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Data available in repositories can be re-used by other researchers, to either validate the findings of the research, or to create new insights using the original data. Research data may also be used to develop new policies or services. |
Consider the following points when using data openly sourced from data repositories and other sites:
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This article includes tips for researchers to follow to discover data that meets their needs. Gregory, K, Khalsa, S J, Michener, W K, Psomopoulos, F E, de Waard, A, Wu, M (2018). Eleven quick tips for finding research data. PLoS Computational Biology 14(4): e1006038. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006038 |
It may be necessary to search across a range of resources to locate suitable research data.
Type of directory |
Examples |
Subject or discipline-based repositories |
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Institutional repositories |
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Government websites |
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Data directories |
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Data portals | |
Data journals |
Data access statements are included in published literature to indicate the existence of data.
Check the data access statements included in the following journal articles.
Bezuidenhout, L., et al. (2022). Telerehabilitation during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden: a survey of use and perceptions among physiotherapists treating people with neurological diseases or older adults. BMC Health Services Research 22, 555. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-022-07968-6
Guillaumier A, et al. (2022) Evaluation of an online intervention for improving stroke survivors’ health-related quality of life: A randomised controlled trial. PLOS Medicine 19(4): e1003966. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1003966
Shaw Julia C., Dyson Rebecca M., Palliser Hannah K., Sixtus Ryan P., Barnes Heather, Pavy Carlton L., Crombie Gabrielle K., Berry Mary J. (2022). Examining neurosteroid-analogue therapy in the preterm neonate for promoting hippocampal neurodevelopment. Frontiers in Physiology 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2022.871265
Yarmolinsky J, et al. (2022) Genetically proxied therapeutic inhibition of antihypertensive drug targets and risk of common cancers: A mendelian randomization analysis. PLOS Medicine 19(2): e1003897. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1003897
It is important to correctly cite data used in your research to ensure that the dataset is acknowledged, findable, and accessible.
Standards for data citation vary across disciplines. Some data repositories and archives provide formats for citing data as part of the metadata record for the dataset.
The Data Cite Consortium (DCC) provides the following recommendations for minimum formatting for citing data:
Hanigan, I. (2022). Primary outcomes data from a randomised controlled trial testing the effect of an online healthy lifestyles program on health-related quality of life among stroke survivors. (Dataset) http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1431114
Isbister, G. (2022). Longterm effects perceived by patients following a snakebite in rural Sri Lanka - non-renal. (Dataset) http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1433597
Netherton, M. D., Stewart, M. G. (2014). Blast-RF: A probabilistic blast modelling and glazing response tool. (Software) http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1056446