Guidelines for Safeguarding Good Scientific Practice at the TU Berlin

Thursday, 25. July 2002

The President of the Technische Universität Berlin has issued the following Guidelines for Safeguarding Good Scientific Practice (AS 3/592-23 October 2002). These Guidelines are a supplement to the "Procedural Principles for Suspected Cases of Scientific Misconduct at the Technische Universität Berlin" (AS 5/552-14 July 1999), which were resolved and officially issued by the Academic Senate.

The Guidelines and Procedural Principles are based upon the corresponding resolutions of the German Rectors' Conference (HRK) and the German Research Foundation (DFG), especially the "16 Recommendations for Safeguarding Good Scientific Practice". The observance of these regulations is a fundamental part of the collaboration between all persons involved in the scientific process. Faulty behavior of individual members always compromises the reputation of the Technische Universität Berlin as a whole. During their induction, TU Berlin members must be made expressly aware of the validity, significance and precise formulation of these regulations, and their compliance is ensured as far as possible. The regulations are also part of the teaching and training for early stage researches. Violations of these regulations will be addressed with the sanctions which are applicable to the corresponding member status.

Guidelines of Good Scientific Practice

The main premise of scientific work is honesty to oneself and other individuals. This is also the ethical norm and foundation for the rules of scientific professionalism that vary from discipline to discipline, i.e. for good scientific practice itself. It is a central responsibility of the university to convey these basic principles to academic personnel and students. The observance and implementation of good scientific practice is a prerequisite for effective and credible scientific work which is also capable of achieving recognition on the international stage.

When academic degrees are awarded, when promotions, employment decisions and appointments are made, and when funds are allocated, originality and quality as criteria of evaluation must always have priority over mere quantity.

§ 1 - Guidelines

All members of the Technische Universität Berlin active in the science sector are obligated to:

• observe the general principles of scientific work ("lege artis");
• document the basic scientific data and the corresponding results;
• consistently critically evaluate the results of one's own work and open oneself to scientific debate;
• maintain absolute honesty in respect to the contributions of collaborators, co-workers and competitors;
• respect the special rules and expectations of the given academic discipline.

§ 2 - Directorship Responsibility in Work Groups

Every head of a working group must present an example of exemplary behavior in a scientific context. They are responsible for the proper organization of a project, ensuring that executive, supervisory, conflict management and quality control functions are accounted for and clearly assigned, and that these functions are in fact fulfilled. The individuals responsible for these functions must receive the necessary material support from the university management. The relevant training or further education measures should be carried out by the university administration, or if preferable, by the faculties themselves.

§ 3 - Counseling for Junior Researchers

The head of a working group bears the responsibility for the proper supervision of young professionals in the science sector (students, graduates, Postdocs and other persons involved in scientific research). Accordingly, in every group a contact person must be designated who is able to communicate the principles for safeguarding good scientific practice, and who can immediately prevent any potential cases of scientific misconduct on the part of members of the working group.

§ 4 - Duty to Preserve Basic Data

As the basis for scientific publication, primary data must be stored in a stable and secure medium at the department of their origination for ten years. Characteristics which permit references to be drawn to a specific person must be stored separately; should the research objective allow for it, these characteristics must be extinguished (Section 30, Para. 2 of the Berlin Data Protection Act- BlnDSG). The continued storage and utilization of these characteristics for the purposes of scientific self-monitoring is permissible for ten years, provided that they have been entrusted to the safe custody of an independent party (so-called "data trustees").

To be counted among the documentation that may be committed to storage are also specimens or work pieces which have generated the primary data. To the extent that storage in "corporeal form" is not possible, storage in another suitable form must be ensured. Those objects, documents or data must be preserved that allow the accuracy of the scientific results to be recognized and reproduced by independent persons or assessors.

§ 5 - Scientific Publications

Co-authors of scientific publications always bear joint responsibility for their content. A so-called "honorary authorship" is categorically excluded.

The foregoing guidelines are effective immediately.