SEISMIC Collaboration Authorship and Acknowledgement Rules


 

Purpose of Document

SEISMIC is a collaboration of researchers and practitioners intent on producing equitable and inclusive STEM classrooms. This collaborative effort involves reporting on progress in both formal and informal ways. Since SEISMIC is a collection of individuals from widely different disciplines and backgrounds, it is necessary to establish general SEISMIC authorship rules to ensure fair and equitable practices with respect to publications and presentations of SEISMIC work. This document details how individuals qualify to become co-authors, first authors, and last authors. Any questions about these rules should be directed to the SEISMIC Collaboration Council (seismic.cc@umich.edu).

Scope

These authorship rules apply to SEISMIC-related products, which include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Conference presentations and proceedings (talks, posters, papers, or other formats)
  • Journal articles and other published written materials

 

If you would like to propose a new SEISMIC-related product, please fill out this form. SEISMIC Central will review the submission to make sure the idea has not previously been submitted by another individual. If there is uncertainty around the originality of the idea, SEISMIC Central will share details with the Collaboration Council for final approval. Once approved, the product idea will be added to the SEISMIC Project OSF page “Authors for SEISMIC-Related Products” and authorship discussions for the product can begin. Note this page is only viewable for SEISMIC members on OSF. If you believe you should have access, please email seismic.admin@umich.edu.

We recognize SEISMIC members will likely be invited to speak at various events that may or may not be fully connected to SEISMIC. We expect that for presentations involving SEISMIC work, presenters will acknowledge the SEISMIC collaboration and specific collaborators.

Credit for SEISMIC Authorship Rules

Many procedures in this document were taken from the authorship procedures of the EDU-STEM network, and inspired by the authorship procedures of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and resources from scholarship by Dr. Kendra Cheruvelil.


Authorship Criteria

Co-Author

To be listed as a co-author for a SEISMIC-related product, the individual must do all three of the following:

  1. Read the product 
  2. Provide comments or suggestions for changes OR give approval to the team if they have no comments or suggestions 
  3. Meet 2 of the 7 criteria listed below

Criteria

Example Contributions That Meet Criteria


Developed and Framed Research Questions

Originated idea for product and/or contributed significantly to framing the ideas in the product.

Analyzed Data

Generated and/or evaluated models (conceptual, statistical, and/or mathematical), figures, tables, etc. that are included in the product.

Contributed to Data Analyses

Provided comments, suggestions, and code for data analysis.

Wrote/Presented the Product

Wrote or presented part of the product.

Contributed Course or Program Data

Contributed data from a course for which you are the instructor of record or a campus program you are involved in, and that data is presented in this product.

Coordinated Project

Contributed substantially to network level activities such as management of network data, recruiting and assisting of new sites, or finding funding for the project.

Managed Data

Organized, tailored, and collated project data from multiple original sources.

If an individual believes they qualify as a co-author, they should add their name under the relevant project in the SEISMIC Project OSF page “Authors for SEISMIC-Related Products.” They should also list how they fulfill the co-authorship criteria. Co-authors will be listed in alphabetical order on the product, after the first author and before the last author.

First Author

First authorship for a SEISMIC-related product will be determined by the authors listed in the SEISMIC Project OSF page “Authors for SEISMIC-Related Products.” We recognize decisions on the first author(s) may need to happen later in the process as individuals establish how much they can work on the project. Once the project team identifies the first author(s), they should add this information to the SEISMIC Project OSF page “Authors for SEISMIC-Related Products.” First authors must meet the eligibility criteria for co-authors and contribute significantly to the generation of the product. If progress on the SEISMIC-related product is not made in 6 months, the list of authors may open up the discussion again on first authorship.

Last Author

To be listed as last author for a SEISMIC-related product, the individual must meet the eligibility criteria for co-authors and fulfill at least one of the following:

  1. Be the principal lead of the project (this person may have, for example, acquired additional funding to support the project, or may have initially conceived of the project and assembled the project team)
  2. Be the faculty advisor for the first author if the first author is a student or staff member

 

If an individual believes they qualify as the last author, they should add their name under the relevant project in the SEISMIC Project OSF page “Authors for SEISMIC-Related Products.” They should also list how they fulfill the last author criteria.

Acknowledgement Criteria

For individuals who meet some but not the full criteria for co-authorship, they should not be listed as an author but should be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section of the product if applicable. Individuals who qualify as non-author contributors should list their name under the relevant project in the SEISMIC Project OSF page “Authors for SEISMIC-Related Products,” along with which authorship criteria they meet.

Original SEISMIC Acknowledgement

“Funding for the SEISMIC project has been provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the Participating Institutions. The SEISMIC website is https://www.seismicproject.org/.

SEISMIC is managed at the University of Michigan for the Participating Institutions, which include Arizona State University, Indiana University, Michigan State University, Purdue University, University of California Davis, University of California Irvine, University of California Santa Barbara, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, and University of Pittsburgh.”

Disagreements on Authorship or Acknowledgements

If there is ever disagreement on who should be listed as a co-author, first author, last author, or acknowledged in the product, the issue should be brought to the Collaboration Council (seismic.cc@umich.edu) for the final decision.


Revised 10/14/2020