Current Projects

AEREO has a number of projects underway, as well as several in development. Make sure to check out our Publications and Completed Projects to see our work so far.

In Progress (as of Summer 2023)

  1. A study of how institutional community research advisory boards liaise with IRBs and researchers as a potential mechanism to help incorporate participant perspectives (funded as an NCATS bioethics supplement)
  2. A project to examine whether and how HRPPs gather participant experience data, barriers and facilitators to doing so, and the perceived value of that information to improving IRB and HRPP quality
  3. An interview study to examine how IRBs engage with outside experts to inform their review and oversight of research (as part of a more comprehensive project on outside expertise, including a published literature review and survey study)
  4. A pilot study to develop and examine the feasibility and utility of an "institutional memory bank" of IRB decisions on challenging protocols (a follow-up project to earlier work on IRB "precedent")
  5. A study of investigator perspectives on the value that IRBs add (or could add) to their research
  6. An effort to examine the centrality of deliberation to the role of IRBs and determine how to meaningfully assess and improve deliberative quality
  7. An empirical study to consider the role of IRBs in evaluating the social value of proposed research (submitted for funding as an NCATS bioethics supplement, under review)
  8. An examination of how IRBs can better incorporate what is already known about research participant preferences - and identify relevant gaps in that knowledge
  9. A project to consider the distinctions and overlaps between what it means for an IRB to engage in regulatory oversight v. ethics review
  10. An effort to improve the quality of research proposals submitted to IRBs, as a step toward facilitating high-quality review
  11. A project to improve the feedback provided by the HRPP to the institution and investigators
  12. A preliminary examination of the quality of the pre-review process and expedited review procedures, as well as efforts to improve both
  13. A project to understand "near misses" and ensure IRBs are able to learn from them, adapting a model from the patient safety context
  14. An effort to improve the quality of and trust in sIRB reviews

Do you have an idea for empirically evaluating IRB and HRPP effectiveness?

We want to hear it. Please contact AEREO Co-chairs Holly Fernandez Lynch and Holly A. Taylor to set up a meeting.