Toolbox in RCRC : synthesis of responsible conduct in research-creation issues and proposal of reflective tools

Abstract

Because of its singularity in the academic landscape, research-creation (RC) raises a series of issues in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR), particularly with regard to conflicts of interest and commitments, the dissemination of results and all its forms of evaluation. As the first research project to focus on the intersection between RC and RCR – which we called "Responsible Conduct in Research-Creation" or RCRC – we wanted to explore these issues and determine their specificities from the point of view of RC and by using a variety of methods. Our research shows that RCR has difficulty in taking into account the specificities of RC practices in its application and, conversely, that the ethical reflections on research produced by the community of RC rarely mobilize the concepts of RCR or do so only indirectly. However, many areas of overlap and a desire for collaboration on the part of RCR and RC actors were noted during this research project, highlighting the need to continue and intensify the dialogue between these two communities.

The Toolkit for RCRC, developed as part of this project, provides a nuanced and practice-oriented view of RCRC in specific RC contexts. Aimed at building mutual awareness and the facilitation of dialogue between the RCR and RC communities, this Toolkit consists of an Accompanying Guide in RCRC, as well as several tools with specific content and objectives that can be used alone or in combination with the Toolkit:

● Tool 1: RCRC Checklist - provides key questions and practical considerations for researcher-creators to promote RCRC; ● Tool 2: Summary of Recommendations for RCRC - presents institutional recommendations for RCRC; ● Tool 3 - Case Studies of RCRC Breaches - illustrates and exemplifies key RCR failures through examples of specific RC practices; ● Tool 4: Podcast on COI and CC in RC - addresses the conflicts of interest and commitments encountered by researcher-creators in academic contexts.