Good Scientific Practice

The Leibniz-IZW is committed to safeguarding good scientific practice as a fundamental prerequisite for excellent, internationally competitive and reliable research. The institute has therefore enacted guidelines of good scientific practice (in German) based on a resolution of the Board of Directors of the Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V. and the recommendations of the commission on professional self-regulation in science of the German Research Foundation (DFG).

The guidelines of good scientific practice (in German) are communicated to all scientific employees of the IZW, and each new member of the institute is introduced by the Ombudsperson of the Leibniz-IZW to the Guidelines and this document. In order to alert especially early career scientists to the importance of scientific integrity, a seminar on good scientific practice forms an integral part of the Structured PhD Training Programme at Leibniz-IZW.

Additionally, the Ombudsperson of the Leibniz-IZW provides biannual upgrade trainings courses (in German and/or English) in good scientific practice for each department.

 Good scientific practice entails conducting research according to international standards and implementing a thorough quality management scheme. All methods and results have to be meticulously documented and saved in order to ensure transparency and reproducibility and allow the critical examination of all findings. Scientists have to respect other researchers' work and give due credit to their achievements in carrying out their own research and publishing its results.

GSP measures are designed to ensure transparency and accountability and permit the critical examination of all findings if this were deemed necessary. The IZW places particular emphasis on the following aspects:

  • Ensuring the responsibility and supervisory function of team leaders and the cooperation among Research Groups;
  • Ensuring responsible and high-quality supervision of students and young scientists;
  • Implementing standardised procedures for the meticulous documentation of all methods, primary data and results for each scientific publication and their storage for 10 years;
  • Ensuring shared responsibility and its explicit documentation by all co-authors of manuscripts that they have followed and applied the Guidelines of Good Scientific Practice when conducting the research and preparing the results and the manuscripts;
  • Prioritising originality and excellence over quantitative criteria for evaluating scientific work.

Ombudspersons at the Leibniz-IZW

Prof Dr Jörns Fickel
Phone: +49(0)30 51686314
Email: fickel@izw-berlin.de

Dr Kristin Mühldorfer
Phone: +49(0)30 5168215
Email: muehldorfer@izw-berlin.de