It is of crucial importance that Science produces reliable, trustworthy results. Responsible research practices are key to ensuring that the frontiers of knowledge are pushed forward and to enabling innovation and informed decision making. Research practices should align with the principles and norms of the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity, and misconduct and questionable research practices should be countered.
Research performing organisations (RPOs) and research funding organisations (RFOs) play a decisive role in empowering and enabling researchers to act responsibly in their research practices, and in detecting and handling breaches to the principles of research integrity. RPOs and RFOs should have appropriate policies, procedures, and structures in place to cultivate a responsible research culture and responsible research practices. The steps that RPOs and RFOs take to foster research integrity should be outlined in a detailed Research Integrity Promotion Plan.
To support RPOs and RFOs in their work with Research Integrity Promotion Plans, the SOPs4RI project has developed an online, freely accessible and easy-to-use ‘toolbox’. The toolbox contains SOPs and guidelines that can help RPOs and RFOs develop, implement, and maintain Research Integrity Promotion Plans tailored to their organisational needs and disciplinary context. Besides SOPs and guidelines, the toolbox also contains inspirational cases, videos, cartoons, and other resources that can help RPOs and RFOs in creating Research Integrity Promotion Plans, and which explains the methodology behind the toolbox.
