Welcome to the Faculty of Science and Technology’s PhD supervisor day on February 22, 2023. The topic will be research ethics in the doctoral education.
What is the supervisor’s role in matters related to ethics in the research process? During the first part of the event, Erika Sörensson, research coordinator at the Research Support and Collaboration Office, informs about good research practice and ethics in the research process. The participants will be updated about the current rules and guidelines to follow, and where to find guidance in difficult dilemmas here at Umeå University.
For the second part of the event, Sofia Jeppsson, associate professor of philosophy and teacher at the faculty research ethics course for PhD students, will move the discussion on to ethical questions beyond the regulatory framework. Supervisors must see their PhD students as researchers in their own right, entitled to developing their skills for their own sake. PhD students’ ethical training can’t consist merely of an intensive course in research ethics – it must be an ongoing process, in which the supervisor functions as a role model. Supervisors should show respect for the laws regulating ethical permissions to do research rather than treating them as annoying obstacles, and reason with their students about complicated matters such as preference bias in experimental designs and informed consent.
During the half-day, which will be in English, supervisors will get the opportunity to discuss cases and what the regulatory landscape means both for the individual supervisor and as a collective of peers.
