Students are not required to participate in research; however, the Psychology Department provides a variety of research participation opportunities for psychology students, including participating in or assisting with faculty research and conducting individual student research projects.
Psychology majors may gain valuable research experience and earn academic
credit by assisting with faculty research (e.g.,
by helping to collect, score, or analyze data)
or by electing to conduct an independent study project under the supervision
of a faculty member. Some of our psychology majors have presented their
project research at regional professional conferences (see the Outstanding Students section).
Brief descriptions of approved faculty and student research projects are posted on the Psychology Research Bulletin Board outside the Psychology Lab (UHB 3118). Information on session dates, times, and locations are included so that students can schedule a time to participate.
Students who are enrolled in Psy 201: Principles of Psychology or Psy 302: Research Methods in Psychology are required to participate in research or complete an alternative assignment (approved by the instructor).
Students in other Psychology courses may volunteer for and participate in approved research projects in order to receive course-related extra credit points (at the instructor's discretion).
Most studies have desigated times that they are conducted. There are sign-up binders outside the Psychology Office (UHB-3144). You must sign up to reserve your spot in the study, however, you must then show up for that session. If you don't attend you will be penalized (see the department's policy for no-shows [Word doc]).
All psychology faculty and student research projects (including student projects conducted to fulfill psychology course assignments) that involve collection of data from human research participants or from non-human animals must be reviewed and approved before data collection begins.
The approval process begins at the department level. Researchers submit a research project/protocol form to the department chairperson, who serves as a liaison to the department's research review committee, as well as to the University's Human Subject's Review Officer.
Completed project proposal forms should be delivered to the Psychology department's Main Office (UHB 3144) or via e-mail and attachments to the department chair.
Information about the research review process and ethical considerations, as well as sample consent and protocol forms are available at the UIS Institutional Review Board website.
