American Institutions and Methodology Lab Handbook
Lab Director
Professor Janet Box-Steffensmeier
Email address: [email protected]
Mission and Statement of Scientific Principles
The purpose of the lab is to serve as a collaborative research endeavor for undergraduate students. The lab’s mission is to advance and produce high-quality social science research that addresses the challenges facing democracy and governmental institutions. The lab is dedicated to providing opportunities for the next generation of scholars to develop research and data science skills.
The lab affirms the principles of rigor, transparency, and ethical research. Rigor indicates our commitment to precise theorizing, measurement, statistical analysis, and hypothesis testing. The lab will practice transparency by making all data and replication code available via the open science framework. We also welcome other researchers to test our analysis, and, where applicable, we will pre-register our experiments and analysis plans. We will conduct ethical research by not inventing new hypotheses to test when prior hypotheses are not supported. Additionally, guidelines for human subjects research will always be strictly adhered to.
Acknowledgments
This lab handbook and the corresponding syllabus are patterned in part on materials created by Dr. Aaron Sparks and Dr. Laura Roselle for the Sparks Lab of Elon University; we thank them both for sharing their work.
Roles and Expectations
The Lab Director will clearly communicate expectations, organize weekly lab meetings and biweekly one-on-one meetings, and coordinate the research process.
Student researchers enrolled for credit in Political Science 4998 will meet the expectations provided in the individual syllabus and course contract. If student researchers are not able to enroll, but would still like to participate in research, a contract of expectations will be provided in an individual contract.
Student researchers will complete the work they agree to take on or be in communication with the lab group if there are unexpected hurdles. Clear communication is key to ensuring the research process moves forward as smoothly and efficiently as possible.
Additional options include writing an Honors Thesis or Research with Distinction Thesis.
Mentoring and Development
We will contribute to scientific knowledge on the challenges facing democracy and governmental institutions, and this lab will provide a venue for extensive mentoring and professional development. We are welcoming and inclusive to all students interested in applying social scientific principles to questions related to American politics and government. The core of lab work is built around the apprenticeship model of development. Students will be able to learn how political science research is conducted and presented. At professional conferences, students will have the opportunity to network with other political scientists and undergraduate students from around the world. The Lab Director is committed to enhancing students’ experiences and promoting their career aspirations.
Data Analysis Statistical Software
Our data analysis will be primarily conducted in R, a statistical programming language. If you are unfamiliar with R, do not worry; you will learn how to use it. Links to download R and instructions on how to install it are available here. Typically, individual data management and analysis tasks will be conducted by one person and saved in a shared folder with an appropriate file name (e.g.: study1_AIM_V1). Once all analysis is complete, the files will be compiled and shared publicly.
Raw data will be stored in the shared TEAMS project folder and a backup will be kept by the Lab Director. R scrips to clean and organize the data will be shared in the folder. Tasks to clean, organize, or manipulate the raw data in the R scrips should be documented with clear and concise comments using the # operator in R. Anyone should be able to review the R script and know exactly what was done to the data.
Code of Conduct
Our lab adheres to OSU’s Code of Student Conduct and guidelines on academic integrity.
Well-being
Given the stresses of college, taking care of yourself is important. Ohio State offers a variety of resources committed to well-being through the Counseling and Consultation Service.
Publications
Students are eligible for co-authorship on peer-reviewed publications. Student co-authors must take leadership on at least one of the following aspects of research to be included as a co-author: research idea generation, theory building, hypothesis generation, writing of literature review (not just finding articles alone), original writing, data collection (beyond data input/cleaning), or data analysis.
Political Science Research Conferences
Lab research will be presented at national political science research conferences such as the American Political Science Association (APSA), Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA) and Southern Political Science (SPSA) Annual Meetings. Ohio State University resources can be discussed to assist with student travel and attendance. Students involved in the project will be listed as co-authors on conference papers regardless of whether they can attend. Students attending the conference are encouraged to present the paper.
Presenting at The Ohio State University Denman Undergraduate Research Forum is highly encouraged. Additional student focused conferences such as the Pi Sigma Alpha’s Undergraduate Political Science Research Conference and Ohio Association for Economists and Political Scientists may be of interest. If there are other conferences that students are individually interested in, please contact Professor Box-Steffensmeier for a discussion.
Communications
Official lab communications will be provided through email, but will include website announcements as well.
