Institutional Review Boards

As the Oral History Association's "Principals and Best Practices" states, there are both professional standards and  ethical frameworks for conducting oral histories. 

Between 1991 and 2018, the United States' Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects mandated that Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) review and approve oral history research projects.

The United States government removed this requirement as of 19 January 2018. The current Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects Links to an external site. states in 45 CFR 46.102(l)(1) that 

(l) Research means a systematic investigation, including research development, testing, and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge. Activities that meet this definition constitute research for purposes of this policy, whether or not they are conducted or supported under a program that is considered research for other purposes. For example, some demonstration and Start Printed Page 7261service programs may include research activities. For purposes of this part, the following activities are deemed not to be research:

(1) Scholarly and journalistic activities (e.g., oral history, journalism, biography, literary criticism, legal research, and historical scholarship), including the collection and use of information, that focus directly on the specific individuals about whom the information is collected.

Consequently, there is no requirement for oral historians based in the United States to receive approval from Institutional Review Boards. 

These rules do not, however, release researchers from the obligation for ethical conduct and fallowing professional standards.

Likewise, those working in countries around the globe need to follow local guidance and legislation. In the United Kingdom, for example, university oral history researchers need to submit their projects to their Research Ethics Committee (REC) Links to an external site..