Misconduct in Research

The Federal Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) defines research misconduct as "fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, or other practices that seriously deviate from those that are commonly accepted within the scientific community for proposing, performing, or reporting research results."

It is the policy of the University of Delaware to abide by the OSTP policy in all University research. Any intentional distortion of research data or intentional distortions of information or conclusions derived from research data constitutes misconduct in research and is prohibited by University Policy.

The University of Delaware has the ethical responsibility to prevent misconduct in research and the legal responsibility to inquire into all allegations of research misconduct and to report and investigate all instances where a reasonable
presumption of misconduct is established by inquiry.

The University, the State, suppliers of grant accounts, clients of consultation services, and the public all have the right to expect and demand unbiased and factual information from University personnel. In the long run, University personnel benefit individually and collectively from the maintenance of high ethical standards. An atmosphere of intellectual honesty enhances the research process and need not inhibit productivity and creativity. Establishing and maintaining such an
atmosphere is a responsibility that must be accepted by all University personnel.