Scientific integrity among nursing students participating in the Scientific Initiation Program: An exploratory study

OBJECTIVE: To know the positions and practices adopted by nursing students in scientific initiation programs about the principles of scientific integrity in the different stages of the process of doing science. METHOD: An exploratory study of a quantitative nature, in which nursing student participants of the Scientific Initiation Program from the Federal District were interviewed. RESULTS: Fifty (50) nursing students participated in the study. Most of the interviewed participants presented good notions about the process of conducting research in its different stages. Nevertheless, it was found that even though they were familiar with good scientific practices, students did not always behave in the most responsible manner. It was observed that the knowledge on topics related to the ethics of the scientific process was predominantly obtained through formal education, consisting of classes and courses. Nonetheless, the importance of complementary spaces such as research and research groups is recognized. CONCLUSION: Research experiences are important educational and vocational training spaces for students. Therefore, good research practices need to be included early in the academic curriculum.