College of Arts & Humanities

Ethics Application Procedures

If you or your students are conducting any research involving human subjects or materials or data not in the public domain, you should apply for ethical approval.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS

To apply for ethical approval, applicants must complete and submit the following documents):

1. Ethics Application Form
2. Research Proposal briefly explaining your project
3. Participant information form [a.k.a. plain language statement/ participant FAQ]
4. Participant agreement form [formerly referred to as a ‘consent form’]
5. Drafts of any surveys/ questionnaire or sample questions (if your research includes interviews)

The application form and College of Arts & Humanities Guidelines, as well as templates for the participant materials --- participant information and agreement forms -- can be downloaded from this website (see sidebar right). The application documents and other materials should normally be submitted in Word format.

Depending on the nature of your research project, you may also have to supply the following:

• Data Protection Impact Assessment
• Privacy Statement

• Basic Disclosure Scotland clearance (only if you will be in sole charge of vulnerable groups during your research)

For more detailed information please see the Ethics Guidelines (right). 

 

Submission

All applications must be submitted online through the University's Research Ethics System (access via My Glasgow > Business Systems > Research Ethics System).

Login: https://frontdoor.spa.gla.ac.uk/login/.

If you do not have access to the Research Ethics System, you can request this via the University's IT services help portal. Applications should be submitted at least four weeks before the start of the research. It is the expectation of the College of Arts & Humanities that data collection will not begin until ethical approval has been granted.

Class Applications: If you supervise a group of students pursuing linked projects, you can submit a single application on behalf of all of them. However, staff should make sure that students involved are aware of ethical issues and have read the College’s Ethics Policy.

Should you have any further questions, please contact the College's Research Ethics Team:

arts-ethics@glasgow.ac.uk

Review of Applications

Applications will be scrutinised by at least two members of the College Ethics Reviewer Panel and three members in the case of postgraduate and staff applications. Members of the Panel involved in the research proposal cannot act as scrutineers. Consultation will typically be via the Research Ethics System and email. Reviewers will be asked to ensure that the proposal under consideration is congruent with ethical considerations identified by the UKRI (the default position or, if appropriate, by other funding bodies) as well as UofG policies (e.g. safeguarding, student surveys) along with legal frameworks (e.g. UK GPDR) and relevant statutory duties (e.g. Prevent UK).

Ethical considerations identified by the UK funders include the following:

• the safety of participants and researchers
• the intellectual property rights of all those involved in the research, including both research staff and research subjects
• confidentiality of information provided by research subjects, and anonymity of respondents
• transparency to both staff and subjects as to the purpose, methods, and possible uses of the research, and any risks involved
• conflict of interest (potential, perceived of actual)
• legal restrictions upon access to or the use of research resources and data
• arrangements for the publication of research results, including issues of co-authorship;independence and impartiality of judgement; authentication of findings; and acknowledgement

 

Appeals

Researchers who are dissatisfied with the decision made by the College Ethics Committee should in the first instance discuss the matter with the College Ethics Officer. If discussion is unable to resolve the issue satisfactorily, an appeal from the College Ethics Committee may be made to College research Integrity.

Contact the College Ethics Officer: arts-ethics@glasgow.ac.uk