Research Funding
Providing research funding for students is important. In addition to funds the Lab Director may have, students are encouraged and supported in applications for funding. Some sources of funding for previous students include:
Arts and Sciences Career Accelerator Fund
Arts and Sciences Research Funding (not tied to Honors Program)
Student Alumni Council (SAC) Scholarship
Undergrad Research Apprenticeship Program (URAP)
Undergrad Student Govt, Academic Enrichment Grants (AEGs)
Lab Director
Professor Janet Box-Steffensmeier
Email address: [email protected]
Mission and Statement of Scientific Principles
The purpose of the lab is to serve as a collaborative research endeavor for undergraduate students. The lab’s mission is to advance and produce high-quality social science research that addresses the challenges facing democracy and governmental institutions. The lab is dedicated to providing opportunities for the next generation of scholars to develop research and data science skills.
The lab affirms the principles of rigor, transparency, and ethical research. Rigor indicates our commitment to precise theorizing, measurement, statistical analysis, and hypothesis testing. The lab will practice transparency by making all data and replication code available via the open science framework. We also welcome other researchers to test our analysis, and, where applicable, we will pre-register our experiments and analysis plans. We will conduct ethical research by not inventing new hypotheses to test when prior hypotheses are not supported. Additionally, guidelines for human subjects research will always be strictly adhered to.
Acknowledgments
This lab handbook and the corresponding syllabus are patterned in part on materials created by Dr. Aaron Sparks and Dr. Laura Roselle for the Sparks Lab of Elon University; we thank them both for sharing their work.
Roles and Expectations
The Lab Director will clearly communicate expectations, organize weekly lab meetings and biweekly one-on-one meetings, and coordinate the research process.
Student researchers enrolled for credit in Political Science 4998 will meet the expectations provided in the individual syllabus and course contract. If student researchers are not able to enroll, but would still like to participate in research, a contract of expectations will be provided in an individual contract.
Student researchers will complete the work they agree to take on or be in communication with the lab group if there are unexpected hurdles. Clear communication is key to ensuring the research process moves forward as smoothly and efficiently as possible.
Additional options include writing an Honors Thesis or Research with Distinction Thesis.
Mentoring and Development
We will contribute to scientific knowledge on the challenges facing democracy and governmental institutions, and this lab will provide a venue for extensive mentoring and professional development. We are welcoming and inclusive to all students interested in applying social scientific principles to questions related to American politics and government. The core of lab work is built around the apprenticeship model of development. Students will be able to learn how political science research is conducted and presented. At professional conferences, students will have the opportunity to network with other political scientists and undergraduate students from around the world. The Lab Director is committed to enhancing students’ experiences and promoting their career aspirations.
Data Analysis Statistical Software
Our data analysis will be primarily conducted in R, a statistical programming language. If you are unfamiliar with R, do not worry; you will learn how to use it. Links to download R and instructions on how to install it are available here. Typically, individual data management and analysis tasks will be conducted by one person and saved in a shared folder with an appropriate file name (e.g.: study1_AIM_V1). Once all analysis is complete, the files will be compiled and shared publicly.
Raw data will be stored in the shared TEAMS project folder and a backup will be kept by the Lab Director. R scrips to clean and organize the data will be shared in the folder. Tasks to clean, organize, or manipulate the raw data in the R scrips should be documented with clear and concise comments using the # operator in R. Anyone should be able to review the R script and know exactly what was done to the data.
Code of Conduct
Our lab adheres to OSU’s Code of Student Conduct and guidelines on academic integrity.
Well-being
Given the stresses of college, taking care of yourself is important. Ohio State offers a variety of resources committed to well-being through the Counseling and Consultation Service.
Publications
Students are eligible for co-authorship on peer-reviewed publications. Student co-authors must take leadership on at least one of the following aspects of research to be included as a co-author: research idea generation, theory building, hypothesis generation, writing of literature review (not just finding articles alone), original writing, data collection (beyond data input/cleaning), or data analysis.
Political Science Research Conferences
Lab research will be presented at national political science research conferences such as the American Political Science Association (APSA), Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA) and Southern Political Science (SPSA) Annual Meetings. Ohio State University resources can be discussed to assist with student travel and attendance. Students involved in the project will be listed as co-authors on conference papers regardless of whether they can attend. Students attending the conference are encouraged to present the paper.
Presenting at The Ohio State University Denman Undergraduate Research Forum is highly encouraged. Additional student focused conferences such as the Pi Sigma Alpha’s Undergraduate Political Science Research Conference and Ohio Association for Economists and Political Scientists may be of interest. If there are other conferences that students are individually interested in, please contact Professor Box-Steffensmeier for a discussion.
Communications
Official lab communications will be provided through email, but will include website announcements as well.
Research Funding
Providing research funding for students is important. In addition to funds the Lab Director may have, students are encouraged and supported in applications for funding. Some sources of funding for previous students include:
Arts and Sciences Career Accelerator Fund
Arts and Sciences Research Funding (not tied to Honors Program)
Student Alumni Council (SAC) Scholarship
Undergrad Research Apprenticeship Program (URAP)
Undergrad Student Govt, Academic Enrichment Grants (AEGs)