HRPP: Clarification on activities other than research

As required by the Federal government, the IRB/HRPP at Bates College uses a definition of research which excludes several types of scholarly, journalistic, or governmental activities that might otherwise be included in a common-sense definition of “research.” Such activities include scholarly and journalistic activities (e.g., oral history, journalism, biography, literary criticism, legal research, and historical scholarship), including the collection and use of information, that focus directly on the specific individuals about whom the information is collected.

If this does not apply to your work, then you are engaged in human subjects research. However, some types of human subjects research are exempt from IRB review. Please proceed to the list of exemptions.