Increasing the Rigor of Reproducibility and Replicability at the U of A

Faculty, students and other researchers rely on rigorously conducted and published research as foundational for their own research. However, studies have found that research that was not rigorously conducted may cost as much as $28 billion a year, hence there is a "crisis in the reproducibility" of peer research. Academic institutions have a major responsibility to train the next generation of scientists, address issues and challenges with the reproducibility and replicability (R&R) of research and minimizing the impact of this "reproducibility crisis."

Recognizing the challenges and need for increasing and promoting the rigor of R&R at the U of A, the Division of Research and Innovation has appointed a committee to address these issues. The R&R Committee conducted a campuswide survey with a goal to examine the disparities across disciplines or research fields where more than 60 percent of respondents indicated they were not aware of this crisis in reproducibility.

These findings revealed that the concepts of R&R are not homogeneously understood across disciplines. This survey resulted in a manuscript titled, "Unpacking how R&R are perceived: A survey of discipline-specific perceptions at a large, research one university," which has been submitted to the Journal of Chemical Education. The study called for greater discipline-centric discussions at the department level of R&R as a dimension of open science.

The findings also spurred the production of a series of videos conducted by Phil Crandall, professor of retail food safety and member of the R&R committee. An introductory video is now available at scholarworks.uark.edu/oreievt/3. More videos will follow in the coming weeks.

Furthermore, the campus wide R&R committee, headed by Navam Hettiarachchy, professor in food science, is planning on developing more discipline-specific educational videos, including interviews, webinars and possibly a one-credit hour course on R&R, as well as one on including R&R in writing grant proposals. The vision of R&R committee is for the U of A to be a well-positioned leader in R&R and to collaborate and share information with other national institutions.