Professor Peter O’Day Celebrates Unfettered, Curiosity-Driven Vision
You ask me what are the principal ethical issues undergraduate science researchers face.
It’s important first to understand some intellectual issues they face. Scientific discovery involves a process of rigorous and creative application of common sense to understand secrets of the universe. It involves the use of experimental evidence and inductive and deductive reasoning, critically applied, in an iterative process of framing, testing, and attempting to disprove hypotheses.
Given this, it seems odd that we should have to promote integrity and honesty in the practice of science, because anyone genuinely interested in discovery should realize that correct and accurate information are fundamental requisites. Science builds on prior successes and failures; and so, proper conduct of science relies on one’s awareness of the state of knowledge in the field of inquiry, genuine interest in discovery, free and open communication with colleagues, trust, and rigorous skepticism. Good science produces new ideas and new ways to understand the physical universe. Yet challenges do arise from uses and misuses of research and information for personal or political gain.
More often, however, misuses arise unintentionally, from naiveté or negligence in research practices. To avoid this problem, therefore, early training in research practices and in the responsible conduct of research can improve the rigor and efficiency of advancing new knowledge by reducing unintentional misrepresentation.
Undergraduate research experiences can be a key to this effort. In practice, scientific projects involve many component players having various levels of sophistication, interest, commitment and having different goals. Conflicts and misunderstandings can result.
Proper intellectual preparation and continuing communication are key to successfully engaging all participants, enabling them to see the big picture, and establishing a context and culture of responsible conduct of research. For young researchers, this process begins and develops continually over the brief time that they are undergraduate contributors to the lab project. Thus, undergraduate science researchers face an array of ethical issues that stem from the fact that they have had comparatively little experience and guidance at the early stages of their scientific development.
A common example illustrates the point: It is of the highest importance that data be analyzed impartially and without bias. Inexperienced investigators, however, sometimes carry a bias favoring a conceptual model proposed by their mentor, and sometimes this bias carries over to data analysis. The mentor and the student investigator should be aware of this potential problem and discuss the importance of treating the data impartially, even if it the results seem to contravene some model that the mentor or professor holds dear. “The data are the data.”
Another example involves designing research strategies to test hypotheses. Inexperienced investigators often ask what experimental outcomes would show that the hypothesis is true, when the most direct approach is to frame experiments to disprove the hypothesis.
Among the most important actions undergraduates involved in research can do is to join the community of investigators and feel like they are a part of the picture. Although they may be playing only a small part initially and may not be committed to a research career, for the duration of their participation they should commit themselves to the highest standards of participation, engagement, and performance.
—Dr. Peter O’Day, Eugene, Oregon May 2013