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Information for Presenters

Click on a topic below to read detailed information.

Presenter Participation Policy

No more than two paper proposals from one individual will be considered for any one conference. Only one of the two papers may be a single-authored paper.

In order to encourage broad participation, participants may not appear on more than two panels or one poster session. Besides presenting, other forms of participation on a panel are as a co-author, a discussant, a chair, or a chair/discussant. The MPSA office may make exceptions to this policy for participation on roundtables, but this must be approved in advance (contact mpsaconf@indiana.edu). If you are selected to participate in more than three events, for example, two panels and one poster session, you must choose which you will accept and notify the relevant section head(s) immediately that you will not be able to participate in those sessions you choose to reject.

MPSA reserves the right to accept or reject any proposal. Reasons for rejection include, but are not limited to: topics not fitting the program theme or panel subjects, insufficient space on the program, failure to meet professional obligations in prior conferences (e.g., not completing a paper, not delivering a paper on time, failure to appear for a scheduled slot), failure to register for the conference, indebtedness to the association, or unprofessional conduct.

The 2008 conference takes place over four days, from Thursday through Sunday. Panels and roundtables will take place starting at 8:00 in the morning on Thursday and running through early afternoon on Sunday.  Poster sessions will take place Thursday through Saturday during the second, third, fourth, and, possibly, the fifth sessions. Panels may be scheduled during the following times: From Thursday through Saturday:  8:00 am to 9:40 am; 9:55 am to 11:35 am; 12:55 pm to 2:35 pm; 2:50 pm to 4:30 pm; and 4:45 pm to 6:25 pm. On Sunday, panels will be scheduled from 8:00 am to 9:40 am; 9:55 am to 11:35 am; and 11:50 am to 1:30 pm.

Any communication regarding acceptance prior to printing the official program should not be construed as conferring a right to participate in the national conference. The association, through its executive director, reserves the right to change any aspect of the program (e.g., schedule, panel title) following printing and dissemination. The executive director, in consultation with the program chair(s) and committee, reserves the right to make all final decisions regarding participation in the national conference.

Citation of MPSA Papers

Papers presented at the national conference are in the public domain and may not be restricted from citation or attribution.

Posting Papers to the MPSA Website

Paper presenters should post their paper(s) to the conference website once the program is finalized. Instructions about how to post a paper will be e-mailed to presenters and provided on the website in February. The deadline for posting papers was March 14, 2008, but if you missed the deadline, we request that you still post your paper. Panel chairs and discussants are instructed not to include papers that are not posted to the website by the deadline. To post a paper to the MPSA website, click here. Remember to use the same e-mail address that you provided when you submitted your proposal.

Podcasting Sessions

Certain roundtables may be selected to be digitally recorded for future podcasting on the MPSA website. If a roundtable is selected, all participants are notified and asked for permission to podcast their session. No session will be podcast without written permission from all participants.

Session Formats

Session formats include (1) panel, (2) roundtable,  and (3) poster presentation. Each format is described in detail below.

Panel. Four to five papers are represented on a panel, which also includes a chair and one or two discussants. The MPSA office tries to distribute panels of the sections somewhat equally throughout the time slots. MPSA provides overheads, if requested; other AV equipment can be provided for a fee.

Roundtable. A roundtable typically consists of four to eight panelists and sometimes a chair, who introduces the panelists and provides a substantive introduction to the topic. Roundtables are intended to provide in-depth examinations of specific topics, projects, books (e.g., author meets critics or book reviews), etc. The focus is on the discussion and interaction among panelists. Participants do not prepare papers. They make brief introductory remarks before engaging in ad hoc discussions. Two types of roundtable formats are "PBS format" and "town meeting." Roundtables are typically well attended.

Posters. Papers can be accepted as part of a panel, informal roundtable, or poster session. Poster presentations provide an important complement to the association’s panel sessions. Posters are organized by topic. Poster sessions are held in the Exhibit Hall. Each poster presenter is provided an 8' (wide) by 4' (high) panel to display presentation materials. Attendees have the opportunity to walk through and view the poster presentations throughout the day. MPSA tries to schedule all of the posters in a section at the same time (when no other panels from that section are scheduled). Posters are particularly useful as a way to present quantitative research. Additional instructions about poster presentations will be available later this summer.

Role Descriptions

Panel Presenters. Panels provide each author with an opportunity to present an abbreviated version of his or her paper. Feedback and comments are provided by the discussant, followed by comments, questions, and discussion including the audience. Having three to five papers assigned to a session allows approximately five minutes for the chair to introduce the session, 10-15 minutes per author presentation, 20 minutes of feedback, and 20 minutes of discussion with the audience.

Panel Chairs. The chair is responsible for introducing each paper and the authors as well as the discussant(s). In addition, the chair is responsible for managing the time for each presentation and insuring that the discussion is polite and productive. The chair’s duties do not conclude at the end of the session. The chair is responsible for recommending papers to the MPSA office for any MPSA conference paper awards. MPSA strongly encourages panel chairs to do this as soon as possible after the conference while the paper presentations are still fresh in their minds.

Panel/Poster Discussants. Discussants provide feedback regarding research papers that are presented in a panel or poster session, pointing out both the strengths and areas in need of improvement. Discussants also may place the research in a broader context and discuss trends and themes. Discussants also are responsible for recommending papers to be considered for MPSA conference paper awards.

Poster Presenters. Poster presenters should arrive 15 minutes before their scheduled session and remain throughout the session to answer questions. Each presentation is displayed on an 8' (wide) by 4' (high) panel. Presentation materials should be prepared for quick assembly. Push pins are provided to attach materials to the panels. Presenters should remove their poster at the end of the session to make the panel available to the next presenter. If a discussant is assigned to a poster session, the paper should be posted to the conference website by March 14, 2008. Instructions about how to post a paper will be e-mailed to presenters and posted here sometime in January. For more information about poster sessions, click here.

Roundtables Presenters and Discussants. Presenters and discussants typically do not present but provide comments or debate about a particular topic, book, etc.