Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Note: The Institutional Review Board (IRB) guidelines and procedures contained in this site are currently under review by the University's IRB. While the Forms and Resources page has been updated, the completed IRB website will be operational later in the fall.
Excellence in research requires the application of formalized investigative procedures and well-documented findings. As part of Regent University's commitment to developing exemplary leaders in the field of research, we operate an Institutional Review Board (IRB) to assure research best practices when dealing with human subjects.
What you will find in this website are the guidelines and training for achieving IRB approval which is required anytime you conduct research with human participants. Typical application of these guidelines would include research conducted for dissertations, theses and other scholarly publications.
Compliance with IRB standards must be documented, thus IRB approval must be received before initiating your project. This will validate your consent to comply with all Federal and University philosophies regarding the protection of human subjects participating in your research.
The University's position on this matter is as follows:
- Philosophy: Since people enjoy the distinct privilege of being made in the image of God, it is imperative that people recognize the inestimable worth of others. Further, Jesus states that the dual-love commandment (love of God and love of others) provides the standard upon which all other commandments rest upon (Matthew 22:37-40).
- Mission: Our mission is to protect the worth, dignity, rights, health, welfare, and privacy of all persons who choose to be willing participants in research involving human subjects, in a loving manner. The IRB is committed to ethical, sensitive, and responsible conduct in the research of human subjects. Researchers must respect personal dignity and autonomy, secure voluntary consent from fully informed subjects, and protect persons by minimizing potential risks or harm of subjects.
