a differential in power dynamics.  A recent case in Australia highlights the mechanisms through which this type of behavior occurs.  This panel dialogue will address what the U of Utah doing to reduce bulling and address professional misconduct in the research setting. Resources on campus will be identified.

Determining manuscript authorship for publications can be a daunting task whether you are working with a new research team or if you are working with a well established team. This kick off E³discussion, led by a panel of experts from the University of Utah, will highlight the appropriate steps and conversations researchers should consider when establishing authorship parameters for their work with other researchers. A draft authorship guideline will be shared for discussion. The audience is junior and senior faculty (tenure line and career line), study coordinators, and graduate students.

Have you received those e-mails encouraging you to submit your valued research findings to a new journal?  How do you know if you journal is legit?  This panel discussion with highlight how to use the Bealls List of Predatory Journals (https://predatoryjournals.com/journals/ (Links to an external site.)) and to determine which journals to avoid.  Part of the discussion will include how to identify an appropriate journal for your work.

• Predatory journals: no definition, no defence
• Predatory Publishing PowerPoing - Dr. Joanne Yaffe

The concept of reproducibility of results became part of the research lexicon in 1989. In 2014, the NIH developed key goals and guidelines that highlight processes to ensure that data are collected rigorously and research steps can be reproduced. This discussion will explore (1) why rigor in research studies is crucial to the scientific endeavor and (2) how to ensure research activities can be reproduced using the eight transparency standards developed by the NIH. What types of guidelines are needed at the U of Utah to ensure data rigor and reproducibility?

• DR. TOM GREENE, PH.D., PROFESSOR, POPULATION HEALTH SCIENCES

• DAUREEN NESDILL, RESEARCH DATA MANAGEMENT LIBRARIAN, J. WILLARD MARRIOTT LIBRARY