Research integrity: where to find support in Luxembourg?

What are the guidelines for good scientific practice in Luxembourg?

Luxembourg has established guidelines for good scientific practice that are intended to promote research integrity and ethical conduct. These guidelines apply to all researchers conducting research in Luxembourg, and are designed to ensure that research is conducted in a responsible, transparent, and ethical manner. Here are some of the key principles of the guidelines:

1. Honesty and transparency: Researchers are expected to be honest and transparent in all aspects of their research, including the design, methods, analysis, and reporting of results.
2. Objectivity and impartiality: Researchers should strive to be objective and impartial in their work, avoiding bias and conflicts of interest.
3. Rigor and reproducibility: Research should be conducted with rigor and attention to detail, and should be designed in a way that allows for results to be reproduced by others.
4. Respect for privacy and confidentiality: Researchers should respect the privacy and confidentiality of research participants, and should obtain informed consent from participants before collecting any data.
5. Ethical conduct: Researchers should conduct their work in accordance with ethical guidelines and principles, including those related to the use of animal or human subjects in research.
6. Data management: Researchers should ensure that all data are managed and stored in a secure and responsible manner, and should make data available to others upon request.
7. Responsible authorship: Researchers should follow established guidelines for authorship, ensuring that all contributors to the work are appropriately recognized and credited.

Overall, the guidelines for good scientific practice in Luxembourg are designed to promote research integrity and ethical conduct, and to ensure that research is conducted in a responsible and transparent manner. 

Where to get support in case of research misconduct in Luxembourg?

Luxembourg has four national bodies for research ethics and research integrity: 

• The National Research Ethics Committee (CNER) – The CNER is an independent body that provides ethical advice and guidance to researchers, institutions, and policymakers in Luxembourg. The committee is responsible for reviewing research proposals that involve human subjects, and ensuring that research is conducted in accordance with ethical principles and guidelines.
• National Data Protection Commission (CNPD) – The Luxembourg National Data Protection Commission (CNPD) is an independent public authority that is responsible for ensuring that personal data is protected in accordance with the law.
• National Consultative Ethics Committee for Life Sciences and Health (CNE) – The Luxembourg National Consultative Ethics Committee for Life Sciences and Health (CNE) is an independent advisory body that provides advice and guidance on ethical issues related to life sciences and health research in Luxembourg.
• National Commission for Research Integrity – The Luxembourg Agency for Research Integrity (LARI) – By providing advice and guidance, investigating allegations of misconduct, and developing policies and guidelines, the CRI helps to ensure that research is conducted in a responsible and ethical manner, and that the public can have confidence in the integrity of research results.

The University of Luxembourg has developed several initiatives to promote integrity and ethics in research and to prevent misconduct.

1. Code of Conduct : The University of Luxembourg has a Code of Conduct for Scientific Integrity and Ethics that outlines the principles and values that researchers should adhere to when conducting research. The code emphasises the importance of honesty, transparency, and ethical conduct.
2. Research Ethics Committees: The University of Luxembourg has several research ethics committees that are responsible for reviewing research proposals and ensuring that they meet ethical guidelines and principles. These committees are composed of experts from various fields who provide diverse perspectives on ethical issues.
3. Training and Education: The University of Luxembourg provides training and education on research integrity and ethics to students, researchers, and staff. Such topics are handled in the doctoral education programme provided by the Office of doctoral studies.
4. Collaboration with National and International Bodies: The University of Luxembourg collaborates with national and international bodies, such as the National Research Ethics Committee (CNER) and the European Network of Research Ethics Committees (ENRIO), to promote research integrity and ethics and to ensure that research is conducted in accordance with established guidelines and principles.

Overall, the University of Luxembourg has several initiatives in place to promote research integrity and ethics, and to prevent research misconduct. By following established guidelines and best practices, researchers at the University of Luxembourg can help to ensure that their work is conducted in a responsible, ethical, and transparent manner.

The Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) has set a guide to good and ethical conduct of research within the framework of the FNR funding schemes. This guide is based on the principles laid out in the revised edition of The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity (ALLEA), that serves the European research community as a framework for self-regulation across all scientific and scholarly disciplines and for all research settings.

The three Luxembourg research institutes have also developed numerous initiatives. The Luxembourg Institute of Health offers training and workshops to early career researchers to help them develop skills for their future careers. The Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology works on raising awareness of good research practice, ethics and integrity in research as part of the induction programme for new employees. The Luxembourg Institute for Socio-Economic Research has established a Research Ethics Committee (REC), whose main objective is to carry out ethical reviews of project proposals and (if necessary) ongoing projects carried out by LISER staff.