Guide to Publishing Research Data for Secondary Analysis
Evidence | Publications

Guide to Publishing Research Data for Secondary Analysis

OPRE Report #2023-227
Published: Aug 31, 2023
Publisher: Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
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Associated Project

Evidence Capacity Support for the Administration for Children and Families

Time frame: 2020-2025

Prepared for:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation

Clients
OPRE Logo
Authors

Heather Gordon

Caroline O’Callahan

Katie Hunter

Hande Inanc

Mary Grider

Heather Zaveri

Key Findings

This brief describes three key principles of publishing data for reuse. It also outlines four stages of the data archiving process. The key principles for publishing data are:

  1. Transparency refers to the disclosure of processes and documentation for the purposes of improving data usability and ensuring ethical data collection.
  2. Usability refers to the degree to which data is reusable for secondary analysis after primary research is completed.
  3. Accessibility refers to the degree to which individuals of diverse backgrounds can find and understand the data.

The four stages of the data archiving process are:

  1. Procurement refers to the federal contracting process. Agencies develop and release a request for proposal outlining the study and contracting requirements. Contractors respond with a proposal that describes the planned data management process and an accompanying budget to conduct the work.
  2. Project planning is the stage in which contractors further specify plans for publishing data and prepare to conduct the work.
  3. During data collection and analysis, it is recommended that contractors develop clear data documentation, use common file formats, and establish a logical file organization system to make publishing data more efficient.
  4. Preparing and publishing data involves developing and submitting data files and documentation to be archived and then disposing of data following contractual requirements.

This brief highlights considerations for planning for the publishing of data files throughout the life cycle of federally contracted research. It provides a framework for understanding key phases of the data archiving process, integrating lessons learned by OPRE project officers, contracted researchers, and data repositories. While this information is focused on research conducted under contract, the information may be more broadly applicable to other projects with a data archiving component.

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