In conducting original research and/or completing the dissertation, EDP faculty and EDP graduate students may request use of the Department’s subject pool if it provides an appropriate sample.
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Questions?
If you have questions about how to gain access to the subject pool or about other procedures, please contact the Subject Pool Coordinator, Hien Nguyen (edpSubjectPool@austin.utexas.edu). If you have questions about a policy matter, please contact Gigi Awad (gawad@austin.utexas.edu), EDP Subject Pool Committee Chair.
How to Request Subjects
The EDP Subject Pool is only available in the Fall and Spring semesters.
Your study must first be approved by the Department Review Committee (DRC) before the Subject Pool Committee can act on your request. The DRC (the officially designated representative of The University's Institutional Review Board) will examine your proposed study to determine if it complies with University policies regarding the ethical treatment of research participants. If you have not obtained DRC approval, your request for subjects will be delayed or even rejected for the semester. Your study must also have IRB approval
Application to the DRC and IRB is made through the IRBaccess application process. Under Step 2, #3, enter Toni Falbo's EID (falbotl) as Department Review Chair; for #4 enter Julie Nguyen, EID (jn8967) as the Research Assistant/Project Coordinator.
Note that you will not be allowed to enroll or collect data for your study until you've received full IRB approval.
EDP faculty and graduate student researchers* wishing to request student subjects must first submit their study for consideration by completing a Request for Researcher Account and Study Proposal Submission form.
Proposals must be submitted within the first 2 weeks of the semester. The Subject Pool Committee will meet after the semester submission deadline to review all proposals. Researchers should realize that the number of subjects and the time allotted to your study by the Committee may be different from what you requested, depending on the constraints faced by the Committee each semester.
* Graduate student researchers must have a faculty sponsor for their research. If your study is part of your dissertation, you need the sponsorship of your committee supervisor, and you must have successfully completed your dissertation proposal meeting. Your request for subjects will be delayed or rejected for the semester if you fail to meet these requirements.
Deadlines, Spring 2019
Tuesday, February 5th, Time TBA, SZB 538N - Informational session for researchers will be held. We strongly encourage new researchers to attend this session about using the management system and creating your study in the system. The Subject Pool Coordinator will send out an email with a confirmed date and time shortly after the start of the semester.
Friday, February 8th - Subject Pool Study Proposal Submission form due.
Wednesday, February 19th - Study opening date for IRB-approved studies. Studies may also open after this date.
Thursday, April 25th - Study closing date for all EDP Subject Pool studies. Studies close at midnight that evening. You may close your study earlier, but this is the last possible day to run participants.
Wednesday, May 1st - Finalized study credits are due from all researchers.
Friday, May 10th - End of semester; last class day.
Specialized Subject Requests
There are two options when requesting a specialized group of subjects. You may request subjects based on demographic characteristics (see list below).
You may also submit your own potential screening questions or criteria. Screening questions are limited to a total of 5 and should be submitted for approval to Dr. Diane Schallert (dschallert@mail.utexas.edu) 5 days prior to the beginning of the semester. If approved, they will be included on the subject pool student registration website by the first day of class. Screening questions will be rejected if there appears to be any psychological risks or issues of confidentiality about administering them to the entire pool of potential subjects.
Demographic Characteristics:
- Age
Sex
Course Number
EDP 304
EDP 350G
EDP 350E
EDP 350L
- EDP 371
Year of study
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
Graduate Student
College
Architecture
Business Administration
Communication
Education
Engineering
Fine Arts
School of Law
LBJ School of Public Affairs
Liberal Arts
Library and Information Science
Natural Sciences
Nursing
Pharmacy
School of Undergraduate Studies
Social Work
US Citizenship (yes, no)
Dominant ethnicity (for US Citizens)
African-American
American Indian
Asian-American
Hispanic
Middle Eastern/Arab-American
White
Multi-Ethnic
Country of origin (for non-US Citizens)
English as first language (yes, no)
Researcher Conduct
You are expected to adhere to APA standards in the conduct of the study. Please consult the APA publication, "Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct" for more information. Also, please observe the following procedures:
- You must provide ample opportunities for students to complete the study (i.e., sufficient numbers of sign-up times at convenient hours and locations). Class time cannot be used to conduct the research.
- All research must be completed three weeks before the last day of class. The Subject Pool Coordinator will provide specific deadlines each semester.
- Record attendance in your online roster. You will be required to provide it to the Coordinating TA at the end of the study and no later than three weeks prior to the last day of classes.
- When students finish their participation, you should provide each with a written receipt so that they can prove participation, if necessary. Students who choose not to participate, for whatever reason, will be given an alternate assignment, so an accurate record of participation is important. A participation receipt template can be obtained from the SP Coordinator.
- You should provide feedback - oral or written, preferably after each session - so students can have a better understanding of and appreciation for research in educational psychology.
The Office of Research Support and Compliance has a list of Responsibilities of Principle Investigators which should also be followed.
Subjects' Rights
The EDP Subject Pool Committee has establish the following subjects' rights.
- By completing the registration process the subject is agreeing to participate in a research study rather than doing the alternative assignment as their way to meet the research requirement.
- However, this does not commit the subject to participate in the study that is assigned to them.
- At the time the study is conducted, the subject will be given a consent form that describes the nature of the study.
- The subject may decline to participate in the particular study upon reading this form if they choose.
- In addition, once the study is underway, the subject has the right to cease participation in the study at any time without penalty should they feel uncomfortable with the study's procedures.