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Middle East, North Africa and Islamic Studies

Research data

The Specialised Information Service for Middle East, North Africa and Islamic Studies regards supporting the academic community in managing research data as one of its main tasks. The following information is intended to provide you with an introduction to the topic.

FAQ on research data

The Specialised Information Service for Middle East, North Africa and Islamic Studies defines research data as such: "Research data are all data that have been collected, observed, recorded or produced in the course of a research project."

 

The following questions can be helpful in determining which research data is generated in a project:

  • Which data and materials help to verify the research results transparently and efficiently?
  • What data was collected and compiled to answer a research question?
  • Which data should be made accessible to other researchers for subsequent use?

Of course, data is also “collected, observed, recorded and produced” in the context of scientific research projects of Middle Eastern Studies.

 

These are as diverse as the sub-disciplines and the issues they address. In addition to the heterogeneity of research questions and methods, a particular challenge is posed by the fact that Middle Eastern Studies are heavily integrated into interdisciplinary research networks.

 

In addition to a bibliography (which can also be counted as research data), research data in the field of Middle Eastern studies can also include digitisations, interviews, audio recordings, film material, transcriptions and transliterations, excerpts, geodata, etc.

To be able to work successfully with research data and materials, they must be protected, stored and organised in a suitable form.

The process of organising and storing research data and materials is referred to as research data management (RDM).

Researchers wishing to obtain project funding are increasingly being asked to consider the management of the research data they are likely to generate and to produce a Data Management Plan (DMP). The DMP should provide answers to these questions, for example:

  • Which data should be used in the research process and how?
  • Which data should be stored long-term?
  • Should the data be made accessible to third parties?

 

However, it is also important for research projects to address the issue of research data management beyond the funding structure. This can help make the projects efficient and sustainable.

 

The benefits of systematic management of research materials and data include:

  • Once a successful system is established, the data can be worked with more efficiently, particularly in projects where several researchers are working together.
  • The materials and data can also be used without barriers when applying for and implementing follow-up projects.
  • The visibility of the research material and data collected can document the work done both during a project and in applications for new projects.
  • The unambiguous identification of materials and data (e.g. via DOI) makes the data sets citable. This makes plagiarism and intellectual theft more difficult.
  • When stored on repositories, the data remains permanently accessible. Loss of data due to damaged or lost storage media is impossible.
  • Making research data available in repositories is increasingly seen as a career-enhancing publication in its own right.

 

The great value of research data lies in its reusability. Depending on the research question, the methods and tools will differ considerably. When planning and designing a research project, it is useful to take the already existing data and materials into account. Research data often contains material that has not yet been fully explored.

 

In order to make the work as easy and consistent as possible, it is advisable to address the issue of research data management as early as possible, ideally during the planning phase of a project.

The way data is organized is influenced by many factors. These factors often have nothing to do with the research itself. Rather, the organization is highly dependent on the way it works and the environment in which it operates.

  • Do you work exclusively in your own office or in different locations or on the move, e.g. on the train?
  • Do you prefer to work on a computer or with paper?
  • Is it the work of an individual or a joint project?

 

All efforts to organize the material usually end up in a brief description of the material according to certain criteria: Date of creation, date of storage, place of creation, persons involved in the collection, thematic and bibliographical references, language, signature, etc. In the information sciences, these short descriptions are called metadata. These are at the heart of research data management. Their quality determines the success of a research data management system.

 

This metadata is the core of research data management. The quality of the metadata determines the success of research data management.

Research data management is based on four pillars:

  • Organising materials and data
  • Describing the materials and data
  • Storage of materials and data
  • Keep materials and data accessible and applicable

In order to make transparent what research materials and data have already been collected, research data management should comply with the so-called “FAIR” principles.

 

As an acronym, “fair” stands for findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable. These principles include:

  • F – The data are described by metadata and have a unique, unambiguous and persistent identifier for each data set (e.g. Digital Object Identifier, DOI). This makes the data findable.
  • A – The (meta) data protocols are freely and freely accessible (e.g. in XML).
  • I – A standardised data vocabulary is used and reference is made to other metadata so that the records are generally applicable.
  • R – The (meta)data are of sufficient quality to be able to be reused in a meaningful way.

Ideally, research-related information and data should be openly accessible without restrictions. However, there is a need to restrict and control access to some research data. In particular, Open Access is not possible when personal rights are involved.

 

It should therefore be emphasised that fair not a synonym for open is. The FAIR principles are primarily a requirement for the metadata. If the research data itself is also freely accessible, this is a "nice to have", a welcome extra. The degree of accessibility of the actual data is determined by the researchers who collected the data. It is best to consider this when collecting data and, if necessary, obtain the consent of those involved.

 

For researchers, this means that research data can be organized successfully, systematically and transparently according to the FAIR principles, without having to make even a single data set freely accessible. The record just needs to be proven, identified, described and securely stored. However, the descriptive metadata must be freely accessible.

The Specialised Information Service for Middle Eastern, North Africa and Islamic Studies is responsible for providing advice on research data management in accordance with the FAIR and CARE principles. The main objective is to support projects in making their research data reusable and findable.

 

Accordingly, the FID supports research projects from the creation of an RDM concept through to storage. The FID provides support with font and language specifics of OCR, metadata and standard data, ensuring the data can be found via various search environments, discovery systems and catalogues.

 

With regard to storage, the FID, in cooperation with the Open Science Team of the University and State Library of Saxony-Anhalt the research data repository SADAR which grants various types of access and on which all data records are assigned a unique, persistent identifier (DOI).

 

Storage on SADAR is not a prerequisite for advice from the FID. Rather, the FID supports projects in selecting the best repository for the respective projects and data.

The Specialised Information Service Middle East, North African and Islamic Studies is a partner NFDI4culture, NFDI4memory and text+ partner in three consortia of the National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI) and participates in the cross-sectional section ELSA (Ethical Legal Social Aspects).

 

On the one hand, the FID brings the needs and requirements of Middle Eastern studies into the NFDI and, on the other, communicates its standards and services to the specialist community.

Further information

Decision support for the publication of research data (a handout from researchdata.info)