Identificatory underpinnings of ethical research behavior for graduate students: Evidence from a baseline sample of a university research ethics training program

BACKGROUND: In efforts to improve replication rates across sciences, graduate student training can foster an understanding of best practices. One consideration is to identify the psychological underpinnings that motivate early-career researchers to avoid questionable research practices (QRPs) and engage in transparent research behaviors. Recent findings demonstrate efficacy by leveraging identificatory processes, or how researchers identify with ethical science. This study examined whether the extent to which individuals incorporate ethical scientific principles into their identities can motivate disinterest in QRPs. METHOD: As part of a baseline data collection effort for a systemic ethics training program at a Carnegie R1 institute, graduate students provided initial measures assessing endorsement of scientific values as outlined by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) and the extent to which those values are part of their identity. They also reported their perceptions of the defensibility of various QRPs, and their willingness to engage in them. RESULTS: Greater endorsement of NASEM values was associated with less endorsement of QRPs. This association was mediated by inclusion of these values in one's own identity. Results provide initial evidence for how institutes can foster psychological profiles of an ethical researcher in developing training modules for graduate students.