In an era defined by an unprecedented “data deluge”, researchers across sciences, social sciences, and humanities are generating vast volumes of data through new methods and instrumentation. However, this wealth of information often remains locked away, posing a significant challenge to scientific progress and innovation. Christine L. Borgman’s insightful article, “The Conundrum of Sharing Research Data,” delves into this intricate problem, highlighting why research data is not readily available for wider use despite its immense potential.
The article posits that research data sharing is a complex conundrum. While fields like astronomy and genomics have embraced data sharing, practices vary widely across others. The very nature of “data” is complex, taking many physical and digital forms that are often difficult to interpret outside their initial context. Data is more than just numbers; it can include samples, software, field notes, instrument calibrations, and archival records. Moreover, the criteria for identifying and sharing data are not yet well understood.
Borgman examines four key rationales driving the urgency for data sharing:
- To Reproduce or Verify Research: Considered the “gold standard” for science, sharing data for reproducibility aims to confirm scientific findings and ensure public funds are well spent. However, this is often the most problematic rationale due to the unique nature of observations, the complexities of research processes, and the varying definitions of reproducibility across fields.
- To Make Results of Publicly Funded Research Available to the Public: This rationale emphasizes that data produced with public funds should be accessible for the public good, leveraging public investment in research. Funding agencies like the NIH and NSF are increasingly requiring data management plans, reflecting this growing pressure for openness.
- To Enable Others to Ask New Questions of Extant Data: This powerful rationale focuses on enabling meta-analysis and the combination of data from multiple sources to uncover new insights. It highlights the potential for “data mashups” to drive new discoveries and understanding of the world.
- To Advance the State of Research and Innovation: This rationale, resonating with a wide array of stakeholders, argues that effective data sharing and curation are fundamental to accelerating research and innovation, forming the “cornerstone” for new scientific advancements.
The article also candidly addresses the significant disincentives to data sharing, including the substantial labor required for documentation, concerns about misuse or misinterpretation of data, intellectual property rights, and the lack of credit or reward for researchers who share their data. Understanding these competing interests and differing incentives of stakeholders is crucial for effective policy and practice development.
Christine L. Borgman’s work is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the complexities, motivations, and challenges inherent in making research data widely accessible and reusable. It provides a valuable framework for examining the intricate interactions of players, policies, and practices involved in this critical area of modern research.
Reference for this article:
Borgman, C. L. (2012). The conundrum of sharing research data. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology. Published online 5 April 2012. doi:10.1002/asi.22634
