Research Study

Understanding and Working with Large Code Bases

Study Overview

This research study is being conducted to research UCSD students’ code comprehension in the context of large code bases.

We are inviting you to participate in a research study because you are a UCSD student currently enrolled in CSE 190 with Professor Soosai Raj: Working With Large Code Bases.

The purpose of this research study is to gain an understanding of how UCSD students navigate and work with large code bases. If you agree to take part in this study, the following will happen: your data from this class, including grades, homework and exam submission, and interactions with your course team, will be included in the analysis to inform studies on understanding and working with large code bases. Your participation involves only agreeing to let us use your anonymized data in our analysis. It will require no time on your part in addition to your usual activities without agreeing to this study.

The most common risks or discomforts of this study are potential loss of some confidentiality. We will not share your personally identifiable information with people outside the research team.

We cannot promise any benefit to you or to others from you participating in this research. However, possible benefits include being able to better understand and navigate through large code bases, potentially preparing you better for industry-level internships and jobs. Possible benefits to others include potentially improving computer science curriculum with researchers learning more about why and how to work towards teaching important skills like working with large code bases to our students.

The alternative to being in this study is not to participate. Choosing not to participate or withdrawing will result in no penalty or loss of benefits to which you are entitled, and will have no impact on your grade in the course.

How many people will take part?

We plan to study around 50 people here. The research will include students currently enrolled in this section of CSE 190 taught by Professor Soosai Raj: Working with Large Code Bases.

What happens if I take part in the research?

Here is what will happen to you if you agree to be in this study:

Your data from this class will be collected, including, but not limited to:

Grades
Homework and project submission
Surveys
Interactions with the course staff

What are the risks and possible discomforts?

Participation in this study may involve risks or discomforts. Possible risks or discomforts include:

Loss of some confidentiality
Collection of personal information and data within CSE 190

Risks of Loss of Confidential Information: There is also a risk that information about you could be released to an unauthorized party. To minimize this risk, we will not share your personally identifying data with people outside the research team. Data will only be kept in anonymized form for research purposes. Professor Soosai Raj will not know who is participating in the study. Research records will be kept confidential to the extent allowed by law and may be reviewed by the UCSD Institutional Review Board.

Risks of Collection of Sensitive Information: Some of the questions we will ask you are personal. You may feel embarrassed or stressed. You may ask to see the questions before deciding whether or not to take part in this study

Risks of Interviews/Questionnaires/Quality of Life Assessments that Discuss Sensitive Issues: Some of these questions may seem very personal or embarrassing. They may upset you. You may skip any question that you do not want to answer. If the questions make you very upset, we will help you to find a counselor, refer you to an appropriate clinic for follow up, or you can contact Professor Soosai Raj at asoosairaj@ucsd.edu.

Possible Unknown Risks: In addition, there might be risks that we cannot predict at this time. These unknown risks may be temporary, mild, and last only while you are actively participating in the research, or they may be serious, long-lasting, and may even cause death. You will be informed of any new findings that might affect your health or welfare, or might affect your willingness to continue in the research.

What if I agree to participate, but change my mind later?

You can stop participating at any time for any reason, and it will not be held against you. Your choice to participate, or not participate, will not affect your course grade in CSE 190 with Professor Soosai Raj. No matter what you decide, there will be no penalty to you.

We will tell you about any new information that may affect your health, welfare, or choice to stay in the research.

The PI may remove you from the study without your consent if the PI feels it is in your best interest or the best interest of the study. You may also be withdrawn from the study if you do not follow the instructions given you by the study personnel.

If you decide later that you do not want the data collected from you to be used for future research, you may contact the research assistant, Thanh Tong, at ttong@ucsd.edu, who will remove you from the study. However, in some cases, such as if your collected data has already been analyzed, the data from these tests will no longer be linked to your identity and cannot be removed from the research database.

What will happen to information collected from me?

The data we collect with your identifiable information (for example, your name, student email, or student ID) as a part of this study may be used to answer other research questions or may be shared with other investigators for other research. If we do so, we will remove all identifiable information before use or sharing. Once identifiers have been removed, we will not ask for your consent for the use or sharing of your data in other research. In addition, data that have been de-identified will be uploaded to a shared Google Drive folder for other researchers to access and use.

We will not share your personally identifying data with people outside the research team. Your instructors will not know whether or not you are participating in this study. Data from students who opt out of the study will be removed prior to data analysis. Research records will be kept confidential to the extent allowed by law and may be reviewed by the UCSD Institutional Review Board.

While your privacy and confidentiality are very important to us and we will use safety measures to protect it, we cannot guarantee that your identity will never become known.

What are my responsibilities if I take part in this research?

If you choose to participate in this study, it will require no additional responsibilities to your usual activities in CSE 190.

If you consent to participate in this study, no action is needed. If you DO NOT consent to participate in this study, or you choose to opt-out at any time during the quarter, please sign and submit this form and send it to Gerald Soosai Raj at asoosairaj@ucsd.edu.

IRB Study #807141

Consent to Act as a Research Subject