Institutional Review Board
Bucknell University is committed to safeguarding the welfare, rights, and privacy of all persons who participate as subjects in research projects conducted under its auspices, and to ensuring that the subjects of such research are aware of the rights and the protections available to them. These safeguards derive from an effort to demonstrate respect for persons, beneficence, and justice in the practice of human subjects research. These ethical principles were first articulated in the Belmont Report issued by the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research in 1979 and are made concrete in the “Common Rule” (45 CFR §46).
Bucknell's Institutional Review Board (IRB) is the body charged with reviewing and approving all proposed research involving human subjects, whether funded or not, conducted under the auspices of Bucknell University by its faculty, students or staff, or by outside investigators using Bucknell University students, personnel, facilities, or data collected at the University. These projects must be approved before data collection begins. Proposals should be submitted using the online submission system (below).
“Research” is defined in the Common Rule as any “systematic investigation, including research development, testing, and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge” (45 CFR §46.102(l)). Research subject to IRB review thus includes, but is not limited to: pilot studies, honors theses, Master’s theses, Ph.D. dissertations, class projects or independent research aimed for publication (including research occurring off the Bucknell University campus or outside of the United States) when such research involves human subjects or data derived therefrom. If you are unsure whether your project requires IRB approval or if you have other questions, please consult the materials in these pages or contact Eric Kennedy, IRB Chair at 570-577-2013 or irbchair@bucknell.edu.
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