<p>Open data best practices start before any research actually happens, to ensure you start on the right footing before beginning to collect or create data. </p>
The first step to sharing your data effectively is to identify the types of data you will produce, collect, or use as part of your research project.
This can be quantitative or qualitative, and include:
Archival documents
Interviews
Images or photographs
Survey results
Census information
Newspaper clippings
Field notes
Archaeological material
Essentially, data is any information or materials needed to:
Answer your research question
Back up your findings
Allow someone else to reproduce your work
Once you have identified the types of data you will be using in your research, this allows you to identify which, if any, permissions will be needed to share this data openly.
You will need permission to share:
Personal data, for example from human research participants
Third party data, for example from archives or media outlets
Proprietary data, for example data with IP from commercial organizations
You will also need to identify the type of permission you are looking for.
For example, whether the data will be anonymized or shared in a controlled access repository, will depend on the type of data being collected or used during your study.
Alongside permissions to share data, you also need to identify any other legal or ethical requirements in place.
These differ depending on where you are based, where your participants are based, or where the research is conducted, so it’s important to identify and comply with the legislation relevant to you.
In Europe, GDPR legislation governs data protection, including human data, but if participants or researchers are based elsewhere then local legislation may also apply.
Similarly, ethics must be paramount in sharing any sensitive research data, and you must ensure that you consider the rights and dignity of your participants.