Findable
Persistent identifier
To increase findability of research data, a best practice is to assign globally unique and persistent identifiers to data. This is done by choosing a repository that automatically assigns such identifiers. Nord University’s institutional repository NORD Open Research Data has this feature. Both datasets and the individual data files associated with them are automatically assigned DOI (digital object identifier) numbers.
Metadata
Metadata are information that describes and gives meaning to data. Providing rich metadata helps others find, understand, and re-use a dataset. Examples of metadata include the origin, time, location, creator(s), terms of use, and access conditions of a dataset.
Search keywords
Providing search keywords for your data optimizes data discovery. Information such as the subject area(s) (e.g., politics, sociology, economics) and method(s) (e.g., qualitative or quantitative) may be provided. Controlled vocabularies may be available in your research field. For the social sciences, for instance, the European Language Social Science Thesaurus (ELSST) can be used. ELSST is a multilingual thesaurus for the social sciences that facilitates data discovery.
Harvesting and indexing of metadata
Choosing a repository that allows discovery services to harvest and index metadata is important. NORD Open Research Data has this capability. Metadata from the archive are harvested/indexed by several discovery services, including B2FIND, BASE, DataCite Search, Google Dataset Search, ExLibris Primo.
Accessible
Repository
Choosing a trustworthy repository for you research data is important. A trustworthy repository ensures that your data is FAIR-aligned. NORD Open Research Data is a CoreTrustSeal-certified and FAIR-compliant repository that accepts open research data from all disciplines. Nord Open Research Data is available for employees at Nord University via Feide login. Data submitted to the archive are reviewed and curated before they are finally published.
Datasets published in NORD Open Research Data, part of DataverseNO, are discoverable and openly available to anyone with access to the Internet. Data and metadata published in DataverseNO are securely archived and available for at least 10 years after assigned DOI. However, it is the goal of DataverseNO to ensure access to archived data in an even longer-term perspective. Files archived in DataverseNO are available in formats that can be opened and read using freely available software.
If other archives are used, it is important to check their features and terms of use. Many repositories are free to use, but lack data curation services. For more information, visit the page "Approaching project completion".
Data accessibility
An important decision in a research project concerns which data will be archived openly, which data will have restricted access, which data will be closed, and which data will be destroyed. Reasons for restricting the availability of research data, according to Nord’s guidelines, are:
- Security concerns: In cases where making the data available may threaten the security of individuals or national security, the data shall not be made openly available.
- Confidentiality of personal data: In cases where making the data available is in violation of current regulations concerning personal data, the data sets shall not be made openly available.
- Other legal matters: In cases where making the data available infringes other legal provisions, the data sets shall not be made openly available.
- Commercial matters: Data that have commercial value and are generated in projects with a company may be exempted from the general principle of open access. In these cases, it is recommended that the data are made available after a certain period of time, preferably after 3 or 5 years.
- Other circumstances: In cases where making the data available has major financial or practical consequences for those who have generated/collected the data, the data sets may be exempted from the general principle of open access, if this is satisfactorily substantiated.
NORD Open Research Data is a repository for open research data. This means that all uploaded files must eventually be made openly available. However, there may be a need for (some of) the data files to have restricted access for a period of time (i.e., embargo period). NORD Open Research Data has the capability of restricting access to selected files during this embargo period, while the corresponing metadata are still visible.
For data that needs restricted access due to personal data, the repository from the Sikt may be used, under the premise that Sikt and/or REC have approved the archiving of the data and that research participants have been informed and have given their consent to this. It is important to make these decisions as early as possible in a project.
Interoperable
It is recommended that your data and metadata adhere to existing standards, vocabularies, formats and methodologies in your field, whenever possible. This makes your data interoperable, and allows data exchange and re-use.
NORD Open Research Data uses standard-compliant metadata. For instance, Social Science and Humanities metadata are compliant with DDI Lite, DDI 2.5 Codebook, and Dublin Core.
Controlled vocabularies may be available in your research field. For the social sciences, for instance, the European Language Social Science Thesaurus (ELSST) can be used. ELSST is a multilingual thesaurus for the social sciences that facilitates data discovery and interoperability.
Further, citing relevant/associated data sets, providing their persistent identifiers in the metadata, and describing scientific links/relations to your data are good practices in making your data interoperable.
Re-usable
It is important to provide enough information on your data in order to facilitate data re-use (e.g., README files with information on methodology, codebooks, data cleaning processes, analyses, variable definitions, units of measurement, particularities, limitations, and data quality assurance processes). This is not only a good research practice, but it is also an important way to make your data understandable and re-usable.
Another good practice is to use standard licenses and to make your data freely available in the public domain, whenever possible. Data deposited in Nord Open Research Data are granted the license CC0 "Public Domain Dedication" as a default (more information here). This way, the reusability of your data is maximized. In case the CC0 license is not suitable for your data, please contact research-data@nord.no.
Content inspired by DataverseNO and Science Europe.