Ethical review procedure for student research Department of Communication Science (CW) University of Amsterdam Version: 22 September 2014 Ethics Committee Department of Communication Science (CW) University of Amsterdam 1 Checklist for Application for Ethical Approval of Student Research Communication Science, University of Amsterdam Version: 22 september2014 Ethical approval must be requested for all research conducted by students as part of their education in the University of Amsterdam Department of Communication Science (CW). This applies to all modules of the CW Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes, as well as to all types of research (interviews, focus groups, surveys, experiments, content analyses). Approval may be requested by completing the form provided in Appendix A. The application will be assessed by the teacher of the teaching module. For juvenile (< 18 years) respondents or test subjects, the teacher must submit the application for ethical approval to: ‐ for Master’s modules, to the representative of the Ethics Committee of the appropriate programme group ‐ for Bachelor’s modules, to Bas van den Putte General Student research in the University of Amsterdam Department of CW must conform to the conditions for standard research. To this end, a brief summary of these criteria is provided below. If you are not sure whether your research falls within the category of standard research, please consult the detailed manual of the Ethics Committee. This text mentions “participants”. This refers to the respondents or test subjects participating in your research. Standard research:  The research is not of a medical nature, and no invasive procedures are to be applied (for example registration of blood pressure, heart rate and cheek swabs).  A test subject is a healthy, mentally competent adult (18 years of age or older) who is participating voluntarily and who may receive either no reward or a non‐disproportionate reward for doing so: ‐ If a prize draw is held: The maximum total value in euros is equal to the number of participants (i.e. €1 per participant). The maximum amount that may be drawn per participant is the maximum amount divided by 60 and multiplied by the number of minutes that the research lasts. For example, for 200 participants taking a survey that lasts 15 minutes, €200 may be drawn, with the greatest prize being calculated as follows: (€200*15)/60=€50. ‐ If you wish to pay participants: reimbursements in excess of €10 per hour are considered disproportionate.  Each participant must be provided with a factsheet about the research (the minimum contents of a factsheet are specified below).  The anonymity of participants is guaranteed, and participants have the right to refuse to participate or to withdraw from participation after it has begun (the factsheet should specify a term of at least 24 hours during which people may withdraw).  Test subjects may only be misled if the research question cannot be answered without misleading test subjects. The researcher is never permitted to mislead a test subject on 2 important aspects of the research that might affect the test subjects’ willingness to participate, such as risks (mental or physical), discomfort or other adverse effects (for example exposure to information, materials or questions to which they would prefer not to be exposed.). After research has taken place in which test subjects have been misled, immediately after the participation a full debriefing of the test subject should always take place, in which any negative effects (for example, if false negative feedback is given on intelligence scores) are dispelled. If no temporary negative effects are expected, the debriefing may be held no later than a month after the end of the experiment.  All participants must sign an informed consent form, in which they confirm that they have read and thoroughly understand the factsheet (see below for additional details on the minimum content of the informed consent form).  For juvenile participants (< 18 years of age), permission must be obtained from the parent(s)/guardian(s). This may take the form of either active permission or passive permission. Active permission: As a rule, research on juveniles requires active permission from the parents (this also applies to research conducted through the internet or other means). Active means that the parent(s)/guardian(s) are informed in person (or in a letter sent to the home address or by email to one of the parents) about the research and that they must sign a form in which they grant explicit permission for their child to participate in the research. Letters or emails to parents may not be distributed through the child. Passive permission: For research in schools, passive permission will generally suffice. In the case of passive permission, parent(s)/guardian(s) can file an objection stating that they do not wish for their child to participate. If they do not object, they provide implicit approval. Passive permission is to be allowed only if all parents have been informed in person. This may take place in the form of a letter sent to the home address or by email to one of the parents. Letters or emails to parents may not be distributed through the child. Research on academic skills and performance at school constitutes an exception to this rule. In this case, a brief may be sent home with the child. Minimum content to be included in factsheets for research participants:  The factsheet should be formulated in language that is easy to understand and free of jargon or uncommon abbreviations.  The name, address, telephone number and email address of the researcher.  Information on the content and procedure of the research. This information must enable the participant to make a good assessment of the topic and goal of the research. They must also have a good idea of the operations to be performed, duration of participation, possible mental or physical discomfort (including exposure to information, materials or questions to which they would prefer not to be exposed). If the research question makes it impossible to reveal the aim of the research beforehand, an explanation should always be given as soon as possible after the end of the research, preferably immediately, but no later than one month after the end of data collection.  A statement to the effect that the anonymity of participants in the research will be safeguarded, and that personal information will never be passed on to third parties without their permission.  A clear paragraph stating that participation is always voluntary and that participants can refuse to participate in the research and can pull out at any time. In addition, they have up 3 
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to 24 hours after the research to withdraw their permission for the use of their data in the research. None of these actions will at any time entail adverse consequences for participants, their academic results or similar matters. All compensation ‘earned’ up to that point will be paid. If applicable: The reward for participating in the research and the conditions under which it will be paid. If desired, a researcher may include in the factsheet a statement that no reward will be paid if there are clear indications that the participation is not being taken seriously. If applicable: A statement to the effect that participants are entitled to a summary of the results of the research. Participants wishing to receive this summary must be enabled to make this known to the researcher/student (e.g. by email). The following text: Should you have any complaints or comments about this research, you can contact the designated member of the Ethics Committee representing the Department of Communication Science, at the following address: ASCoR Secretariat, Ethics Committee, University of Amsterdam, Postbus 15793, 1001 NG Amsterdam; 020‐525 3680; ascor‐secr‐[email protected]. Any complaints or comments will be treated in the strictest confidence. Informed consent form The informed consent form to be signed by the researcher and the participant must state that the participant has taken note of the content of the factsheet and understands it fully. The informed consent form should list all contact addresses for the researcher and the Ethics Committee, as stated in the factsheet. The participant must receive a copy of the form and, if desired, a copy of the factsheet to take home. For online research, the information from the factsheet may be provided at the beginning of the research, and approval may be granted by means of a yes/no question. 4