On 7 March 2025, the UK Committee on Research Integrity convened a small group of experts in a virtual exploratory roundtable to share their knowledge about assessment of research integrity. 

The objectives of the roundtable were to discuss: 

• what existing sources of information may be used to understand the health of research integrity 
• whether and how it might be possible to evidence any relationship between research integrity and value of that research for society and economy  

Discussions indicated that while some useful data existed, this is spread in a range of sources. These include cases, case studies, full text publications, bibliometrics, and evidence of existing practices in organisations. Data can provide indications of patterns in the research system. 

The discussion highlighted the importance of consideration of the reasons for collecting or analysing data. Metrics serve their purposes best when accompanied by explanation of their meaning. The range of fields engaged in the research might mean there is a need for field-specificity in any approaches to data collection or use. Equally, there is a need to consider any unanticipated consequences of the use of metrics.  

Assessing and understanding research integrity and its value is important to the health of the research system. As a Committee, we will continue to strengthen research integrity in the UK. Attention to the matters identified by the expert group will support our approaches to do so. 

The Committee’s 2025 Annual Statement due to be published this summer will include evidence sources that inform our work