The policies of the SPU IRB are also designed to protect University members who conduct research, and students who conduct research under their supervision. These policies apply to all research activities that involve human participants.

Definition of Research
The definition of Research used by the SPU IRB comes from the Office of Human Research Protections (OHRP), the federal agency within the Department of Health and Human Services that oversees IRB's. Research is defined as “a systematic investigation (i.e., the gathering and analysis of information) designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge.” Research designates, “an activity designed to test an hypothesis, permit conclusions to be drawn, and thereby to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge (expressed, for example, in theories, principles, and statements of relationships). Research is usually described in a formal protocol that sets forth an objective and a set of procedures designed to reach that objective.”

More simply put, The IRB is responsible to review and approve any proposed research with human participants that occurs outside of established or commonly accepted educational settings involving normal educational practices such as regular course evaluations or student assessment. OHRP refers to this as the “common rule” when ascertaining the need for IRB review.

Any project outside of the common rule that meets all of the following criteria needs to submit an IRB application for data collection approval.

1. Systematically collects data from multiple human participants and. . . .
2. Stores the data for analysis, and. . .
3. Publicly presents or archives in printed / electronic form a summary of the results that will be available to others outside of normal classroom activities at SPU.

 

Before completing your IRB application please read the SPU IRB User guidelines. You can find both documents at the link below. You may also need to document informed consent. You can find the template and checklist for informed consent below. If you are unsure if you need to document informed consent form, please see the FAQ link below or check with your IRB Member.

Submit two hard copies of the application with any documented protocol (such as the questionnaires or assessment instruments that you propose to use) to your School or Department IRB Member. DO NOT submit via e-mail.

Full Review: 2013-14 Deadlines

If you require expedited or exempt IRB review outside of these dates, please contact your School or Department’s IRB member, or the IRB Chair.

IRB Forms		Research Resources		Reseach with Human Subjects		Federal Human Subject Assurance Training
	IRB Application Form		SPU IRB User Guidelines		IRB Policies		On-line Training Program
	IRB Status Report		Risk Guidelines for Exercise and Testing Prescription		OHRP
	Informed Consent Template A				SPU IRB Charter
	Informed Consent Template B
	Sample Debriefing Form
	Non-Documented Informed Consent Template

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