Research Ethics

The REB provides Certificates of Ethical Acceptability valid for the period of one year, approves modifications to research protocols, informed consent forms and relating supporting documents, and officially closes research projects upon their completion.

Please know that all research involving human participants must be approved by the REB prior to data collection. The Yukon University also requires all researchers to complete the TCPS-2 tutorial, found below under training.

If you are planning to work with Indigenous Communities you should be familiar with the First Nations Principals of OCAP® (Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession). OCAP® is a set of principles aimed at protecting Indigenous ownership, Indigenous jurisdiction, and Indigenous information. Researchers working and engaging with communities that have adopted their own ethical codes (such as OCAP®) are required to familiarize themselves with such codes. Details on The First Nations Principles of OCAP® can be found at here.

Human Research Ethics Process Guide 

Requirements for Completion of the Course on Research Ethics (CORE) Tutorial

The Yukon University Research Ethics Board requires University researchers who wish to conduct human research complete the online TCPS 2: CORE-2022 (Course on Research Ethics before they start.

This includes Yukon University study team members (faculty, staff & students) and team members from other Universities. They must complete the TCPS2 online tutorial “Course on Research Ethics” (CORE). It is strongly recommended that all other team members involved in the research with human participants and/or their data, complete the CORE Tutorial and include a copy of the certificate with the research application. If a team member is not able to complete the training the PI or PA must include an explanation and details for alternative training of their team members.  The training must include TCPS2 requirements for ethical research in compliance with the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans-TCPS2 (2022).  CORE certificates and/or details of alternate training for other team member are required before research ethics approval will be granted.

Yukon University Research Ethics Board requires proof of completion of TCPS2: CORE-2022 or details of alternative training for investigators conducting research at, or under the auspices of, Yukon University.  These should be submitted with your research ethics application. 

The YukonU REB will continue to accept certificates of completion from the previous TCPS2 CORE tutorial provided you have completed this after April 2011 and researchers confirm that they have read the following

• The Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans – TCPS 2 (2022)
• Highlights of changes: Summary of revisions in TCPS 2 (2022)

We strongly recommend that you complete the most recent version - TCPS2 CORE 2022 to ensure your training is up to date.

Steps to follow to take this training:

1. Click on the link to access the registration portal
2. Click on the “LOGIN TO CORE/CREATE ACCOUNT” icon on the right side of the page.
3. Click on “Create new account here”
4. Fill out the boxes with your information. Be sure to include affiliation as Yukon University, your Yukon University e-mail address and for students include your student number. This is very important as Yukon University is able to verify your completion of the tutorial and can assist you should you have problems logging in at any time.
5. Once you’ve clicked “register,” an e-mail will be sent to your University email address. (if you haven’t received this be sure to check your spam or junk mail folder). If you don’t receive this email to activate your account contact the Research Ethics Coordinator at vwalker@yukonu.ca
6. Click on the link provided in the e-mail to activate your account.
7. Once your account has been activated, login to the CORE homepage with your University e-mail and the password you provided in the setup of your TCPS2 tutorial account  
8. Begin the CORE modules by clicking “start” under the “options” heading

You can do these modules at your own pace. It takes approximately 3-5 hours to complete and you can stop and resume the training at any time.

You can also find the full Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2) here.

Does your research involve Yukon First Nations?

Complete TCPS2 CORE-2022 (includes Module A9: Research Involving Indigenous Peoples)

Yukon First Nations Core Competency – It is also recommended that researchers complete the Yukon First Nations 101 Course. This can be completed online using the Moodle system. More details about the course and how to register here.  

First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC) provides training through their online course “The Fundamentals of OCAP® and also have additional information on the First Nations principles of OCAP® here .

• Understanding the First Nations Principles of OCAP®
• Ownership, Control, Access and Possession (OCAP®): The Path to First Nations Information Governance
• Barriers and Levers for the Implementation of OCAP®

The Principal Investigator (PI) or Faculty Supervisor (FS)

As the individual responsible for the implementation of research, the PI bears direct responsibility for ensuring that human research participants are safe and treated with respect. The responsibility starts with project design, which must balance risks with potential research benefits. The PI must ensure that all members of the research team comply with the requirements of the TCPS-2. The PI will be held accountable for any ethical non-compliance of themselves or their team.

A PI should be a faculty member of the University with an indefinite term. Students cannot be identified as the PI on REB applications. Students must have a faculty supervisor as the PI on the REB application. In the case of student research, the PI is known as a Faculty Supervisor (FS). The FS has the same responsibilities as a PI and serves in this capacity.

Co-Investigator/Team member

Co-investigators and other members of the research team are responsible for ensuring their own completion of the TCPS-2 tutorial (a responsibility shared with the PI), holding themselves to a high ethical standard, and ensuring that their actions in conducting research are compliant and consistent with Yukon University policy. It is the team member's or co-investigator's responsibility to question when unsure. Being unaware of certain guidelines or requirements is not accepted as reason for unethical behaviour. Co-investigators from other institutions are required to ensure ethical compliance at their home institution as well as Yukon University.

The Yukon University Research Ethics Board (REB)

The REB will review and monitor all research involving human research participants conducted under the auspices of the University. The REB is an autonomous entity whose primary responsibility is ensuring the safety and well-being of all research participants involved in research programs carried out by Yukon University researchers, students and adjuncts or those that involve Yukon University in their research.

The following information may help you to decide if your course requires course-based research ethics approval from the YukonU Research Ethics Board (REB).

If you answer YES to any of the following questions, you need to obtain course-based ethics approval and you must complete the TCPS2 Training:

1. Are the assignment objectives connected to providing exposure to research methods?
2. Do the assignments in your course require students practice data collection methods (used in research) with people?
3. Are these assignments structured to be minimal risk research activities?
   • Note: the determination of minimal risk is from the perspective of the participant. Minimal risk research involves activities or data gathering that is similar to what the participant would experience in their day-to-day life and is unlikely to cause embarrassment, anxiety, be of a personal nature or about a topic that is generally considered private. Any research involving vulnerable populations does not qualify as low risk.

