STS Research Review
This page provides guidance to all researchers in UCL Department of Science and Technology Studies (STS) on matters of research ethics, data protection, GDPR compliance, and safety.
Overview
Regardless of their area of specialism, all UCL staff and students engaged in research are required to work within an appropriate and recognised professional ethical framework and to follow the relevant codes of conduct.
Within UCL STS, staff and students undertake a wide variety of research projects, each of which may require a different form of ethics oversight. The type of project you are conducting determines which ethical guidelines and professional standards you must follow. Practical projects also require ethical oversight, for which staff and students must complete a risk assessment.
Without exception, all research at UCL involving “intervention or interaction with living human participants or the collection or study of data derived from living human participants” must receive ethical approval before carrying out any data collection or fieldwork. Staff and students must also obtain approval for data protection plans and risk assessments where applicable.
All projects using humans as above must be reviewed by the STS Research Review Panel (STS RRP) before data collection begins. Where permitted, more-than-minimum risk research will be referred to UCL Research Ethics Committee (UCL REC) as a matter of routine. Applicants can expect a consider time delay before receiving word on UCL REC decisions.
Process
The review process varies for STS Staff (including visiting researchers) and STS Students. Please see the relevant section below.
For detailed guidance for preparing your research review application please refer to the following document.
STS staff and visiting researchers working on academic research projects involving intervention or interaction with living human participants or the collection or study of data derived from living human participants, undertaken to test or develop new hypotheses, generate new knowledge, or build novel arguments that contribute to the academic literature can access the research ethics review form using the following link:
Research Ethics Review – Fill in form
Researchers can download the PDF version of the form at the bottom of this page to review the questions and prepare their answers in advance. We recommend doing this before starting to complete the form.
Please make sure you picked the academic research option when answering questions 7 on the form.
STS RRP will deal with minimal risk projects. Projects with low risk will be referred to UCL REC.
Members of staff working on science communication projects involving intervention or interaction with living human participants or the collection or study of data derived from living human participants, carried out for the purpose of informing audiences, disseminating knowledge, or evaluating and improving current services or processes can access the research ethics review form using the following link:
Research Ethics Review – Fill in form
Researchers can download the PDF version of the form at the bottom of this page to review the questions and prepare their answers in advance. We recommend doing this before starting to complete the form.
Please make sure you picked the practical project option when answering questions 7 on the form.
The STS Research Review process has two parts. Part 1 is required for all projects. If the project does not involve working with humans as above, then this is the only step required where you are asked to complete a declaration form clearly stating. This demonstrates you have considered the issue. Projects that involve “intervention or interaction with living human participants or the collection or study of data derived from living human participants” require both part 1 and part 2.
Undergraduate and master’s students are not allowed carry out research that involves more-than-minimum risk because we believe these can be beyond the scope of an undergraduate or master’s dissertation in addition to the heavy time and practical demands involved.
Part 1
After students are assigned a supervisor and decided on a dissertation topic they need to complete the Research Ethics Review Part 1 using the following link:
STS Research Ethics Review Process (Part 1) – Fill in form
Students can download the PDF version of the form at the bottom of this page to review the questions and prepare their answers in advance. We recommend doing this before starting to complete the form.
Part 2
Academic Research
Students whose projects involves intervention or interaction with living human participants or the collection or study of data derived from living human participants, undertaken to test or develop new hypotheses, generate new knowledge, or build novel arguments that contribute to the academic literature can access the research ethics review form using the following link:
Research Ethics Review – Fill in form
Students can download the PDF version of the form at the bottom of this page to review the questions and prepare their answers in advance. We recommend doing this before starting to complete the form.
Practical projects
This applies to all HPSC0155 students following the practical pathway for their project. Practical projects fall under different ethical standards and staff and students are expected to follow different codes of conduct. These projects involve intervention or interaction with living human participants or the collection or study of data derived from living human participants, carried out for the purpose of informing audiences, disseminating knowledge, or evaluating and improving current services or processes.
First, STS expects practical projects to operate within the scope of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) professional ethical standards.
Second, STS requires completion of a risk assessment form. Risk assessment is a standard form of review in industry. In our case, risk assessments are developed in consultation with project supervisors and are reviewed by STS RRP, who must approve the risk assessment prior to the start of project work.
Risk assessments are required for all practical projects because all projects carry risks. The primary goal of risk assessment is to identify risks and develop mitigations. Where risks cannot be mitigated with reasonable effort, students will receive guidance on how they can proceed. The research ethics review form can be accessed using the following link:
Research Ethics Review – Fill in form
Students can download the PDF version of the form at the bottom of this page to review the questions and prepare their answers in advance. We recommend doing this before starting to complete the form.
Please make sure you picked the practical project option when answering questions 7 on the form.
Please note that in rare cases, practical projects include work reasonably considered “research”. Supervisors are alert to this possibility, and they should be consulted where clarity is sought.
General Advice
Research cannot be undertaken without necessary approvals in place prior to start. Three areas are prescribed for STS-based research projects:
- ethics of research methods, mandatory for research using humans as data
- data protection, mandatory for research using personal data (as defined by GDPR)
- safety and risk assessment, mandatory for off-site locations and lone working
Supervisors and line managers are responsible to ensuring projects under their direction meet all UCL requirements. STS RRP strongly advises staff and students to secure independent decisions about applicability - meaning you should not make decisions about your own projects (history shows such decisions risk bias) - consult independent colleagues. STS researchers should feel encouraged to discuss project and protocol design with their colleagues, supervisors, and line managers. In teaching, module tutors or supervisors are the first point-of-contact. Research students, research fellows, and other academic staff have recourse to research clusters, especially cluster leads. Our community has tremendous wealth of experience in areas of protocol design and engagement with responsible research.
In addition to STS RRP, researchers may also use following pathways when appropriate:
UCL REC: In research review, UCL central processes are supervening and provide default systems for all research. These are managed by UCL Research Ethics Committee (UCL REC). UCL offers guidance in all aspects of research preparation, including research ethics, data protection, and safety and risk management. UCL provides legal guidance on data protection issues.
Other departments: STS researchers collaborating with colleagues in other UCL departments can use alternate review processes within UCL. Approvals from those departments is sufficient. Where comparability or transferability are not clear, STS researchers should consult the STS RRP lead.
Useful Documents
*For Student use only