Code of conduct

Ethics & conduct

You are expected to conduct your research with the highest level of ethics and integrity. This applies to your research practice and your behaviour and interactions with others – this includes technicians, administration and support staff, as well as fellow scientists.

First, there is general code of conduct for staff of Max-Planck-Institutes – please refer to the code of conduct from the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft:

https://www.mpg.de/14172230/code-of-conduct.pdf

In addition, there are rules that are specific to the group at MPIE - this goes beyond just the APT group, but also applies to users of the APT facility. Indeed, all users of the facility are expected to be respectful and show courtesy to other scientists and technicians at all times. We must value participation of member of the wider group of co-workers and embrace the diversity of culture and opinions. Some of these points are inspired by codes of conducts from other groups and are only part of what could be considered ‘best practice’.

Here are a few points to keep in mind:

· First, if you feel that you are victim of harassment, there are internal mechanisms in place at MPIE to deal with this, do not feel that you’re alone or isolated. Please come forward.

· We aim to be inclusive and respectful of others. You must do the same.

· You must act professionally. The facility can only be run properly if we all do our share and behave appropriately.

· All communication, be it online (email) or in person, should be appropriate for a professional audience. You have to be considerate of the very varied cultural backgrounds of those working with or around yourself.

· Sexual language or imagery, bullying or harassing others are not appropriate at any time.

· We all win by supporting each other. All users should feel dedicated to a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, and/or religion.

· Harassment will not be tolerated. Harassment includes offensive verbal comments related to gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion, sexual images in public spaces, deliberate intimidation, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, sustained disruption of discussions, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention.

· Those asked to stop any harassing behaviour are expected to comply immediately, or might face consequences.

· It is often best to resolve issues through direct communication, rather than embarrassing people publicly.

· If you feel overworked, please say so. If you feel tired or worked too late, stay home and get some rest. You might not be efficient, you might not be yourself, you will damage your physical and mental health. If you need to talk about it, please do.

To report an issue, please contact Bat; all communication will be treated as confidential.

If you do not feel comfortable contacting him directly, you may discuss with Paris or Leigh, or another group leader or contact the administration – please do not curl up and stay on your own.

We will help find the best way forward.

Mental health

There is evidence that performing research may not be best for mental health, in particular in a high-pace, highly competitive environment. Specific factors driving this include:

· Feelings of isolation in your research: e.g. everyone has their own topic and it can often feel as if you are working on your own, it’s often not the case and talking can help;

· Uncertainty in your research: although it should be noted that it is not just the outcomes that are uncertain, but the questions themselves! Research is always evolving by nature and it is normal that there is a degree of uncertainty in what we undertake;

· Uncertainty in your career: we’ve all gone through this, and are often still questioning our opportunities and choices;

· So-called “negative results”; i.e. at some point in your research it is likely that certain questions will be more challenging to answer than anticipated, it does not mean that you are not good at your job, it is the nature of the scientific endeavour;

· Burnout: the feeling that you must work endless hours to make up to tackle one or more of the above issues, will result in exhaustion which will lead to less attention to detail and potential accidents. TAKE A BREAK!

· If there are aspects of the management of the facility or the people that you find is placing undue stress, or hindering you from performing at full potential, please do not hesitate to let us know.

Most colleagues come across most of these issues at some level at some stage of their career. When possible, take a proactive and pre-emptive approach towards yourself and others. Talking to others helps. Resting and sleeping also helps. Sharing these issues can reduce stress and help others be accommodating towards your needs, and we may be able to assist.

Publications & Authorship

Authorship on any manuscript or presentation should be openly discussed with everyone who made a significant contribution to the work being presented. Contributions include but are not limited to, support to acquiring data, interpretations of data, development of ideas or data processing techniques used or presented in the work.

It is often simpler to ask the people involved how they feel about being made an author on the article. I have refused in the past to be associated to work performed here. We can all do so.

Be considerate of the support you are getting from our colleagues, and this includes the technical support. Uwe, Andreas and Chris work hard to help the facility run on a daily basis, through training, liaising with microscope vendors, designing new or improving existing equipment etc. If new equipment was developed to enable your work, consider adding them as authors. It highlights their valued contribution.

Otherwise, consider adding them to the acknowledgements in your article, e.g. I use this line:

“Uwe Tezins, Andreas Sturm and Christian Broß are acknowledged for their support to the FIB & APT facilities at MPIE.”