If you answer YES to the following questions, you MUST submit an individual Application for Research Ethics Approval (Form 1A or Form 1B) to YukonU REB:

1. Do your students collect data or engage in the research processes that contribute to your research?
2. Will your students be working on individual projects?

The activities below do NOT require ethics approval

• Using publicly available information about a person or people to write an essay
• Students talking with a patient or client to learn about their experiences and then using this information to write an essay that will be graded by the teacher
• Skills development activities which are considered standard practice within a profession (e.g. observation, assessment, intervention, evaluation, auditing), provided these activities do not constitute research as defined by the TCPS2. Examples of professional skills development that is not research include:
  • students talking with patients or clients​ (or practicing with other students or their teacher) in order to provide a diagnosis, identify appropriate interventions, or give advice
  • interviewing someone in a profession about the procedures used at their workplace; this would not be research unless the data were collected in a systematic way to answer a research question
  • collecting information from a client to complete their tax return
  • collecting information from a client to provide advice or a plan, e.g. a marketing plan
• Research skills using anonymous data or fictional data (e.g. data collected during practice interviews or surveys in which students roleplay rather than divulging personal information)
• For a full list of exemptions, please see the TCPS 2 (2022) – Chapter 2: Scope and Approach.

Questions? Contact us at ethics@yukonu.ca.

Jennifer Gibbs

Community Representative
jennifer.gibbs@yukonu.ca

Chris O'Brien

Community Representative
cobrien@yukonu.ca

Do I require ethics approval?

Any research involving human participants being conducted at Yukon University, or by Yukon University staff, faculty, or students, or using Yukon University resources, requires Yukon University REB approval before beginning your project. This includes course-based research, use of secondary data, or the use of human biological tissues.  See "Understanding Research Ethics Review Requirements"

Additional sources of information for distinguishing between research, quality improvement and program evaluation.

1. UBC Checklist for quality improvement/quality assurance/program evaluation/curriculum development studies requiring ethics review (checklist for determining if REB review required)
2. University of Alberta Difference Between Research, Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement
   • Guidelines for Differentiating among Research, Program Evaluation and Quality Improvement with Guiding questions
3. Fraser Health Differentiation of Research, Quality Improvement and Program Evaluation Summary Table
4. University of Waterloo  Quality assurance or Quality improvement projects
5. University of Calgary  Research Activities Exempt from CFREB Review

Does your research involve non-human animals? You will require animal care approval. Information on these requirements can be found here. Please contact vwalker@yukonu.ca for more information.

Does my course-based project require REB approval?

Projects that have any or all of the following characteristics are course-based research and require REB approval: 

• Projects where primary data are being collected and organized for analysis and distribution or dissemination within the course structure.
• Projects designed to answer research questions.
• Projects where students are asked to sign a non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement.
• Projects where students require consent to use individual identifiers in reports or classroom presentations because of confidentiality or privacy concerns.
• Projects where “ownership of information” or “product development” as a result of a project may become an issue.

Projects that have any or all of the following characteristics are not course-based research and do not require REB approval:

• Projects where students are conducting information-gathering (e.g., interviews, questionnaires) on themselves during class time.
• Projects involving the use of records or information that is in the public domain, including the use of anonymous secondary data and surveys or questionnaires that have already been published.
• Projects involving the use of naturalistic observation where the participants are seeking public visibility and participant confidentiality and anonymity are ensured.
• Practicum or job training projects where students are fully integrated into the organization’s operational practices and are not conducting research.
• Projects where the intent is to use the information to provide diagnoses, identification of appropriate interventions or general advice for a client.
• Projects where the intent is to develop skills which are standard practice within a profession (e.g., observation, assessment, intervention, evaluation, auditing).
• Projects where the information-gathering processes are part of the normal relationship between the student and the participants (e.g., classroom teacher and students, nurse and patient, lawyer and client).

Can I begin my project in advance of ethics approval?

You may begin some aspects of your project but you cannot begin data collection. The REB will try to accommodate expedited request for review, however this is not always possible so please plan accordingly. Failure to obtain approval in advance of data collection may be grounds for academic misconduct.

I am a researcher at another institution and would like YukonU staff/student involvement in my research. Do I need ethics approval from the Yukon University? My home institution has already granted me approval.

Yes, you still require ethics approval from the Yukon University REB. In accordance with the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans – TCPS 2 (2022) (Chapter 8-Multi-Jurisdictional Research) YukonU is accountable for research conducted under it auspices, irrespective of the location where it takes place. Therefore, any research that will be conducted by or associated with a member of the YukonU community, including but not limited to, faculty, researchers, students or staff that will in any way make reference to their affiliation with YukonU or use YukonU resources (financial, physical or human), or that uses YukonU communication channels including bulletin boards, newsletters, internal email lists, etc., will need clearance from the YukonU REB. For any research above minimal risk, YukonU is not able to accept another institution's review as sufficient clearance for research involving YukonU in any way.  YukonU must have a formal agreement with the other institution.

Please attach your home institution's ethics approval to your Yukon University application.

Note: You may also need a license to conduct research in the Yukon, which can be found here.

What do I do if I am involved in a research project that involves multiple institutions?

Research often involves multiple institutions that have their own ethical review processes. Research involving Yukon University personnel and is associated with other universities are subject to the jurisdiction of multiple ethical review processes. In such instances, researchers are required to obtain the approval of all such institutions.

What is considered Minimal Risk?

Is your question not here? Contact us at ethics@yukonu.ca.