THE
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD THE
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD
The Institutional Review Board (IRB) is responsible for reviewing all research involving human participants prior to initiation of that research. Research designates an activity in which hypotheses are tested with the intention of contributing to generalizable knowledge. Data collected for public presentation or publication are assumed to be contributing to generalizable knowledge. In addition, any project involving human participants as research subjects must be reviewed and approved by the IRB prior to receiving funding from Saint Mary's College.
In compliance with federal guidelines (Title 45 CFR Part 46), the IRB is composed of at least five members with varying backgrounds in order that the IRB be sufficiently qualified through the experience, expertise, and diversity of its members to promote adequate review of research activities conducted at an institution. The purpose of the IRB is 1) to insure the protection of human participants used in the projects, 2) to provide guidance in the design of experiments to insure that the information being sought will be obtained in an ethical manner, and 3) to provide a process that assures society that the experimental protocols have been reviewed and approved ethically by knowledgeable individuals who are not directly involved in the research. There are seven criteria that an IRB must consider before approving any project which utilizes human volunteers. These criteria are:
1.
Are the risks reasonable in relation to the benefits?
3.
Is the selection of participants equitable?
4.
Has informed consent been obtained?
5.
Has informed consent been adequately documented?
6. Are the privacy and confidentiality of the participant protected?
7. Are the data monitored and the risk-assessment reevaluated during the
course of the study?
Last updated: August, 2006
If you have any comments or suggestions about this web site, please send them to wsvelmoe@saintmarys.edu.
This site was authored by Dr. Catherine Pittman and Zhou Zhu as the product of a faculty / student special project.