Reflections on Becoming a Qualitative IRB Chair: Recommendations for IRBs and Autoethnographic/Qualitative Researchers

This essay reflects upon my experiences as a qualitative research faculty member becoming chair of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at my university. Many scholars have discussed the particular tensions and challenges that exist between qualitative research and IRBs.¹ Other scholars have focused specifically on the challenges, disruptions, and successes of submitting autoethnographic studies to IRBs.² These difficulties are often the result of the underlying incongruent paradigms between much qualitative inquiry and the understanding of research within IRBs. However, I argue that these challenges can be exacerbated by a lack of representation of qualitative inquirers on IRBs and the lack of specific knowledge of IRB processes and regulations that qualitative researchers, generally, and autoethnographers, specifically, could use to their advantage. After reviewing my experiences navigating the dual roles of qualitative/autoethnography dissertation advisor and IRB chair, I offer several suggestions for IRBs and researchers/teachers who desire to protect research...