Edited September 2017
PY251 Guidelines & Responsibilities
A) Responsibility to Others: By undertaking research, you have an obligation to your advisor and any venue from where you collect data to complete the job you agreed to do.
B) Time: Your research block may not be a Monday through Friday, 9-5 job. Many projects require night and weekend obligations and time outside of the designated block(s). The researcher does what is required of the project to collect accurate data and not to inconvenience the research participants. Be punctual. Your advisor, research participants, and community members will not tolerate lateness.
C) Respect for Research Participants: Research participants have volunteered to help you (even if they are being remunerated for their time) and should not be kept waiting (see above), should be treated courteously, and should be thanked for their help. This applies also to individuals who facilitate your data collection, such as CC faculty of classes in which you recruit participants, and/or leaders of outside organizations. Good manners not only facilitate your own data collection, but also positively reinforce CC faculty, community leaders, and participants for their participation and make them more likely to volunteer in the future. You are an ambassador for research and the psychology department whenever you are working on a project.
D) Dress: Research is an important endeavor and you, as a researcher, are representing the Psychology Department in this endeavor. Therefore, your dress is expected to be appropriate to the task. What is the operational definition of “appropriate?” “Appropriate” is dress that is not distracting to the research participant, that is kempt, and that exudes professionalism. For instance, the researcher’s dress should not reveal midriffs or undergarments, nor should it reveal the researcher’s own political leanings, or anything with which the research participant may have a visceral reaction, keeping in mind that research participants of different age groups, cultural backgrounds, and genders may have different definitions of “appropriate” dress (as well as of piercings, tattoos, etc.).