Lab Values

Statement of Lab Values

Land Acknowledgment

The NCLLab acknowledges that we live and learn on the ancestral and traditional homeland of the Lenni-Lenape and Wappinger people. By acknowledging the legacies of displacement, migration, and settlement, we wish to take a small first step toward the long and overdue process of healing and repair. As part of our commitment to education and equity, we acknowledge the injustices that indigenous peoples have faced and continue to face in the United States. We honor and pay respect to all indigenous peoples, by recognizing their relationship with this land.

Our Land Acknowledgment Statement is partly based on the statements by Teachers College and the Columbia University School of the Arts. 

Responsible Conduct of Research

The foundations of integrity in research are objectivity, honesty, openness, accountability, fairness, and stewardship (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2017). 

Objectivity

Objectivity is instantiated by the freedom and responsibility to pose, test, and reject hypotheses according to evidence while minimizing our own biases (Popper, 1999), and by the ability to state our findings “clearly and unambiguously to any interested person” (NASEM, 2017).

We work to describe our approaches clearly to permit replication, which is key to objectivity. Lab members are required to maintain accurate and complete records of activities related to experimental procedures. Such records remain the property of the NCL lab even after its author has moved on, maintaining the replicability and clarity of reporting. 

Honesty

Honesty is foundational to scientific reporting. 

  • We clearly, thoroughly, and truthfully disclose all relevant information about our work in ways that are accessible to the intended audience
  • We acknowledge all sources of information through citation and referencing and never knowingly claim the work of another as our own. 
  • We do not deceive participants on the risks and burdens they undertake on our behalf. 

Openness

Openness relates to transparency in communication and presenting all information that may be relevant to a conclusion. 

  • The NCLLab commits to publishing its work in Open Access journals whenever possible so that the work we generate is accessible to all. 
  • We commit to sharing our data and tools so our findings can be verified and reproduced. 
  • Within the NCL lab community, we commit to listening to ideas and perspectives that may conflict with our own while minimizing our own defensiveness or biases. 

Accountability

Accountability means that we are individually and collectively responsible for our work and our actions and behavior while the work is conducted. NCLLab members commit to abide by the standards of behavior, community, and scientific integrity outlined in this document, acknowledging our accountability on multiple levels. 

We are accountable to one another, to our research participants, to our institution, to our broader research community, to the funders and sponsors of our work, to our students and colleagues, and to all those who may be impacted by the findings of our research. 

 

Fairness

Fairness governs all relationships in science. 

  • We acknowledge at all times that all our work is supported and underpinned by the work of others, and systematically acknowledge them through citation and referencing.  
  • We adhere to the Belmont Principles that govern research with human participants: 
    • We respect the autonomy of all persons and engage in additional protections for those with diminished autonomy; 
    • We work to minimize any potential harms and maximize the benefits associated with participation in research;
    • We acknowledge that research engagement comes with burdens as well as benefits, and we strive to distribute both burdens and benefits fairly.

Stewardship

Stewardship requires that all in the systems of research to support one another, to ensure and maintain the standards of integrity for research conducts. 

  • All NCLLab personnel undertakes regular training and certification to ensure they are can effectively engage with our systems and values. 
  • As part of the mission of the lab, we undertake to educate the next generation of researchers and individuals who will not work in science alike. 
  • We value, protect, and advocate for the mental, emotional, and physical well-being of ourselves and our colleagues. Academic martyrdom is not a sustainable working model. Space and time outside of our professional lives are necessary, important, and respected. 
  • We care for the planet and engage in sustainable practices during all our activities and advocate for sustainable practices in the College and broader community.

Photo cr: Self Reflected Gallery. (2017). Greg Dunn Neuro Art. https://www.gregadunn.com/self-reflected/self-reflected-gallery/

Scientific Community Values

We recognize that it is a great privilege to work together as a research community to advance toward our scientific goals. We take seriously the responsibility to conduct meaningful research that addresses real-world issues and is communicable to the broader public. We strive to conduct our research with integrity, care, and a deep investment in the scientific process. We believe that we all have the right to learn, contribute to science, and achieve professional growth in a supportive and respectful environment.

This means that we treat each other, and each other’s work, with honesty, respect, and kindness. Specifically:

  • The protections and rights of our participants are prioritized at all times. 
  • We work to provide a supportive environment in which each person can fully participate. 
  • We value the uniqueness of individual experiences, and welcome all perspectives. 
  • Information and ideas are exchanged, openly, respectfully, and honestly, without judgment, in the spirit of scientific inquiry. 
  • We recognize that we are all learners. We recognize and work to ameliorate gaps in our knowledge. We acknowledge our mistakes and welcome corrections. 

Diversity and Inclusion

If you do not intentionally, deliberately, and proactively include, you unintentionally exclude. 

-- Calvin Mackie, Ph.D.

We recognize that participants in the research endeavors of the NCLLab represent a great diversity of scientific, educational, and personal backgrounds. We value the contributions and knowledge brought to our research community through the engagement of individuals from diverse experiences. 

Oppression consists of individual, institutional, and systemic problems that necessitate solutions at every level. Our individual acts and behaviors are important palliative measures. We work to have patience and understanding when we encounter differences in culture, perspective, and communication. We willingly and intentionally engage in self-reflection and acknowledgment of missteps or gaps in our knowledge and experience, and we strive to learn from one another and from the work we produce.

 

We commit to continuous allyship for marginalized and underrepresented communities. 

 

This means, at a minimum:

  • Educating ourselves about racial justice and systemic discrimination against marginalized communities;
  • Listening to and uplifting voices from these communities even when they challenge our assumptions and make us uncomfortable;
  • Speaking out and pushing for change when we see microaggressions or institutional policies that disadvantage these communities, both within our lab and within the larger campus community, from staff and low-wage workers to students and faculty;
  • Making space and time for trainees to heal, take care of their communities, or fight for justice, and continuing to provide financial, career, and other support while they do so;
  • Donating, when we have the means, to organizations that promote the success and well-being of marginalized communities in STEM or in the larger community. Examples include (but are not limited to):

 

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