IRB Approval Needed?

[The2abraxis]

Hi there, I have a project in mind, and a potential mentor says I need IRB approval to do it. The question is, do I really?

The study relates to playing styles in poker, and no human subjects were used. Human "players" were simulated with a computer program. The only actual human use was getting averages for hands and pot sizes. Do you think this requires IRB approval?

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[chicoborja]

You're right, that is pretty a pretty gray area. It's better to heir on the side of caution though. I think your mentor is right and you do need IRB approval because you are taken measurements of hands from actual people.


Good luck!

 

[rajju077]

I dont think you do. But, if you have used anyone';s info, you might have to. Send it to IRB and see what they say.

 

[ChairmanMao]

Hi there, I have a project in mind, and a potential mentor says I need IRB approval to do it. The question is, do I really?

The study relates to playing styles in poker, and no human subjects were used. Human "players" were simulated with a computer program. The only actual human use was getting averages for hands and pot sizes. Do you think this requires IRB approval?

Unless you yourself (or someone in your research team) are measuring people's hands in order to get hand size averages, you probably won't need IRB approval. You can probably avoid the IRB if you're getting the information from a secondary source (a medical journal that outlines the average human hand size). The IRB is supposed to protect patient privacy and well-being at your institution. So if you're just using anonymized data from a secondary source, you probably don't need to go through that hurdle.