Qualitative Data Repository 2021-2024

Syracuse University, Syracuse NY

Investigators

Abstract

This award funds the Qualitative Data Repository (QDR), an open repository dedicated to the curation, preservation, and publication of data generated through qualitative and multi-method research. QDR, a collaborative project led by social scientists and information scientists, is active in many disciplines in the social, behavioral, health, and education sciences. The repository promotes the progress of science by encouraging and empowering researchers to share their qualitative data; building infrastructure to support the openness of qualitative research; and encouraging institutional change to advance research transparency and allow qualitative data to be shared ethically and legally (i.e., without harming human participants or infringing proprietary constraints). Data sharing and reuse are indispensable components of science that help to make it more rigorous, cumulative, and efficient, as well as less expensive. The Qualitative Data Repository (QDR), a collaborative project led by social scientists and information scientists, is active in many disciplines in the social, behavioral, health, and education sciences. Certified as a “trusted data repository” by CoreTrustSeal, QDR is a key part of the infrastructure supporting open science in the US. Data shared via QDR can be used for multiple goals: to verify results and claims in publications based on the data; for secondary analysis to answer new questions, thus facilitating discovery and the production of knowledge; and to improve pedagogy through empowering active learning. This award enables QDR to organize customized workshops and training sessions for researchers and data librarians on qualitative data-management. By further integrating QDR into the academic ecosystem and facilitating interaction with Institutional Review Boards and the social science publication infrastructure, the repository continues to develop new ways for scholars to provide ready access to the data and materials that underpin their scientific publications. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.