Which of the following is NOT a typical responsibility of an IRB?

The responsibility of an Institutional Review Board (IRB) is primarily to oversee and protect the rights and welfare of human research participants. While an IRB provides essential functions such as reviewing research protocols for compliance with ethical standards and regulations, and ensuring that studies adhere to ethical guidelines, conducting independent research studies is not within its scope of responsibilities.

Specifically, an IRB's duties involve evaluating research proposals to ensure that they meet ethical standards and federal regulations, offering guidance to researchers on the ethical conduct of their studies, and monitoring ongoing research for continued compliance. The IRB acts as an independent entity that reviews rather than executes research. Therefore, conducting independent research is not an activity that falls under the typical responsibilities of an IRB, making this option the correct choice.