The environment for scientific research in public organisations is undergoing radical change, particularly with commercialisation pressures and blurring of the distinction between public and private research. The commercialisation pressures are reflected in government policy frameworks and institutional contexts for scientific work which are…

As practitioners have expanded their understanding of the types of events that constitute trauma exposure, the epidemiological database on prevalence suggests that childhood exposure to violence may best be framed as a public health crisis. There seems to be little recognition from policymakers and legislators, however, that violence may be the…

In this essay the importance of spirituality (or ethics) in the life of a research scientist is explored. The following four questions are considered: a) Why should the problem be studied? What are the benefits? and For whom? b) How should we approach this problem? c) What if the results of this investigation contradict other theories? What should…

This article presents a queuing model simulation of scientific productivity utilizing critical path analysis. Creativity is found to have a large positive effect, a negative effect, or no effect on productivity, depending on the stage of the problem-solving process to which it is applied and the nature of the bottlenecks inherent to the specific…

Tested Richard Duschl's triadic model of the growth of scientific knowledge against research practices of 10 accomplished life scientists. Reports that the scientists were willing to change their aims, methods, or theories and were both realists and relativists depending on the scientific discourse about the phenomena in question. Discusses…

A survey of 334 biochemists identified 5 patterns of attitudes and beliefs about taking action for scientific misconduct: (1) reputational harm, (2) sanction criteria, (3) whistleblower stigmatization, (4) professional etiquette, and (5) ideological desensitization. Influences of intraprofessional status, departmental cohesion, institutional…

Research is so inextricably embedded within the teaching in the bioscience disciplines that many of us do not question that there is linkage between teaching and research--we simply know that it is true as part of our discipline culture. We, as bioscientists, have written this essay for the bioscience academic community. We start from the point of…

Many people feel that the making of value judgments is an important aspect of the work of science. This paper explores some of the arguments in support of the claim that scientific work requires individual and social values and raises significant moral questions. Discussed here are: (1) the constitutive value of science; (2) the ethics involved in…

A bibliography is itself a database from which may be extracted useful information about both scientific fields and the practitioners who work in them. How bibliographies store and reveal this information is discussed. For example, one can identify problems being researched by scientists by examining publication titles. (RM)

This article focuses on five quantitative indicators for patents and scientific literature. These indicators characterize Japan as a technological powerhouse and in an expanding but far less powerful scientific position. Several tables and graphs are provided. (YP)

Offers a concise, abstract description of the scientific method different from the historical, philosophical, and case-study approaches, which lead to comprehension of this method. Discusses features of scientific models, dynamic interactions underlying scientific progress, ways that scientist successfully understand nature, mechanisms for…

Discusses the response of journalists and scientists for overcoming the suspicion of scientific research among the general public. Provides some recommendations and lessons from successful national initiatives. (Author/YP)

Examines the patterns of contracts between academic marine scientists and two kinds of federal funding agencies. Discusses the quality of working relationships, quality of academic marine scientific work, and dilemma of conflicting value systems. Finds that the scientists rate science-oriented agencies more favorably than society-oriented ones.…

Some central issues in discussions of creative processes in science are: (1) the mechanism(s) by which hypothesis formation takes place; (2) the sources of new knowledge during hypothesis formation; and (3) the "Eureka" versus steady accumulation (accretion) issue concerning the pace of change during hypothesis formation. This paper…

A discussion of misconduct in scientific research looks at the roles of several segments of the scientific community (federal government, universities, scholarly journals, and individual scientists) in exercising control of misconduct. Limitations of their roles and overall implications for policy are examined. (MSE)