SSM RESEARCH CENTER

Research Ethics Policy and Useful Documents

Significant component of the mission of SSM’s Research Center is to provide an ethical guarantee of the reliability of research projects carried out by faculty, staff members, students, and collaborators of SSM, according to the international standards and laws, research and academic integrity practices, to ensure the protection of research participants and relevant data.

The Research Center reviews and verifies that all SSM related research activities are carried out with respect for human dignity, the right to privacy and personal data, as well as with respect for the social and natural environment.

SSM is committed to apply the following general ethical principles:

All SSM faculty, staff, students, and collaborators are obliged to ensure the protection of participants’ welfare and safety in all stages of a SSM related research project.
Research activities and data processing should be implemented in accordance with the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679), the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Convention 108 for the Protection of Individuals with Regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data, the Declaration of Helsinki ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects, and the national laws, including those governing the acquisition of valid consent. All reasonable measures should be taken so that individual rights and freedoms of participants, especially those belonging in vulnerable populations, are protected.
All SSM faculty, staff, students, and collaborators engaged in research activities demonstrate respect for all the participants, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity, disability etc. and they avoid the use of stigmatizing language.
The research design and methods must be carefully selected by the researchers involved, and any form of deception must be avoided during the design of the research.
Participation in research activities is voluntary, and all people involved have the right to withdraw their participation at any time, without providing a justification.
All participants must be explicitly informed beforehand about the objectives, scope and aim of the research activities, the voluntary nature of the study, the potential risks and benefits pertaining their participation, and the measures taken to ensure the confidentiality or anonymity of the gathered information and data.
In the case that any material needs to be recorded, such as individual or focus groups interviews for the purposes of a research project, participants must sign relevant informed consent forms.
SSM researchers are obliged to inform participants about the possibility of discovering incidental findings so that participants can decide whether they are actually willing to participate in the research procedures. In case a researcher comes across an incidental finding, they are obliged to inform immediately the Research Center’s Board which will evaluate the situation and take the necessary decisions about the steps moving forward.
Data gathered for each SSM related research project will be kept for a period of at least 5 years.
Academic integrity principles and best practices are honoured in all stages of a research project.
Responsible use of AI at SSM:
- SSM accepts the use of AI such as ChatGPT as a tool, not a substitute for critical thinking or original work.
- AI is expected to supplement students’ own knowledge and ideas, not to provide complete answers to assignments -students must clearly acknowledge the use of AI and cite it as an outside source according to APA reference guidelines.
- Examples of responsible use of AI: Efficient Literature Review and Research Assistance: AI tools like Semantic Scholar and Elicit assist researchers in quickly scanning large volumes of academic papers, summarizing key findings, and identifying relevant studies. This saves time and improves the quality of the literature review by providing access to broader and more relevant sources; Enhanced Academic Writing and Feedback: AI-based writing assistants like Grammarly and ChatGPT can provide real-time feedback on grammar, structure, and clarity, helping students improve their writing skills. This is a tool that is particularly helpful to non-native speaking students, e.g., helps improve writing structure without compromising originality; AI-Driven Research Analytics and Data Analysis: AI tools such as NVivo and ATLAS.ti help researchers analyze qualitative data, identify patterns, and generate insights from large datasets. This can increase efficiency in research, allowing academics to focus on interpreting results, drawing focused conclusions, etc.
- Before the use of any AI tool, students need to contact their class instructor or/and thesis supervisor and inform them about the exact use of AI tool they want to do and receive their approval.
- Students need to provide a detailed description (e.g., in an appendix) of what they used the AI tool for, prompt(s) included, to enable faculty to ensure accuracy and use of critical thinking.
- Students are always responsible for any errors, omissions or outdated information -plagiarism check of AI-developed content.
- AI use should be always in alignment with course objectives.
- Students should demonstrate their understanding of course content and learning objectives and be evaluated for this during the class activities with presentations or other evaluation activities according to course syllabi.