Chapter
The plan of this book is to introduce the RCR topics organized as an expanding moral circle
Part A Protect my interests
Graduate students have diverse interests
yet all have a common set of duties
including the duty to avoid research misconduct
Case study: "Can of worms," by John Allen5
But is whistle-blowing really in an egoist' s interests?
Rational egoism is the view that one should always act to best satisfy one´s categorical interests
How to proceed as an egoist
Chapter 1 Report misconduct
1. An act of rule-breaking
2. With the intention not to be caught
3. In a context in which permission to break the rule has not been granted
Is cheating unethical for egoists?
No: egoists have reasons to cheat
Yes: egoists have stronger reasons not to cheat
because they have their own internal filters
and are surrounded by cheater detectors
cheater detectors who disapprove of cheaters
and, furthermore, the community requires whistle-blowing
So, in situations of confusion and ambiguity, honesty seems the best policy - even for egoists
1. Excellent researchers are not necessarily ethical researchers
2. Everyone is not doing it
3. Faculty and administrators can do something about it
4. And students can do something about it
Chapter 2 Avoid plagiarism
Protect myself against charges of plagiarism
Why words matter to the egoist
Chapter 3 Beware intuition
Egoists must be conscious of observation bias
wary of misleading heuristics
and on guard against self-misunderstanding
not to mention probability ineptness
To safeguard judgments against prejudice and intuition, engage others
Chapter 4 Justify decisions
Give reasons to justify your decisions
especially in borderline cases
More subtle manipulations
Brightness/contrast adjustments
Enhancing a specific feature
Linear vs. nonlinear adjustments
Misrepresentation of a microscope field
Other data-management issues
Conclusion: some reservations about egoism
Part B Promote our interests
Graduate students sign diverse contracts
Yet all are part of one contractual community
in which giving reasons comes naturally
because we are emotional, social animals
and yet the community is constantly threatened by unreasonable decisions
Reason-giving contractualism is the view that a person should always act in accord with principles that no free and equal person could reasonably reject
How to proceed as a contractualist
Chapter 5 Articulate reasons
Professional codes articulate two types of rules
Common rules that members should internalize
Specific rules that members should examine critically
Specifying the contents of a code
The Code of Ethics of the ESA
Chapter 6 Write cooperatively
Authorship is complicated
Guidelines: "Publication ethics: a common sense guide," by Wesley E. Snyder7
References for Wilson, Balaban and Comstock
Chapter 7 Protect manuscripts
A peer reviewer is an implicit contractor
1. Role of the peer review system
2. Problems with the peer review system
2.1. Nonperformance of editors and reviewers
2.2. Conflicts of interest of reviewers
2.3. Inadequate recognition and encouragement of innovation
2.5. Variability of reviewers: assassins, demoters, pushovers, and zealots
3. Guidelines for peer review
3.1. Archival journal articles
5. Carrots and sticks in the peer review system
How to proceed as a peer reviewer
Chapter 8 Clarify statistics
and guard its confidentiality
Case study: "What educated citizens should know about statistics and probability," by Jessica Utts1
2. Statistical significance and practical importance
3. Low power versus no effect
6. Confusion of the inverse
Conclusion: some reservations about contractualism
Part C Respect strangers’ rights
Graduate students have various legal rights
Yet all have the same moral rights
Moral rights theories are views that hold that one should always respect the dignity of others
Case study: human pesticide toxicity testing
Chapter 9 Inform subjects
Background essay: "Informed consent and the construction of values," by Douglas MacLean 2
The value of consent in promoting well-being and in promoting freedom
Informed consent in the physician-patient relationship
A challenge to the assumption of existing preferences
Framing effects and methods for eliciting preferences
How to get experimental subjects' informed consent: sample form
Chapter 10 Mentor inclusively
Background essay: "Mentoring," by Ellen Hyman-Browne (Deceased), Michael Kalichman and Daniel Vasgird1
I. Mentoring and its importance in the education and training of science professionals
II. Description of mentoring: the complexity of the role and the many forms it takes
III. Roles, activities, and functions
IV. Mentoring on ethics and responsible conduct of research
V. The ethics of mentoring
VI. The responsibility to mentor minorities and women
VII. Responsibilities of trainees
2. Locate prospective mentors
3. Distinguish between supervisors and mentors
4. Be clear about needs and expectations
5. Keep learning about effective mentoring
VIII. Responsibilities of mentors
2. Allow for differences in personalities
3. Let trainees make their own decisions
4. Teach by words and example
5. Keep learning about effective mentoring
IX. Dealing with problems in the mentor-trainee relationship
Exercise: "Interview your mentor," by Gary Comstock and Charlotte Bronson3
C. Education in research ethics
Case study: "Why 'female' science professor?" by Female Science Professor 4
Case study: "NIH uncovers racial disparity in grant awards," by Jocelyn Kaiser 5
Chapter 11 Recognize property
Background essay: "Intellectual property," by Adam Cureton, Douglas MacLean, Jami Taylor and Henry Schaffer 1
Introduction: property rights
Types of intellectual property
Types of intellectual property law
Violations of intellectual property law
The justification of intellectual property rights
Case study: "DNA patents and human dignity," by David B. Resnik 22
Do DNA patents violate human dignity?
DNA patents and commodification
Do DNA patents threaten human dignity?
Chapter 12 Reveal conflicts
Background essay: "Shared responsibility, individual integrity: scientists addressing conflicts of interest in biomedical research," Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology 2
Scope and types of academia-industry relationships in science
Benefits of academia-industry relationships
Challenges of academia-industry relationships and conflicts of interest
Ongoing challenges for academic investigators
Challenges and guiding principles: how do investigators protect against research bias in industry relationships?
Conclusion: some reservations about rights
Part D Honor all interests
Research aims at a variety of good consequences
Naive utilitarianism requires maximizing good consequences
while assigning all like interests an equal weight
But not all good consequences are acceptable
Two-level utilitarianism is the view that one should habitually act to respect rights but when thinking critically should maximize good consequences
including good consequences for sentient animals
Conclusion: how to proceed as a utilitarian
Chapter 13 Treat humanely
Everyday rules for treating animals humanely in research
Critical thinking about using animals in research
Background essay: "The case for the use of animals in biomedical research," by Carl Cohen2
Why animals have no rights
In defense of "speciesism"
Background essay: "Util-izing animals" by Hugh LaFollette and Niall Shanks (Deceased)3
The moral worth of animals
b) Definite harms vrs. possible benefits
c) The creatures which suffer vrs. the creatures which benefit
Consequences of rejecting these asymmetries
What really goes on the scales?
Difficulties of calculation
Chapter 14 Preserve environments
Ecosystems have utility for future people and animals
Background essay: "The ethics of climate change", by John Broome1
Ethics of costs and benefits
Chapter 15 Cultivate responsibility
Background essay: "Wingspread declaration on renewing the civic mission of the American research university," by Harry Boyte and Elizabeth Hollander1
The civic responsibilities of research universities2
Making democracy come alive
Conclusion: some reservations about two-level utilitarianism
Research Ethics
：A Philosophical Guide to the Responsible Conduct of Research
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