Responsible conduct of research

University of Lapland is committed to the guidelines of the Finnish National Board on Research Integrity (TENK) for responsible conduct of research and handling alleged violations (the research integrity guidelines). Research integrity is an integral part of the university quality assurance system.

Guidelines and promotion of research integrity are part of a self-regulation framework of the scientific community in Finland. Each individual researcher and member of the research community from the assisting staff to the leaders of research teams, the directors of units and the administration of the university, are responsible for adhering to the principles of responsible conduct of research.

The University of Lapland takes care of integration of principles of responsible conduct of research and teaching of research integrity in the graduate and postgraduate programmes. The university offers support in research integrity issues also to its staff members.

Research Integrity Advisers of the university support the members of the university research community in issues and questions concerning research integrity. Communications with the research integrity advisers are confidential. The advisers can be contacted in person, by email and by phone. The advisers do not participate in the investigation of misconducts or suspected violations of responsible conduct of research.

Research Integrity Adviser at the University of Lapland

Violations of responsible conduct of research

According to the principles for research integrity, violations of the responsible conduct of research refer to unethical and dishonest actions, that may have been committed either intentionally or through negligence. The violations of the research integrity (RI) can be classified into misconduct and disregard for the responsible conduct of research.  

Read more from the RI guidelines >

What to do, if you suspect a violation?

It is in the mutual interest of the research community, that all allegations of research integrity violations are investigated. The allegations are handled in that organisation, where the alleged violation has happened.

If you suspect a violation related to research carried out in university of Lapland, you may notify the rector of the university of the alleged misconduct with the form below. The research integrity adviser of your organisation will help you in the process if needed.

The process for handling allegations

When the university rector receives a notification of an alleged violation, the validity of the allegations are determined in a preliminary inquiry, which includes hearing of the instigator and the person alleged of the violation. Based on the preliminary inquiry, the rector decides either to appoint an investigation committee or end the proceedings. Based on the investigation report, the rector decides whether a violation of the responsible conduct of research has occurred. The reasoned decision by the rector is communicated to both parties, TENK and the research integrity advisors. If a party is dissatisfied with the rector's decision, they may request a statement from the Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity within 30 days of the decision.

See more in the RI guidelines >