All CMVM researchers are strongly encouraged to follow author attribution guidelines. While these instructions are in part designed to align with REF2029 expectations, they extend beyond these to promote excellence and transparency in research contributions.
The shift from REF2021 to REF2029 highlights a new emphasis on institutional rather than individual outputs, removing minimum and maximum output requirements and eliminating special circumstances declarations. Consequently, it is crucial for researchers to understand how to effectively document and attribute contributions.
The instructions emphasise comprehensive documentation of contributions, encouraging the use of the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT) to clarify each author’s role. Such practices foster inclusivity and acknowledge the diverse contributions from all team members, including technicians, in alignment with the Technician Commitment.
Additionally, the importance of maintaining accurate institutional affiliations in research papers is highlighted to enhance research visibility and credibility. These instructions, therefore, serve as a reminder about the importance of cultivating robust authorship practices that reflect collaborative and ethical research standards.
REF2029 guidelines
The REF2029 Contributions to Knowledge and Understanding (CKU) guidelines reinforce the importance of:
A ) evidencing contributions and ensuring that these are recorded in research outputs, especially contributions to:
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- the conception and design of the study;
- the organisation of the conduct of the study;
- carrying out the study;
- analysis and interpretation of study data.
- drafting the output;
- critiquing the output for important intellectual content;
Authors are strongly encouraged to:
- Record contributions in the author contribution section of research papers. Note that the exact format may vary between publishers.
- Use the Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT) where possible to transparently acknowledge each author’s role. This taxonomy outlines 14 specific roles and is helpful for articulating contributions in narrative CVs which are now endorsed by many funding bodies.
- Ensure inclusive authorship by recognising contributions from team members at all levels, including students and technicians. This aligns with the Technician Commitment for visibility and career development.
- Engage actively and collaboratively with co-authors. It is crucial that all contributors agree on their roles and contributions before manuscript submission to minimise disputes and promote transparency.
>> Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT)
B) following authorship guidelines:
CMVM has recently developed guidelines on authorship, outlining the criteria for inclusion and the related responsibilities.
Authors are strongly encouraged to:
- Follow the CMVM authorship guidelines and use the provided tools and discussion points in these to facilitate open and transparent conversations about authorship from the beginnings of project development
- Regularly discuss authorship with colleagues and collaborators to ensure clarity and mutual understanding
>> Acknowledgment and authorship in publications
C) recording institutional affiliations in research papers:
Providing accurate and up-to-date information to a publisher about author’s contact details and affiliations is one of the tenets of good practice in authorship. It enhances the research visibility of the institution where the work was undertaken, and ensures that the institution can identify all publications released by members of staff, making it easier to analyse outputs and measure other metrics.
Institutional affiliations play a crucial role in representing research origins, strengthening credibility, and increasing impact. Clear and standardised affiliations are essential to support accurate and consistent attribution.
Authors are strongly encouraged to:
- Accurately state affiliations to the University and involved institutes (or schools, if applicable). In cases of multiple affiliations, list all contributing institutions to ensure comprehensive attribution.
- Register for an ORCID ID and use it whenever they publish. They may also wish to connect it with their Pure profile to enable exporting publication records from Pure to ORCID.
