Archives des mots-clés : research data

Developing research data management services and support for researchers

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Authors : Laure Perrier, Leslie Barnes

This mixed method study determined the essential tools and services required for research data management to aid academic researchers in fulfilling emerging funding agency and journal requirements. Focus groups were conducted and a rating exercise was designed to rank potential services.

Faculty conducting research at the University of Toronto were recruited; 28 researchers participated in four focus groups from June– August 2016. Two investigators independently coded the transcripts from the focus groups and identified four themes: 1) seamless infrastructure, 2) data security, 3) developing skills and knowledge, and 4) anxiety about releasing data.

Researchers require assistance with the secure storage of data and favour tools that are easy to use. Increasing knowledge of best practices in research data management is necessary and can be supported by the library using multiple strategies.

These findings help our library identify and prioritize tools and services in order to allocate resources in support of research data management on campus.

URL : Developing research data management services and support for researchers

DOI : https://doi.org/10.21083/partnership.v13i1.4115

Modelling the Research Data Lifecycle

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Author: Stacy T Kowalczyk

This paper develops and tests a lifecycle model for the preservation of research data by investigating the research practices of scientists. This research is based on a mixed-method approach.

An initial study was conducted using case study analytical techniques; insights from these case studies were combined with grounded theory in order to develop a novel model of the Digital Research Data Lifecycle.

A broad-based quantitative survey was then constructed to test and extend the components of the model. The major contribution of these research initiatives are the creation of the Digital Research Data Lifecycle, a data lifecycle that provides a generalized model of the research process to better describe and explain both the antecedents and barriers to preservation.

The antecedents and barriers to preservation are data management, contextual metadata, file formats, and preservation technologies. The availability of data management support and preservation technologies, the ability to create and manage contextual metadata, and the choices of file formats all significantly effect the preservability of research data.

URL : Modelling the Research Data Lifecycle

DOI : https://doi.org/10.2218/ijdc.v12i2.429

A Data-Driven Approach to Appraisal and Selection at a Domain Data Repository

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Authors : Amy M Pienta, Dharma Akmon, Justin Noble, Lynette Hoelter, Susan Jekielek

Social scientists are producing an ever-expanding volume of data, leading to questions about appraisal and selection of content given finite resources to process data for reuse. We analyze users’ search activity in an established social science data repository to better understand demand for data and more effectively guide collection development.

By applying a data-driven approach, we aim to ensure curation resources are applied to make the most valuable data findable, understandable, accessible, and usable. We analyze data from a domain repository for the social sciences that includes over 500,000 annual searches in 2014 and 2015 to better understand trends in user search behavior.

Using a newly created search-to-study ratio technique, we identified gaps in the domain data repository’s holdings and leveraged this analysis to inform our collection and curation practices and policies.

The evaluative technique we propose in this paper will serve as a baseline for future studies looking at trends in user demand over time at the domain data repository being studied with broader implications for other data repositories.

URL : A Data-Driven Approach to Appraisal and Selection at a Domain Data Repository

DOI : https://doi.org/10.2218/ijdc.v12i2.500

The Changing Influence of Journal Data Sharing Policies on Local RDM Practices

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Authors : Dylanne Dearborn, Steve Marks, Leanne Trimble

The purpose of this study was to examine changes in research data deposit policies of highly ranked journals in the physical and applied sciences between 2014 and 2016, as well as to develop an approach to examining the institutional impact of deposit requirements.

Policies from the top ten journals (ranked by impact factor from the Journal Citation Reports) were examined in 2014 and again in 2016 in order to determine if data deposits were required or recommended, and which methods of deposit were listed as options.

For all 2016 journals with a required data deposit policy, publication information (2009-2015) for the University of Toronto was pulled from Scopus and departmental affiliation was determined for each article.

The results showed that the number of high-impact journals in the physical and applied sciences requiring data deposit is growing. In 2014, 71.2% of journals had no policy, 14.7% had a recommended policy, and 13.9% had a required policy (n=836).

In contrast, in 2016, there were 58.5% with no policy, 19.4% with a recommended policy, and 22.0% with a required policy (n=880). It was also evident that U of T chemistry researchers are by far the most heavily affected by these journal data deposit requirements, having published 543 publications, representing 32.7% of all publications in the titles requiring data deposit in 2016.

