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Research Data Management and Sharing

This guide provides current resources available to the Brown University community for management, and, when appropriate, sharing of research data as required by research funders and scholarly journals

NIH Resources on Data Management and Sharing Policy

Scientific Data is defined as data commonly accepted in the scientific community as of sufficient quality to validate and replicate research findings, regardless of whether the data are used to support scholarly publications.

  • Scientific data includes any data needed to validate and replicate research findings.
  • Scientific data does not include laboratory notebooks, preliminary analyses, completed case report forms, drafts of scientific papers, plans for future research, peer reviews, communications with colleagues, or physical objects such as laboratory specimens.

The NIH encourages scientific data to be shared as soon as possible, and no later than the time of an associated publication or end of the performance period, whichever comes first. NIH also encourages researchers to make scientific data available for as long as they anticipate it being useful for the larger research community, institutions, and/or the broader public.

Get Started Writing and Sample NIH Data Management and Sharing Plans

A DMS Plan should include the following elements:

  • Data Type
  • Related Tools, Software and/or Code
  • Standards
  • Data Preservation, Access, and Associated Timelines
  • Access, Distribution, or Reuse Considerations
  • Oversight of Data Management and Sharing

Additional Resources

Gonzales S, Carson MB, Holmes K (2022) Ten simple rules for maximizing the recommendations of the NIH data management and sharing plan. PLoS Comput Biol 18(8): e1010397. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010397

Contacts at Brown for NIH Data Management and Sharing Support

 

Andrew Creamer, Open Science Librarian, in the University Library assists researchers with writing data management and sharing plans and depositing research data in open access repositories

Kelsey Lubin, Assistant Director of Research Integrity, in the Office of Research oversees the university's federal research data management and sharing compliance  

Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Research Design (BERD) Core, part of Advance Rhode Island Clinical and Translational Research (Advance RI-CTR), has expertise in clinical data sharing and depositing research data in controlled-access repositories, such as NIH Institute-specific repositories such as the National Institute of Mental Health Data Archive (NDA) 

Human Research Protections Program (HRPP)/IRB in the Office of Research provide guidance on questions regarding compliance with existing data sharing actions in approved protocols

Research Agreements and Contracting (RAC) centrally manages Data Use Agreements (DUA) that involve the sharing of research data