Publishing research data and non-traditional research outputs
The University encourages researchers to share their data publicly while acknowledging that there may be reasons why this cannot occur.
Before you place your data or other research files in any repository you must ensure that you are permitted to do so in accordance with any associated legal, ethical, funding, publication, confidentiality or contractual obligations.
Before you publish your data, there are questions you should consider determining whether publication is appropriate.
Data ownership questions:
- Who owns the data?
- Do you have permission from any collaborators to publish the data?
- Are there restrictions to sharing the data due to intellectual property rights, copyright, or patent issues?
- Does the data include information about human participants, including individuals, organisations or businesses?
- Did you obtain the consent of each research participant to share their data? This could be gained explicitly through a Consent Form or implied if the research Plain Language Information Statement indicated that you propose to share the data collected from/about them with other researchers. If you do not have participant consent, you cannot share their information.
- Did the information and consent forms indicate that only members of the research team will have access to the data? If so, you have already precluded sharing.
- Is the data subject to the Privacy Act? Does the data maintain the confidentiality of participants and their personal information? Personal data should not be disclosed unless specific consent has been obtained to do so and any sharing must not breach the Privacy Act.
- • What is the level of anonymity required to maintain confidentiality of the individuals or groups involved? If you have participant consent to identify individuals, groups or entities is the data adequately de-identified to meet the agreed levels of consent?
- Could there be a risk to individuals, a business or organisation if you share their data, even if you have their consent? Consider cultural, political, and commercial sensitivities that could make sharing the data a risk.
- Are there specific limitations to the approval or is the sharing approval unspecified? Can the data only be shared for similar types of research, to specific researchers/groups or on condition of subsequent ethics approval
- Would sharing the data reveal information about:
- A sensitive, secret or sacred location?
- A vulnerable or endangered species?
- An environmental or ecological site that needs to be protected?
- Religious, heritage or culturally sensitive matters?
- Can re-identification of the data be made if the dataset is combined with another existing available dataset, or linked with several other datasets? If so, were participants advised of this potential risk?
- Is there a confidentiality clause with a funder or other third party restricting dissemination or disclosure of information/data?
- Did you access the information from an existing databank or data archive?
- Did you obtain the data from another data supplier? Are you permitted to share the data under the licence or access agreement? Do you need authorisation from the data owner before sharing data?
- Can you share metadata but not the dataset through a repository? Can data be shared upon request, rather than on download?
- Is there an embargo period before data can be shared?
Check the journal requirements relating to publishing related data.
To give feedback, please email libinfo@federation.edu.au
