What are "retention incentives"? 

If subjects will be provided with non-monetary gifts or tokens of appreciation, such as totes, books, toys, or other such materials, the study team will need to submit a description and approximate retail value of the item to the IRB. 

The IRB will review the planned retention incentive to determine if it is appropriate to give to subjects. 

Why are retention incentives required to have IRB review and approval prior to being to subjects?

The subject should agree to participate in the study freely after learning about the trial as part of process through which they give their informed consent to join the study.  The IRB need to review and determine whether the gift of the retention incentive creates a situation of undue influence which could impact the subject's ability to fully and freely consider participation in research. 

Additional information may be found in the HRPP SOP Section7.5.12