Bringing researchers on board: Navigating the barriers to sharing data publicly
Introduction
In the evolving landscape of scientific research, the sharing of data has become a cornerstone for cultivating transparency, reproducibility, and innovation. However, despite its incredible potential, sharing research data publicly remains a significant challenge for many researchers. According to analysis of our publication data, only around one in ten researchers in the physical sciences share FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) data alongside their published articles.
Only 1 in 10 researchers share Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR) data
The FAIR principles, introduced in 2016, have become a foundational framework for effective data management and stewardship. Developed through collaboration among academic researchers, librarians, data stewards, and industry professionals, these principles seek to address the inefficiencies and barriers to innovation caused by poorly managed and inaccessible data sets. By encouraging the use of standardised metadata, persistent identifiers, and clear usage licences, adherence to the FAIR principles ensures that data can be reliably located, accessed under well-defined conditions, combined with other datasets, and used in subsequent research with proper attribution.
At IOP Publishing, we recognise the importance of data sharing as a key strand in advancing trusted scientific knowledge. Since 2022, we have required all of our authors to include a statement in their article detailing whether the data underpinning their work is accessible and, if so, how it can be accessed. In 2023, we introduced a policy requiring researchers who are unable to, or choose not to, share their data publicly to disclose the reason why. Early indications are that more researchers are sharing their data. In the 12 months following the introduction of our latest policy, 11% of articles in our journals declared that their data was shared in a FAIR way compared with 8% in the previous 12 months. The level of FAIR sharing remains low, but we are pleased to see some progress. Nonetheless, 64% of articles published in the past 12 months indicated that data was freely available to access via some direct route, which is up from 50% in the prior year. These shifts suggest growing engagement with data sharing, albeit not necessarily yet in a FAIR manner. However, our analysis shows that there are multiple barriers that continue to hinder the open sharing of data. Based on data from over thirty thousand articles, we see that there are multiple variations in the obstacles to data sharing across different research communities, even within the relatively narrow domain of the physical sciences. It has also highlighted that data sharing is not yet commonly aligned with the FAIR principles.
In this paper, we present findings from our analysis of data availability statements published in our journals over the past two years, including statements regarding data availability and the reasons why data is not being publicly shared. We look at why there remains an inability, or in some cases reluctance, among many researchers to share data publicly, and begin to consider what might be holding back progress to embed data sharing at scale. Our intention is to provide some further quantitative insight for those working to reduce the barriers to scientific data sharing. By better understanding barriers, we can more effectively develop strategies that research communities are more likely to be able and willing to adopt at scale.
Author : Daniel Keirs
Head of Journal Strategy and Performance at IOP Publishing