3.2 Managing the data and records

Effectively managing data and also deciding on whether to preserve data for the long-term are both essential issues research teams need to discuss. This activity needs to begin at the preparation phase of the project.

Why manage and preserve this stuff?

When you preserve research data, can then be made available for general access and for secondary use. That act of deposit in itself, promotes research.
It's not just good sense, it's now becoming a requirement with many federal funding agencies and publishers to deposit data into an archives.

Version control

Having a current "read-only" master copy stored will ensure the authenticity of the dataset throughout the research process
Version control can also be maintained through file naming conventions and file organization since it will be clear which document is the most recent and up-to-date with an informative file name. See the previous section on file naming as well as the records management training on files management for more information.

Data storage

Data files can grow very quickly during data collection, but especially during data analysis. The research team needs to decide in the data management plan if they will retain only the system files or if they will also retain the raw data
For disaster recovery or when a major error or set of errors are detected in the dataset, maintain the backup cycle established in the data management plan so that there is always a current copy of the dataset and documentation stored offsite. See the next section on protecting research materials for more information.

Go to 3.3 Protecting Research Materials

Maintained by: Erin O'Meara, erino@uoregon.edu
Last Modified: 11/11/2007