Questions, Concerns, or Suggestions:

For questions, concerns, or suggestions about human subjects research, or for questions about the rights of research participants, please contact the Social & Behavioral Sciences (SBS) IRB Office. Both contacts below provide a way for research participants, potential research participants, or members of the community to contact someone in the organization other than the research team.

• Phone: 773-702-2915
• Email: sbs-irb@uchicago.edu

If you have a question or concern for the other IRB offices on campus, please contact the following: 

• Biological Sciences Division (BSD) IRB: http://bsdirb.bsd.uchicago.edu/ email: bsdirb@bsd.uchicago.edu 
• The Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice and Chapin Hall (Crown-CH) IRB: https://crownschool.uchicago.edu/institutional-review-board email: IRB@crownschool.uchicago.edu  

Resources for Participants:

General Information:

• Are You Thinking About Being in a Research Study? (CITI)
• ClinicalTrials.gov (NIH)
• Participating in Clinical Trials (FDA)
• Research Participants (AAHRPP)

Presentations: 

The Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) has created a series of short videos with basic information about research (available in both English and Spanish). These videos are intended to help potential participants understand how research works, what questions they should consider asking, and things to think about when deciding whether to participate in a study. See https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/education-and-outreach/about-research-participation/informational-videos/index.html for the full list.

• Part 1: What is Research?: this video provides basic information about scientific research, the goals of research, and discusses how clinical research differs from medical care. (3:00) 
• Institutional Review Boards (IRBs): this video explains the concept of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), which review certain research studies involving human volunteers to ensure that the studies meet ethical standards and regulatory requirements. (6:45)
• Participating in Social and Behavioral Health Research: this video provides basic information about social and behavioral health research and what makes it different from clinical research. (6:05)

Main US Ethical Codes & Regulations

• Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP): https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/
• 45 CFR 46: http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/guidance/45cfr46.html
• 21 CFR 50: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?CFRPart=50
• 21 CFR 56: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?CFRPart=56
• Belmont Report: https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/regulations-and-policy/belmont-report/index.html