• Researchers, in principle, shall not involve persons with special relationships in their own research.
  However, R&E programs, in which family members (spouse, children, etc., within fourth-degree relatives) are not involved, are exempt from the restrictions on the participation of persons with special relationships.
• Researchers cannot engage persons with special relationships as research assistants for routine administrative tasks, experiment assistance, or simple labor.

• Despite the principle of restricting the participation of persons with special relationships, if a person with a special relationship possesses relevant expertise and qualifications, or if there are unavoidable circumstances such as difficulty in securing research personnel due to the nature of the research, approval must be obtained through the following procedure.
  • The applicant submits the Application for Participation of Persons With Special Relationship (Attached Form No. 1) and Qualifications and Utilization Plan for Persons With Special Relationship (Attached Form No. 2) to the head of the affiliated department.
  • The head of the affiliated department reviews the submitted documents and determines whether to approve the participation of persons with special relationships.
  • If the head of the affiliated department deems the participation of persons with special relationships as justified, he/she issues a Research Participation Confirmation Certificate (Attached Form No. 3) to the applicant.

Even if approval for participation of persons with special relationships has been obtained for a researcher from another institution, the researcher must obtain the same approval from KAIST. However, if both the researcher and the individual with a special relationship are affiliated with KAIST, it is sufficient for only one of the researchers to obtain approval.

• The researcher must submit all documents related to the special relationship research participation application and a commitment form for the special relationship to the Research Integrity Committee.
• Researchers and persons with special relationships who have received approval for project participation must follow the KAIST Lab Note Management Guidelines and other relevant guidelines for the management of lab notes.
• When involving a person with a special relationship in research or co-authorship, the researcher must diligently manage the special relationship according to relevant regulations during the execution of the research or co-authoring of the paper.

• If approval for special relationship research participation is not obtained, the researcher must find a substitute for the person with a special relationship.