Learn how and when to report

If you believe that the actions of a staff member or student may constitute a breach of the Macquarie University Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research or research misconduct, you are encouraged to report it.

How to report

Reports should be made in writing (email or hard-copy are acceptable) to the Director, Research Ethics and Integrity.

Your report should:

  • clearly outline the details of the possible breach or research misconduct
  • include any evidence that you have access to that will help in the initial assessment of the situation eg drafts of manuscripts or altered images.

It is not your responsibility to collect all the evidence. A subsequent inquiry will obtain further evidence if necessary, but it will be helpful to provide any available items that will assist in the assessment process.

Reports should be sent to:

Dr Karolyn (Kandy) White
Director, Research Ethics and Integrity
Ground Floor, 16 Wally’s Walk
Macquarie University NSW 2109
T: +61 (2) 9850 7854
E: karolyn.white@mq.edu.au; research.integrity@mq.edu.au

More information

Examples of esearch misconduct include:

  • fabrication of data or results
  • falsification or misrepresentation of data or results
  • plagiarism of data, results or written outputs
  • redundant or duplicate publication of data, results or written outputs
  • failure to declare or adequately manage risk to the safety of human participants or the wellbeing of animals or the environment
  • misleading ascription of authorship to a publication, including:
    • listing authors without their permission
    • attributing work to people who did not contribute to the publication
    • omitting people who are eligible to be authors
    • failing to appropriately acknowledge the work primarily produced by others.
  • failure to disclose conflicts of interest or cases where a conflict of interest might reasonably be perceived to exist
  • falsification or misrepresentation to obtain funding
  • misuse or misappropriation of funds
  • wilful conduct of research without required ethics approval as required by the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research and the Australian Code of Practice for the Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes (2013)
  • wilful conduct of research that is not compliant with the Gene Technology Act 2000 (Cth), the Gene Technology Regulations 2001 (Cth) and other relevant guidelines issued by the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator
  • wilful concealment or facilitation of research misconduct by others.

The procedures we follow for handling and resolving allegations are outlined in the Macquarie Research Code and the Macquarie University Research Code Complaints, Breaches and Investigation Procedure (Macquarie Research Code Procedure) and follow the principles of procedural fairness.

Procedural fairness

The University implements procedural fairness during all stages of an assessment of potential breaches of responsible research practice. This notion encompasses procedures that are transparent and have been designed to ensure that a fair, equitable, accountable, timely, transparent and reasonable decision-making process is followed.

The rules of procedural fairness in this context imply that a person who is the subject of an investigation of a potential breach of responsible research has the right to be heard and respond to allegations and that the people involved in assessing the potential breach are impartial to the outcome, unbiased and act only objectively on the basis of logically probative evidence.

Visit NSW Ombudsman for more information on procedural fairness.

The University is committed to the principles of procedural fairness. We therefore encourage people to bring forward information about a potential breach to be managed and investigated in accordance with the Macquarie Research Code Procedure.

In some cases, the person making a complaint may wish not to be identified to other people. If this is the case, we will as far as possible keep the person’s identity confidential, but issues of procedural fairness may sometimes dictate otherwise.

Reports should be made under the University’s Reporting Wrongdoing – Public Interest Disclosures Policy and associated procedures where allegations relate to serious wrongdoing arising from:

If an alleged breach relates to people outside Macquarie University, the report should be made to the person’s institution.

If the allegation relates to a publication, the report can be made to the editor of that publication.

Contact Research Ethics and Integrity if you need advice or assistance in determining who to report an allegation to.

The University will not tolerate any reprisal action against staff or students who accurately and honestly report possible breaches or research misconduct. In assessing and dealing with reports of possible breaches or research misconduct, the University will consider the possibility of reprisal action and seek to minimise its occurrence.

If a staff member or student is concerned about the possibility of reprisal action, they should raise the matter with the Director, Research Ethics and Integrity. Similarly, if any staff member or student is concerned that any action they need to take in the course of their role may be perceived to amount to reprisal action, they should consult the Director, Research Ethics and Integrity.

Staff members or students who take detrimental action against an individual who accurately and honestly reports possible breaches or research misconduct may be disciplined by the University in accordance with relevant policies and industrial instruments.

Frivolous, vexatious and malicious allegations of either breaches or research misconduct will not be tolerated or investigated. Persons making such allegations may be the subject of disciplinary actions. In serious cases, or where the person is from outside Macquarie University, the matter may be referred to the police.