UNM, NYU: Miller's Fatshaming Tweet Wasn't Research

Two IRBs have concluded that Geoffrey Miller's June tweet about "obese PhD applicants" was not human subjects research.

A UNM statement explains,

Miller at first claimed his tweet was part of a research project, but investigations by the Institutional Review Board at New York University where he was a visiting professor, and the IRB at UNM where he is a tenured professor, concluded that was not correct.

The statement also lists the terms of a censure by the university.

For background, see Trolling Isn't Human Subjects Research and Michelle Meyer: Miller Interacted, Intervened

Michelle Meyer: Miller Interacted, Intervened

Michelle Meyer had more to say about my comments on Geoffrey Miller's fatshaming troll-tweet than would fit in Blogger's comment box. I post her comments here, along with some responses.

Trolling Isn't Human Subjects Research

The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that IRBs at both NYU and the University of New Mexico are investigating the conduct of Professor Geoffrey Miller, now notorious for a June 2 tweet warning "obese PhD applicants" that "if you didn't have the willpower to stop eating carbs, you won't have the willpower to do a dissertation."

According to the Chronicle, Miller "explained his action to university officials in New Mexico by saying he had sent the Twitter message as part of a research project." (In proper troll-speak, one says "social experiment.") But Miller also maintains that "IRB approval was not necessary under his own understanding of federal law."

[Basken, Paul. “In Reversal, NYU Investigates Professor Who Tweeted on Obese Ph.D. Students.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, June 11, 2013.]

Sex and Trauma Surveys No Riskier Than Cognitive Tests

A team of psychologists has found that responding to survey questions about trauma and sex is no more stressful than completing "well-established cognitive tests."

[Elizabeth Yeater, Geoffrey Miller, Jenny Rinehart, and Erica Nason. "Trauma and Sex Surveys Meet Minimal Risk Standards Implications for Institutional Review Boards." Psychological Science (Published online before print May 22, 2012), doi: 10.1177/0956797611435131. h/t Michelle Meyer.]