Department of Psychology Policy for Research Participation
Research is the basis of knowledge in psychology and provides the content in all areas of the discipline. The Department of Psychology requires a minimum of 6 hours of research experience of each student enrolled in Psyc 111. This requirement may be completed by active participation in a department-approved study, by report of instructor-approved library reading, or a combination of these two in accord with guidelines set by the instructor. Each accepted library research report receives one hour of research credit, and active participation in ongoing studies receives credit according to the length of time spent in the study, which can vary from half an hour up to more hours. Details of the research participation and the library assignment will be provided in the 2nd or 3rd week of class. Failure to complete the minimum research requirement results in a one-letter grade drop, so if a student, for example, had a 'B' in Psyc 111 at the end of the semester but failed to complete six hours of approved research experience, the student would receive a 'C'.
Students who make an appointment for research participation, as do the investigators conducting the study, make a commitment to be at the designated place at the designated time for their appointment. If an emergency arises to prevent the participants from being able to be at the appointed time and place, they must notify the investigator no later than one hour prior to the study time. If students fail to come to the study on time or fail to cancel with sufficient notice, they will not receive credit for that study. Moreover, it is up to the investigator to decide whether and when such a participant will be allowed to make an additional appointment for that particular study. Students should be aware that making a large number of appointments at the end of the semester (at the same time that hundreds of other students are trying to complete their credits) can be difficult and it is best to fulfill the six hour requirement before the end of the semester.
