Integrity should be something we should strive for in any situation as it means having the qualities of being honest, sincere in your actions, trustworthy and having strong mental principals in general (Kang, 2017). As a 4th year UWC physiotherapy student I am currently dealing with this on a daily basis as I am constantly interacting with my patients, clinicians and my fellow colleagues. In this writing task I will however be discussing integrity and where it fits in research as this too is something we as 4th year physiotherapy students are working on.
In any research I assume we can all agree that we need to be as honest as possible in collecting data because otherwise for example how else are we going to explain if someone attempts a technique we researched and our results shown the technique to be extremely effective but their outcomes prove the opposite? We need to think about our patients and what is best for them and not what makes things easier for us, that’s integrity.
Being sincere in our actions when it comes to research means that we cannot state that we have done something but we inevitably did another just so that our research data goes in hand with what we trying to prove in our outcomes. We need to take responsibility for the things we say and do, especially in research (Integrity in research, 2002, p.8). For example, we cannot say we tested a specific treatment technique for 6 months with 20 individuals all being T10 complete spinal cord injuries with no other injuries or co morbidities but then in reality to save time, worked with only 12 T10 complete spinal cord injury patients and 8 were between T4-T8 incomplete spinal cord injury patients with co morbidities.
For us, our thesis project this year is different from the previous years as we are not implementing a research question but we are merely proposing a thesis question to be researched. Hence our manor of integrity will not be less but it will differ slightly to those actually implementing their research question in that while reviewing the literature we will have to give all literature already pertaining to our research question a fair chance to be reviewed and discussed. Like for example if there were five journal articles with literature about our research question, we cannot review one or two articles and state that there is a gap in knowledge regarding only their work and opinions. We need to make sure we analyse the data of all journal articles found relevant to our case study until no new information is found. This is to ensure fair findings in our discussion and outcomes (Tarimon, 2018).
My research group and I decided to research about the knowledge on the importance of proper wheelchair seating of spinal cord injury patients at the Western Cape Rehabilitation Centre. We decided to have this as our research question as it is very important that wheelchair users know about proper seating to prevent any secondary complications such as pressure sores, upper extremity problems due to bad posture, etc. With this being said, by knowing the knowledge of wheelchair users on this topic, it will help us to establish if there are any gaps in the literature and whether there is a need to educate this population.
Having integrity in our current research proposal would then mean that we need to put the needs of this population first by doing the necessary research and make sure our findings are adequate enough to ensure the best outcomes for this sampling group. We need to make sure we add everyone necessary in the study to collect proper feedback and results to come up with our outcome for the research question. We need to reference the legitimate and relevant resources as to back up statements we have made and avoid plagiarism in doing so (Mesquita, 2017). Therefore we will use the legitimate research we find as a guideline and discuss the data collected from each case for a fair and more accurate basis on what issues in knowledge are more important to acknowledge first.
REFERENCES:
Integrity in research. (2002). Washington DC: National Academies Press US.
Kang.S.Y. (2017). The true meaning of integrity, Retrieved August 12, 2018, from http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/11273420
Mesquita, C.T. (2017). Integrity in scientific research. International journal of cardiovascular sciences, 30(1), 303-309.
Tarimon, S. (2018). Qualitative research: Methods of data collection. Lecture notes distributed in the course PHT404 – Contribute to physiotherapy research, at New UWC health sciences building, Bellville, on July 27, 2018.
3 thoughts on “Integrity in research:”
Dear Gadiejah,
I enjoyed reading your post. I agree fully with your qualities of integrity although I know that from person to person the definition may vary. I think, too, think that research integrity is essential especially seeing as though we’re conducting a research proposal ourselves. Not only now, but it makes us aware that in future, all we do should be ethically correct. It also paves the way for our field of physiotherapy – for groundbreaking work to be done. On another note, I think your research topic is one that is a really good one.
It is easy to forget how essential referencing is – giving credit to the necessary researchers for their work and their contributions to helping us understand the topic we are exploring.
On a friendly note, perhaps consider having shorter and more concise paragraphs so it is easier for the reader to follow your train of thoughts and to fully understand what you are saying.
I’d also like to add that I think you should use more literature to back up some of what you are saying. I know this sounds odd but in order to support what you are saying at certain points, try and look for appropriate information which can help to validate your point.
Well done and I hope the all the feedback is useful to you!
Gadieja, your opening paragraph is well stated and clearly introduces the topic to the reader. Have you considered adding an image to further intrigue the reader?
It may be important to note that one cannot assume a particular position for the reader, however, attempt to persuade the reader into agreeing with your position. I suggest noting this and reconstructing your tone, claims and wording.
I am able to understand your thoughts, logic and reasoning. However, the above would need to be justified with the appropriate literature.
I noted the references in your reference list, which is brilliant and shows your research. It is crucial that you use them within your discussion via the appropriate APA protocol. This will strengthen your arguement and the readers confidence.
I appreciate your subjective experience with regards to the topic. It may be wise to include an objective statistical view on the importance as well.
Have you considered adjusting your register within the discussion? A formal approach possibly? This may minimise subjectivity and allow it to become more universal. Take care of grammatical errors and sentence construction.
Have you considered removing information that does not flow with the motif of the topic? Such as explaining a particular medical condition may confuse the reader in your arguement.
Have you considered adding significant statistical analysis in aim of your claims?
I appreciate your specific notion to your 4th year physiotherapy importance. Have you thought about the impact on physiotherapy globally and thus its research?
Gadieja, I feel you might benefit at looking at the objectives once again, adding appropriate in-text references and editing your discussion in aid of creating a discrete position and flow. It may allow the reader to fully and clearly understand your standing alongside integrity.
The overall personal impact you managed to create was unique and creative, with further objective outcomes it may sum up your discussion.