» Conflicts of Interest in Research

A conflict of interest may occur when an individual’s professional responsibilities are overlapping with or in competition with their private/personal interests.  Conflicts of interest may naturally arise while carrying out research when outside relationships appear to have the potential to compromise the integrity of decisions made by Chapman personnel.  Having a conflict is not a negative reflection of the individual’s character.  Researchers, particularly faculty as leaders of sponsored programs, must prioritize their responsibilities for Chapman University.  As a result, Chapman relies on its researchers to be alert to the possible effect of outside activities and interests on the integrity of their decisions and their ability to objectively fulfill their obligations to the University.

The federal government requires that the University: (1) establish and administer a financial disclosure policy for investigators, and (2) a program for training investigators in that policy to ensure appropriate management of actual or potential conflicts of interest.  Chapman has implemented the Sponsored Activity Disclosure Policy for Investigators and Directors to disclose and manage outside interests of those responsible for designing, conducting, and reporting sponsored research "Investigators" and leaders of Chapman’s research centers and institutes "Directors". It’s important to note that the Sponsored Activity policy supplements the Institutional Conflict of Interest and Conflict of Commitment Policy that applies to all Chapman personnel. 

The Chapman University Sponsored Activity Disclosure Policy for Investigators and Directors requires that all Investigators submit a Disclosure of Outside Activities Form to the Asst Vice President for Research Integrity and Compliance or designee, at least annually, disclosing all “Significant Financial Interests” and outside of activities of the Investigator or the Investigator’s spouse, partner, parents, dependent children, and any other relative or close associate if residing in the same household as the Investigator, when those activities may be related to or overlapping with the Investigator’s Chapman responsibilities.

Chapman has implemented the Cayuse Outside Interests / Conflict of Interests disclosure module for all faculty disclosures. 

Chapman University's policy fulfills the requirements of several federal sponsors, including:

Per the guidelines put forth by the Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health, all Investigators submitting grants to any Public Health Service (PHS) Agency (or organization that follows PHS regulations) MUST also complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) Financial Conflict of Interest module before submission of applications to those agencies. See below for a list of PHS Agencies and organizations that follow PHS regulations.


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