Procedure: Authorship

Purpose

To outline the requirements and responsibilities for authorship of research outputs. The Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research, 2018, Authorship – A guide supporting the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2019), and any guidelines/requirements of publishers is read in conjunction with this procedure.

Definitions

Author is someone who has made a significant intellectual or scholarly contribution to research and its output through at least one of the following:

Conception and design of the project or output;
Acquisition of research data where the acquisition has required significant intellectual judgement, planning, design or input;
Contribution of knowledge, where justified, including Indigenous knowledge;
Analysis or interpretation of research data; and/or
Drafting significant parts of the research output or critically revising it so as to contribute to its interpretation.

An author is responsible not just for their contribution, but for the publication to which they put their name. They must agree to be listed as an author, accurately report their contribution to a research output, and be accountable for its integrity. This is the minimum threshold for authorship – some journals and disciplines may have a higher threshold.

Research output is an output that communicates or makes available the findings of research, including but not limited to: journal articles, book chapters, books, conference papers, reports, datasets, patents and patent applications, performances, videos and exhibitions.

Procedure

Authorship responsibilities

ANU researchers must disseminate all research findings in a timely fashion, as accurately, broadly and effectively as possible, subject to restrictions relating to intellectual property, confidentiality, or commercially or culturally sensitive data.
The Corresponding or Senior Author of a research output has overall responsibility for:

ensuring appropriate and fair attribution of authorship;
ensuring all authors approve the research output before its submission for publication;
formalising authorship arrangements (the Form: Responsible conduct of research authorship provides a template for managing these arrangements);
ensuring questions or concerns related to the integrity of any part of the work following publication are appropriately investigated and resolved;
ensuring that all statutory, legal and disciplinary-specific requirements and/or approvals are met; and
ensuring that all data relating to the research output is managed in line with appropriate ANU policies and procedures.

Authorship is discussed and agreed on in writing at an early stage in the research. It should include the nomination of the Corresponding or Senior author, and be:

a transparent, honest, consistent and fair reflection of contribution to research, in line with established disciplinary practice;
communicated clearly between contributors to the research output; and
reviewed periodically as the research evolves.

The Form: Responsible conduct of research authorship can be used as a guide and as a record of authorship discussions.

A person who qualifies as an author is not included or excluded without their written agreement.
Authors cite the work of others fully and accurately.

Other considerations

Researchers credit the individual and collective contributions of Indigenous knowledge in accordance with the Ethical conduct in research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and communities and the AIATSIS Code of Ethics for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research.
Approval to publish is sought from the Indigenous people involved in the project or the community from which Indigenous knowledge originates from by researchers intending to publish that knowledge.
Contributions to the research output that do not meet the criteria for authorship is acknowledged where appropriate.
Funders of research per the funding bodies’ requirements are acknowledged by authors.
Affiliation with the ANU is recorded as ‘The Australian National University’. Local level affiliation may also be recorded, but not in place of ‘The Australian National University’.
Authors correct the record as soon as possible where the researcher becomes aware of misleading or inaccurate statements about their work.
Authors accurately represent the state of a publication (e.g. in preparation, submitted, in press), or awards received, including stating whether publications or awards were shared, in any documentation (e.g. curricula vitae, grant applications, job applications, public statements).

Disputes

Disputes should be resolved as per the Procedure: Authorship disputes.
If an author is deceased or cannot be contacted (having made strenuous efforts), the publication can proceed, provided that there are no grounds to believe that this person would have objected to being included as an author.

Information	Printable version (PDF)
Title	authorship
Document Type	Procedure
Document Number	ANUP_6747116
Version
Purpose	To outline the requirements and responsibilities for authorship of research outputs. The Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research, 2018, Authorship – A guide supporting the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2019), and any guidelines/requirements of publishers is read in conjunction with this procedure.
Audience	Students
Category	Academic
Topic/ SubTopic	Research

Effective Date	23 Feb 2024
Next Review Date	22 Mar 2029

Responsible Officer:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)
Approved By:	Academic Board
Contact Area	Office of Research and Innovation Services
Authority:	Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Rule 2014 Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research, 2018 : NHMRC Australian National University Act 1991 Copyright Act 1968 Academic Integrity Rule 2021 Defence Trade Controls Act 2012 (Cth)
Delegations	0
Information generated and received by ANU staff in the course of conducting business on behalf of ANU is a record and should be captured by an authorised recordkeeping system. To learn more about University records and recordkeeping practice at ANU, see ANU recordkeeping and Policy: Records and archives management.

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