Student Research and Surveys
Student Research and Surveys
Use of Human Participants in Research Activities
(AP4: 7.10.03)
Rational | Exempt
Research | Non-Exempt
Research
Non-Exempt
Research Principles |
Human
Participants Research Review Committee
Process of
Review and Approval | Review
Form
Cascadia welcomes the use of research activities on campus to be conduced by
students, faculty, staff and/or administrators. Research is used to learn
more about scientific methods, to advance knowledge in specific areas or
disciplines, and to provide useful information for the college.
The college wishes to ensure that participants who are involved in any type
of research activity on campus encounter a minimal amount or no risk as a result
of their participation. Therefore, all non-exempt research
proposals will be reviewed in advance by an impartial committee that will ensure
the safety of all involved and all ethical considerations.
Certain kinds of research are completely exempt from review. For
example, institutional research, institutional assessments of student learning,
and assessments of classroom instruction are exempt from review. The Code
of Federal Regulations specifies the educational exemption from review:
"Research conducted in established or commonly accepted educational
settings, involving normal educational practices, such as 1) research on regular
or special education instructional strategies, or 2) research on the
effectiveness of or the comparison among instructional techniques, curricula, or
classroom management methods."
Certain research activities are non-exempt and, therefore, are subject to
review by an impartial committee. Research done by (1) students as part of
a class project, (2) an external group or person, such as a doctoral student, or
(3) non-institutionally sanctioned parties interested in conducting interviews,
observations, or surveys must be reviewed. Therefore, all research
that is non-exempt is subject to review by Cascadia's Human Participants
Research Review Committee.
Institutional research falls under the federal exemption described above,
however, some institutional research may qualify as non-exempt. The
Director of Institutional Effectiveness maintains the necessary guidelines for
the conduct of institutional research.
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All non-exempt research conducted at Cascadia that involves human
participants will follow these guidelines:
- Participants will be exposed to minimal or no risk as a result of
participation;
- Participants will complete an informed consent form, sign it, and date it
prior to participating;
- Potential participants will know enough about the research project ahead
of time to permit them to make an informed decision about whether to
participate or not;
- Potential participants will know who is conducting the research, and also
that it has been approved by Cascadia's Human Participants Research Review
Committee;
- In accordance with state law, potential participants aged 18 and older may
decide on their own if they want to participate in the research or
not. Written parental permission must be obtained for any
participant under the age of 18;
- Participant's privacy will be protected, and confidentiality of data will
be maintained.
- A seven member Human Participant Research Review Committee will be
composed of three interdisciplinary Cascadia faculty members (recommended by
the Faculty Assembly to the Vice President for Student Learning), the
Director of Institutional Effectiveness, the Dean for Student Learning, one
student (appointed by the Cascadia Student Government President), and one
librarian (appointed by the Director of the Campus Library).
- The Director of Institutional Effectiveness will serve as the chair of the
Human Participants Research Review Committee and shall call meetings as
needed.
- The Review Committee will be convened for an annual appointment at the
beginning of each academic year and will serve during fall, winter and
spring quarters. During these quarters, all research requests will be
reviewed within three weeks of being received. For those requests
received during the summer quarter and would be implemented during the
upcoming fall quarter or later, the forms will be submitted for review
during the first three weeks of the upcoming fall quarter.
- For requests that would be implemented during summer quarter, the Vice
President for Student Learning would appoint an Ad Hoc committee to review
the requests. This committee would consist of three faculty members,
the Director of Institutional Effectiveness, the Dean for Student Learning,
and a Librarian. In case of a tie, the Vice President for Student
Learning will cast the tie breaking vote.
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The process for reviewing requests for research are as follows:
- All requests must be submitted in writing on the
Human
Participants Research Review Committee form;
- A copy of all Human Participants Research requests will be kept for a
minimum of three years;
- All notification to the researcher will be in writing. The
researcher will have an opportunity to respond in person or in writing if
his or her research proposal has not been improved or if there is concern
about particular aspects of the research request;
- A majority vote will be needed for approval of each request;
- Researchers will complete the Human Participants Research Review form and
forward it to the Director of Institutional Effectiveness with a copy of
their materials. The form and materials will then be forwarded to the
other members of the committee for expeditious review. If no one has
concerns, the research will be approved in a day or two. If there are
concerns, the committee will respond to the researcher, and ask for
clarifications or changes. If necessary, a meeting will be scheduled
so that the researcher can discuss the proposal changes. The committee
will use a consensus approach of approval;
- Researchers will explain how they will take adequate precautions or make
adequate provisions to protect the privacy of participants and to maintain
confidentiality of data;
- Researchers are welcome to consult with the Director of Institutional
Effectiveness as they design their research and/or write their requests for
permission to conduct research;
- The Human Participants Research Review Committee will have the authority
to suspend or terminate approval of research when unanticipated serious harm
has befallen some participants;
- This procedure will be reviewed periodically to ensure that it is meeting
the needs of all constituents.
Human
Participants Research Review Form
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