The Python scripts used to retrieve institutional publications based on a list of ISSNs have been released on GitHub so that other institutions can conduct similar research.

URL : The Changing Influence of Journal Data Sharing Policies on Local RDM Practices

DOI : https://doi.org/10.2218/ijdc.v12i2.583

A Research Graph dataset for connecting research data repositories using RD-Switchboard

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Authors : Amir Aryani, Marta Poblet, Kathryn Unsworth, Jingbo Wang, Ben Evans, Anusuriya Devaraju, Brigitte Hausstein, Claus-Peter Klas, Benjamin Zapilko, Samuele Kaplun

This paper describes the open access graph dataset that shows the connections between Dryad, CERN, ANDS and other international data repositories to publications and grants across multiple research data infrastructures.

The graph dataset was created using the Research Graph data model and the Research Data Switchboard (RD-Switchboard), a collaborative project by the Research Data Alliance DDRI Working Group (DDRI WG) with the aim to discover and connect the related research datasets based on publication co-authorship or jointly funded grants.

The graph dataset allows researchers to trace and follow the paths to understanding a body of work. By mapping the links between research datasets and related resources, the graph dataset improves both their discovery and visibility, while avoiding duplicate efforts in data creation.

Ultimately, the linked datasets may spur novel ideas, facilitate reproducibility and re-use in new applications, stimulate combinatorial creativity, and foster collaborations across institutions.

URL : A Research Graph dataset for connecting research data repositories using RD-Switchboard

Alternative location : https://www.nature.com/articles/sdata201899

Data sharing in PLOS ONE: An analysis of Data Availability Statements

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Authors : Lisa M. Federer, Christopher W. Belter, Douglas J. Joubert, Alicia Livinski, Ya-Ling Lu, Lissa N. Snyders, Holly Thompson

A number of publishers and funders, including PLOS, have recently adopted policies requiring researchers to share the data underlying their results and publications. Such policies help increase the reproducibility of the published literature, as well as make a larger body of data available for reuse and re-analysis.

In this study, we evaluate the extent to which authors have complied with this policy by analyzing Data Availability Statements from 47,593 papers published in PLOS ONE between March 2014 (when the policy went into effect) and May 2016.

Our analysis shows that compliance with the policy has increased, with a significant decline over time in papers that did not include a Data Availability Statement. However, only about 20% of statements indicate that data are deposited in a repository, which the PLOS policy states is the preferred method.

More commonly, authors state that their data are in the paper itself or in the supplemental information, though it is unclear whether these data meet the level of sharing required in the PLOS policy.

These findings suggest that additional review of Data Availability Statements or more stringent policies may be needed to increase data sharing.

URL : Data sharing in PLOS ONE: An analysis of Data Availability Statements

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0194768

How Important is Data Curation? Gaps and Opportunities for Academic Libraries

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Authors: Lisa R Johnston, Jacob Carlson, Cynthia Hudson-Vitale, Heidi Imker, Wendy Kozlowski, Robert Olendorf, Claire Stewart

INTRODUCTION

Data curation may be an emerging service for academic libraries, but researchers actively “curate” their data in a number of ways—even if terminology may not always align. Building on past userneeds assessments performed via survey and focus groups, the authors sought direct input from researchers on the importance and utilization of specific data curation activities.

METHODS

Between October 21, 2016, and November 18, 2016, the study team held focus groups with 91 participants at six different academic institutions to determine which data curation activities were most important to researchers, which activities were currently underway for their data, and how satisfied they were with the results.

RESULTS

Researchers are actively engaged in a variety of data curation activities, and while they considered most data curation activities to be highly important, a majority of the sample reported dissatisfaction with the current state of data curation at their institution.

DISCUSSION

Our findings demonstrate specific gaps and opportunities for academic libraries to focus their data curation services to more effectively meet researcher needs.

CONCLUSION

Research libraries stand to benefit their users by emphasizing, investing in, and/or heavily promoting the highly valued services that may not currently be in use by many researchers.

URL : How Important is Data Curation? Gaps and Opportunities for Academic Libraries

DOI : http://doi.org/10.7710/2162-3309.2198