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Based on the definition of minimal risk, evaluate whether the researcher's justification for requesting an expedited review is accurate. Explain your reasoning using the standard criteria for minimal risk.
Case context: A researcher submits a protocol to the Institutional Review Board (IRB) to study spatial memory. In the study, healthy adult participants will be asked to walk through a standard grocery store for 15 minutes, memorizing the locations of specific items, and then complete a standard multiple-choice memory test on a computer. The researcher argues the study requires a lower level of oversight, specifically an expedited review.
Question: Based on the definition of minimal risk, evaluate whether the researcher's justification for requesting an expedited review is accurate. Explain your reasoning using the standard criteria for minimal risk.
Sample answer: The researcher is accurate in requesting an expedited review because the study meets the criteria for minimal risk. Walking through a grocery store and completing a standard memory test do not expose participants to potential harm that exceeds the risks they ordinarily experience in their daily lives or during routine psychological evaluations. Because the potential harm is not greater than minimal risk, the IRB can determine that a lower level of oversight is necessary.
Key points:
- Concludes that the researcher is justified in requesting an expedited review.
- Explains that walking through a grocery store poses no more potential harm than the risks of daily life.
- Explains that taking a standard computer memory test aligns with routine psychological evaluations.
- Links the study's minimal risk status directly to the IRB's determination of the necessary level of oversight.
Rubric: The response must correctly identify that the study fits the definition of minimal risk by comparing the study's activities to the baseline of daily life or routine psychological evaluations, which directly justifies the researcher's request for expedited review.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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Expedited Research
Justifying Minimal Risk Research
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Based on the definition of minimal risk, evaluate whether the researcher's justification for requesting an expedited review is accurate. Explain your reasoning using the standard criteria for minimal risk.
If a psychologist designs a study that involves measuring participants' heart rates while they sit quietly and read a book, how should the researcher classify the risk level in their Institutional Review Board (IRB) application, and what level of review might this qualify for?