Katherine Button

Abstract

There is a widely acknowledged need to improve the reliability and efficiency of scientific research to increase the credibility of the published scientific literature and accelerate discovery. Widespread improvement requires a cultural shift in both thinking and practice, and better education will be instrumental to achieve this. Here I argue that education in reproducible science should start at the grassroots. I’ll present our model of consortium-based student projects to train undergraduates in reproducible team science. I’ll discuss how with careful design we have aligned collaboration with the current conventions for individual student assessment. I’ll reflect on our experiences of several years running the GW4 Undergraduate Psychology Consortium offering insights I hope will be of practical use to other wishing to adopt a similar approach. I’ll consider the pedagogical benefits of our approach in equipping our students with 21st Century skills. Finally, I’ll reflect on the need to shift incentives to reward to team science in global research and how this applies to the reward structures of student assessment.

Bio

Dr Katherine Button is Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath. She researches the cognitive mechanisms underlying anxiety and depression, and their treatment. She uses a range of research methods including techniques from cognitive psychology and neuroscience through to epidemiological investigations.

In addition to her primary research, she is an advocate for improving the transparency and rigor of psychological research. She uses meta-analytic techniques to explore systematic weakness in the evidence-base, and draws on best-practice across disciplines for solutions. In this role she sits on several scientific advisory panels, including the steering group for Registered Reports, and is developing innovative methods for improving the rigour of undergraduate and taught-masters research projects.