Policies

Standard of Conduct

As outlined in our Statement of Diversity and Inclusion, the Society for Political Methodology (SPM) is committed to fostering a community that recognizes the inherent worth of every person and group, that promotes understanding and mutual respect, and that embraces diversity. We are thus dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience for all participants at our events and in our programs. The policy is not intended to inhibit challenging scientific debate, but rather to promote it through ensuring that all are welcome to participate in a shared spirit of scientific inquiry.

Harassment and hostile behavior are unwelcome at any conference or event sponsored, co-sponsored, or organized by the SPM. This includes speech or behavior that intimidates, creates discomfort, or interferes with a person’s participation or opportunity for participation in a conference or an event. We aim for all SPM-sponsored activities to be free of harassment, including but not limited to: harassment based on race, ethnicity, gender, religion, age, color, physical appearance, national origin, ancestry, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, and socio-economic background. Harassment includes, among other actions, degrading verbal comments, discriminatory jokes and language, deliberate intimidation, stalking, harassing photography or recording, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention.

It is the responsibility of the community as a whole to promote an inclusive and positive environment for our scholarly activities. Anyone who experiences harassment or hostile behavior may contact the SPM's Climate Liaison. During events sponsored or organized by the SPM, this email (and an additional phone number distributed before the event) will be continuously monitored for the duration of the event. When taking a personal report, our staff will ensure that no one can overhear. They may involve other event staff to ensure the report is managed properly. We will keep any contact in strict confidence, and those who contact the Climate Liaison will be consulted before any actions are taken.

Credit: Parts of this code of conduct are based on the statement used at the Association of Computational Linguistics and Text as Data. Other parts are based on the example policy from the Geek Feminism wiki, created by the Ada Initiative and other volunteers.