On 7 June 2017, 19 MLW research staff and students attended a half-day workshop on Research Integrity and Publication Ethics, by external facilitators Dr. Liz Wager and Anke Rohwer. The workshop explored research integrity around publication including plagiarism, redundant publications, and competing interests around authorship such as guest authorships, by discussing practical scenarios.

Participants completed a survey ahead of the workshop that asked their opinion on fictional scenarios around research integrity concepts. The groups’ survey responses were then compared to those from nearly 200 Cochrane researchers during the workshop, and used to discuss research integrity concepts, and understand how they could handle such situations.

Participants found the workshop valuable. Malaria Group Research Intern Alinane Munyenyembe said, “On my part, I was surprised to learn that a lot of protocol objectives are either changed or omitted in publications after the study is completed. I want to make sure to follow my protocol strictly in the future and to be honest in my publications.”

“Through this workshop, I have gained an awareness of research integrity issues such as plagiarism, conflicts of interest and how researchers must commit to high quality research. I would recommend the workshop to other researchers,” said Chimwemwe Phiri, Behavior and Health Group Research Associate.

As part of the extension of the Core training programme, MLW aims to offer more similar workshops and short course opportunities in the future. So join the next research integrity workshop to learn and enhance your research ethics skills.