NJIT is committed to ensuring research is conducted using the highest ethical standards.
Research misconduct is a rare human phenomenon and even a single case could have potentially disastrous consequences for individual researchers, institutions, funding agencies, scientific communities, and entire societies. At worst, it pollutes the scientific record, shakes public confidence in the integrity of science, wastes taxpayer dollars and faculty/staff time, erodes trust among colleagues and between researchers/institutions and funding agencies/publishers, tarnishes institutional reputation, and could also result in fines and/or the imposition of additional reporting requirements and/or restrictive regulations.
New Jersey Institute of Technology is committed to ensuring the highest ethical and professional standards in scholarly endeavors, and all members of the NJIT research community have a responsibility to read and understand NJIT’s Policy on Integrity in Scholarship. This policy complies with federal regulations regarding the investigation and resolution of research misconduct issues, is applicable to all NJIT researchers, and is maintained by the Office of Research. Each member of the NJIT research community has a responsibility to foster an environment that promotes intellectual honesty and integrity as well as report confidentially any observed or suspected misconduct in research to the Research Integrity Officer at 973-596-5462, or by email at researchintregrity@njit.edu, or by using our anonymous tool. NJIT does not tolerate retaliation against those who make allegations of research misconduct in good faith and is strongly committed to assuring confidentiality throughout the process.
NJIT defines research misconduct, in accordance with federal policies, as fabrication, falsification or plagiarism in proposing, performing or reviewing research or in the reporting of research results.
Fabrication means making up data or results, and recording or reporting them.
Falsification means manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing or omitting data or results such that the research is not accurately represented in the research record.
Plagiarism means the appropriation of another person's ideas, processes, results or words without giving appropriate credit.
Research misconduct does not include honest error or differences of opinion and authorship disputes. A finding of research misconduct made under the PHS and NSF Regulations require that:
there is a significant departure from accepted practices of the relevant research community;
the misconduct is committed intentionally, or knowingly, or recklessly; and
the allegation is proven by a preponderance of the evidence.
NJIT takes research misconduct and other non-compliance issues very seriously and the institutional response to research misconduct will vary on a case-by-case basis. If an allegation of research misconduct is substantiated, the Provost shall impose appropriate sanctions on the individual/s.
NJIT’s detailed research misconduct procedures can be found here.