Our Pledge
In the interest of fostering an open and welcoming environment, we as members of the Psychological Science Accelerator (PSA) pledge to engage in behavior that makes participation in our project and our community a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of age, physical characteristics, disability, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, level of experience, nationality, personal appearance, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual identity and orientation, and/or relevant other individual differences or characteristics. We strive to foster an open and welcoming environment by giving all members an equal chance to propose studies, contribute to studies, provide feedback on studies and policies, run for election or appointment to leadership positions, and contribute to debates and discussions about the PSA and how to improve it.
Our Standards
As PSA members, we are committed to conducting ourselves in a way that supports our mission, “to accelerate the accumulation of reliable and generalizable evidence in psychological science, reducing the distance between truth about human behavior and mental processes and our current understanding,” and our 5 core principles, “diversity and inclusion, decentralized authority, transparency, rigor, and openness to criticism,” and to create a positive environment for all members of the PSA.
Examples of behavior that contributes to creating a positive environment include:
- Using welcoming, non-discriminatory, and inclusive language.
- Being respectful of differing viewpoints, experiences, cultural norms, and styles of communication.
- Keeping criticism constructive (e.g., behavior-focused, specific, solution-oriented).
- Gracefully accepting constructive criticism. We operate on the assumption that others are well-intentioned and open-minded. Skepticism, criticism, and debates are all welcome in the PSA in the spirit of constructive discussion.
Examples of unacceptable behaviors include:
- Commenting primarily to provoke, insulting or derogatory comments, and personal or political attacks.
- Public or private harassment or intimidation based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, age, appearance, religion, or other group status.
- The use of sexualized language and/or imagery.
- Sexual harassment or intimidation, including unwelcome sexual attention or advances, stalking (physical or virtual), or unsolicited physical contact. Sustained disruption or threatening speakers (verbally or physically).
- Publishing others’ private information, such as a physical or electronic address, without explicit permission.
- Engaging in behaviors that PSA members have reasonably requested be stopped.
Our Responsibilities
All PSA members are welcomed to clarify the standards of acceptable behavior. The Directors (Director, Associate Directors, and Assistant Directors) are responsible for taking appropriate and fair corrective action in response to any instances of unacceptable behavior.
The PSA Directors have the right and responsibility to remove, edit, or reject comments, code, wiki edits, and other contributions that are not aligned with this Code of Conduct, or to ban temporarily or permanently any contributor for other behaviors that they deem inappropriate, threatening, offensive, or harmful (see enforcement section below for more details).
Enforcement
Instances of abusive, harassing, or otherwise unacceptable behavior may be reported by contacting PSA leadership at PsySciAccelerator@gmail.com. The PSA will maintain confidentiality with regard to the reporter of an incident whenever possible. All complaints will be reviewed and investigated by at least 3 directors (from the Director, Associate Directors, or Assistant Directors) and, if found justified, will result in a response that is deemed necessary and appropriate to the circumstances, including possible expulsion from the PSA and its projects. In the event that the accused is a PSA director, the 3 or more directors who review the case should take steps to minimize conflicts of interest in adjudication. The accused will have ten working days to file an objection to the leadership team. In cases where the identity of the accuser is necessary for the accused to make a response, we will first seek explicit approval from the accuser, and only proceed if they approve. The objection will be reviewed by 3 members of the leadership team independent of those that initially investigated the complaint. If the complaint is still found to be justified after this period, a brief anonymized report of the violation will be shared with all members of the PSA. PSA Directors who do not follow or enforce the Code of Conduct in good faith may face temporary or permanent repercussions as determined by other members of the leadership team.
Scope
This Code of Conduct applies both within project spaces and in public spaces when an individual is representing the PSA. Examples of representing the PSA include using an official PSA e-mail address, posting via an official social media account, or acting as an appointed representative at an online or offline event, such as a meeting or a conference. Representation of the PSA may be further defined and clarified by the PSA Directors.
Attribution
This Code of Conduct adapts content from the following sources:
The Contributor Covenant, version 1.4
The Society for the improvement of Psychological Science’s Code of Conduct