II.3.1. Internal Research Panel (Subject Pool)
IDUB Programme Objective(s)
- II.3 Improving the capacity to cooperate by increasing research capability
Name of POB/activity group
Description
Objectives
The activity is intended to facilitate research trials in the behavioural sciences (e.g., psychology, economics, sociology) and to let students experience being part of scientific research. Thanks to the creation of an internal research panel at the University of Warsaw (WPB UW), an employee or doctoral candidate at the University will be able to recruit participants quickly and efficiently for experimental research, questionnaires, online surveys, or longitudinal studies. All UW students who register in the WPB UW system will receive invitations to take part in research and earn points for completing it. Participation in several studies will entitle them to credit points.
Justification
Internal human subject pools function at almost all of the research institutions in the United States. Their purpose is to streamline the recruitment of students for research projects. Usually, participation in such panels is an element of the education process – it is assumed that the experience of participation in research as a researcher is an essential element of training future scientists. At some universities, participation in a panel is part of an introductory course in psychology; at other universities, it is treated as an additional source of credit points or remunerated. The existence of research panels contributes to simplified recruitment and more efficiently conducted research.
Recruitment of respondents at the University of Warsaw has thus far been conducted in a non-systematic way. For several years, there was an online student panel with limited functionality, but it closed due to a lack of consistent financing. Recruitment for research is therefore carried out on an ad hoc basis, during teaching classes, in corridors, or in common spaces (such as the University library – BUW). The existence of a panel will lead to greater professionalism in the recruitment process for research in the area of behavioural sciences.
Activities
- Creating of research panel project team, with IT support, administration, and a content manager;
- Training trips for the project team to institutions with efficient subject pools, and consultations with external experts;
- Purchasing an operating system for the research panel;
- Integrating the research panel operation system with advanced online research systems (experimental schemes, multimedia stimuli, etc.);
- Implementing the system and integrating the research panel with the USOS system;
- Developing a questionnaire for potential respondents through the system;
- Integrating the research panel into the assessment/credit system;
- Carrying out system tests and pilot studies;
- Organising meetings and training workshops with University employees and doctoral candidates, to familiarize them with the functionality of the system;
- Organising scientific meetings with researchers carrying out research with the system;
- Creating the opportunities for people from outside the University to use the panel;
- Organising visits by external researchers.
Implementation of joint projects in the Warsaw University of Technology and the Medical University of Warsaw.
Coordinating unit
- Faculty of Psychology
Entities involved in implementation
- The Robert Zajonc Institute for Social Studies
- Faculty of Economic Sciences
- Institute of Sociology
- Institute of Applied Social Sciences
- Institute of Social Prevention and Rehabilitation (IPSiR)