Epistemic virtues in practice-based research at Universities of Applied Sciences

1. Epistemic virtues in practice-based research at Universities of Applied Sciences NRIN Symposium 2019: Research Integrity in Education. Amsterdam, 27 May 2019 Dr. Daan Andriessen Research group Practice-based Research Methodology University of Applied Sciences Utrecht

2. I have three key messages • Research Integrity Education must be tailor-made per sector and discipline • Research Integrity Education must be about epistemic virtues and not about rules and norms • In practice-based research at Universities of Applied Sciences this includes virtues for creating societal impact

3. We must foster the diversity in scientific and scholarly research Ethnographic research Action research Phenomenology Positivism Process research Humanities Design research Critical theory Post-positivism Experimental research Social sciences Natural sciences Longitudinal research Social Constructivism Pragmatism Design sciences Cases study research Artistic research Research through design Covariance research

4. Practice-based research at Dutch Universities of Applied Sciences is growing • 36 universities (smallest 700 students, biggest 40.000 students) • 453.354 students (2/3 of all higher education students) • 31.027 teachers • Research function by law since 1986. Funding since 2001: • 600 professors • 4.500 (part-time) researchers • €183 million (1st, 2nd and 3rd flow of funds)

5. Our research is practice-oriented • Scholarly research adhering to scientific standards • Into societal and practice-based issues • With the primary aim of contributing to practice

6. Research integrity issues at UAS are different because… • Close relationship with practice • Ancillary activities and positions are a good thing • Open access is not always possible (confidentiality) • Context specificity (small n research) • Data is often very context specific and of a qualitative nature, therefore open data is not always useful • Research often used as intervention that purposefully improves practice • We not only study reality, we also try to change it

7. 1. Research Integrity Education must be tailor-made per sector and discipline:Example 1: Informed consent Researcher Subject

8. Many practice-based research approaches aim for equality between researcher and ‘subject’ Responsibility as virtue behind informed consent • Respect for persons: Recognizing the autonomy and dignity of individuals and the need to protect those with diminished autonomy • Beneficence: An obligation to protect persons from harm by maximizing benefits and minimizing risks • Justice: Fair distribution of the benefits and burdens of research Co-researcher Researcher (Parsons, Robichaux, & Warner-Robbins, 2008) (Nijhawan et al., 2013) Alternative: process consent (Dewing, 2007; Van Lieshout et al., 2017)

9. Research Integrity Education must be tailor-made per sector and discipline:Example 2: Replicability Physical reality Social reality Transparency as virtue behind replicability • Ensuring that it is clear to others what data the research was based on, how the data were obtained, what and how results were achieved and what role was played by external stakeholders. • The line of reasoning must be clear and that the steps in the research process must be verifiable.

10. 2. Research Integrity Education must NOT be about rules and norms • Integrity is not just a matter of knowing and following a given set of rules. • Practice-based research ethics has often to do with complex alternatives in which trade-offs involving competing values must be weighted. Rules and norms may not helpful in these situations. • With a focus on compliance and rule-following, research integrity comes across as legalistic and a burdensome bureaucracy. -> cynicism • Research integrity may feel like a police state; it emphasizes rules and compliance, enforcement, procedures, and punishment. • It fails to motivate scientists to think about their research in ethically responsible ways except perhaps as a defensive measure. Pennock & O’Rourke (2016)

11. Research Integrity Education must be about epistemic virtues • Virtue ethics: What character virtues are conducive to being a flourishing human being • Virtues can be learned and practiced • Virtue are always ‘in the middle’ • Epistemic virtues: the qualities—especially the character traits—that make for better scientists (Pennock & O’Rourke (2016) • Virtues in de code of conduct: • Honesty • Scrupulousness • Transparency • Independence • Responsibility

12. Three approaches for an epistemic virtue-based approach of RI training (Pennock & O’Rourke (2016) • Starting with theory • Introduction into virtue ethics, philosophy of science, philosophy of the scientist • Overview of epistemic virtues and applying theory to real-life dilemma’s • Starting with role-models • Modelling oneself after individuals who themselves exemplify human virtues • Studying the character virtues of exemplary scientists using multiple sources. • Starting with assumptions • Organize dialogue based om ‘prompts’ like “There are situations where one must be scientifically dishonest to do the right thing.” • Discuss how scientific virtues arise out of science’s aims and methods -> the relationship between epistemology and ethics.

13. 3. In practice-based research at Universities of Applied Sciences this includes virtues for creating societal impact Source: Meeting Knowledge Centre Learning & Innovation Utrecht University of Applied Sciences, 24 January 2018

14. Thankyou www.lectoren.nl ww.vereniginghogescholen.nl www.hbo-kennisbank.nlwww.narcis.nl http://www.podiumpraktijkgerichtonderzoek.nl/ • Daan.andriessen@hu.nl • www.methodologie.hu.nl • @onderzoekcoach.nl