Guides thématiques
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Research data management is the result of several movements that support research in France and abroad, including: Open Access or free access to scientific and technical information, the administration of scientific evidence to validate results through replication, the reuse of data sets, their enhancement and more broadly the safeguarding of the scientific heritage. Policies (e.g. Open Science National Plan, July 4, 2018), initiatives (e.g.: Go FAIR), network (e.g.: Research Data Alliance) are actions that set the beat for research. Impacts can be immediate, such as depositing open-access datasets for the submission of an article (American Journal of Political Science) or the drafting of a data management plan for Horizon Europe and ANR projects or longer term projects. Developing management strategies to document, preserve, enhance and safeguard data will allow the community to better understand your work and its results, but above all will save your time and increase your visibility.
Recording your answers to these questions from the outset of your research will enable you to reuse and share your data easily.
[Video] Data Sharing and Management, NYU Health Sciences Library 
Recording all the processing (collection, cleaning, fusion, encoding...) enables you to retrace the stages of your work to maintain a clear understanding of your data. Do you want to anonymize your surveys to share them?
[Video] Tips on Documentation, John MacInne, Professor of Sociology, University of Edinburgh (MANTRA)
[Video] Anonymisation: theory and practice (part 1 of 3), Mark Elliot (NCRM)
The médialab helps social science and humanities researchers make the most of the mass of data made available by digital technology. It has three main missions that are highly integrated: methodology, analysis, theory. The team develops a large number of software programs that make it possible to organize, automate and visualize research on natively digital or digitized data. Here they are: medialab.sciencespo.fr/tools/
Before the shooting, check the settings to be made once in your camera or phone:
Use a naming convention for your files and choose formats appropriate to your needs. Organizing your data hierarchically with an an appropriate folder structure will allow you to save time, easily find your files, work optimally in collaboration with your colleagues and reuse your data at any time.
[Video] Research Data Management : Organise, Massey University
Model : https://www.ukdataservice.ac.uk/manage-data/format/organising
A model for a simple structure enables you to organize all the data, publications and administrative documents for a particular project.
Source : http://nikola.me/folder_structure.html
And some good practices to have in mind: strong password choices, up-to-date operating system and software, encrypted spaces and data.
| Storage solution | Advantages | Risks / Precautions | Recommandation |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Local storage (computer, laptop)
|
Easy to manage and to prevent from unauthorised access |
Not sufficient if data are stored on only one device (=> backup is needed). Laptops can be stolen Hard-drive encryption is mandatory |
Backup your computer |
|
External hard-drive
|
Useful to exchange data without transmitting them over the Internet | Easily lost, stolen and damaged | Use preferably for temporary storage |
|
Network shared drive on research center server / Network Attached Storage
|
Automated backups. Centrally stored. High storage capacity |
Can not be accessed by external people | For long-term storage |
|
Google Drive - Cloud storage provided by Sciences Po
|
Can be accessed by external people (if they have a Google email address). Automatic Backup |
Storage in E.U. not guaranteed => conflict with GPDR. Not suitable for all research projects. Control access when sharing |
Encrypt personal data before uploading them to the cloud (compliance to GPDR). |
| Other cloud storage managed by a university or CNRS | Secure in case of E.U. storage | Size may be limited | May be secure and appropriate |
| Cloud storage without any agreement (e.g. Dropbox) |
Widespread use. Not depending on an email provider |
Free services by commercial providers may claim rights to use content you manage and share them for their own purposes |
Risky. Not recommended for sensitive data |
Your Google Sciences Po account is not your private Google account. As part of the Google Apps for Education business agreement, you benefit from special terms and conditions of use. Google DRIVE Sciences Po is better than any other private solution: Private Google Drive, Drop Box, Orange Box, Facebook, etc.). More information: Google Apps [accès réservé].
► Huma-Num
For more information, visit the dedicated page.
This cloud for "individual storage and backup, nomadism and secure sharing" stores up to 100MB, synchronizes your computers and shares your files. Several types of accounts are available: individual, services (for collective, projects), guests. To find out more, visit the dedicated page.
Find out more here: Online Tools / Best practice.
Do you use or share confidential or personal data? Use 7-zip! This tool allows you to encrypt a document and meets the need for secure transfer to third parties. The procedure [restricted acces]. To encrypt your data you must use passwords that should not be forgotten years later. For any question, ask sos@sciencespo.fr.
► Why deposit? You ensure that they are preserved, reused, and shared, thanks to their documentation and associated metadata.
► Depositing = sharing? The choice is yours between open or restricted access. You can choose the persons with whom you wish to share your data (collaborators, reviewers, etc.).
► Which data? All the data you have produced, a selection of the data you have collected.
► How to download and deposit and your data? Contact us ! And some guidance.
Be careful of the formats! Which file formats are best for tabulated data, text, sound, images, video, etc.?
This question should be posed from the very outset of your research in order to be able to reuse, share, and preserve your data.
Follow the recommendations of UK Data Services: Recommended formats
Following rules for file naming will ensure the readability of your data over time. It is essential to establish and share these rules in writing with all the members of your team. Always maintain the same order for the elements of a filename.
► Sciences Po 7 recommandations
The filename should contain enough information to be comprehensible beyond its storage location. No redundant or unnecessary information.
DMP.pdf |
data management plan.pdf
RapportActivitePolitis2018.pdf |rapport d’activité du projet politis 2018.pdf
Distinguish the elements of a filename using capitals, underscores (“_”).
PolitisDMP.pdf |
DMP du projet Politis.pdf
Politis_budget_2019.xls |Politis budget 19.xls
Do not use characters with accents or special characters: à é `ù % , { } ! @ $ € & * ().
Politis_Budget_Prev.pdf |Politis(Budget_Prévisionnel).pdf
Politis_DMP_ethique.pdf |Politis DMP & éthique.pdf
For records of the same type, always use the same order for the files.
Politis_Budget_2019.pdf et Politis_Rapport_2019.pdf |Politis_Budget_2019.pdf et Rapport_2019_Politis.pdf
EntretienSyndicat.wav et EntretienONG.wav |EntretienSyndicat.wav et ONGEntretien.wav
Always use the same number of characters: e.g., 1-9, 01-99, 001-999, etc.
Politis_entretien01.wav [...] Politis_entretien26.wav |Politis_entretien1.wav [...] Politis_entretien26.wav
Budget2015.wav [...] Budget2019.wav |Budget2015.wav [...] Budget19.wav
Use numbers only: e.g., YYYY-MM-DD or YYYY-MM or YYYY or YYYY-YYYY.
Politis_CR_20180910 |CR 10 septembre 18
Politis_budget20182019 |budget 2018-19
Use the reference “V” followed by a number to indicate the version. Indicate drafts using “Vdraft”.
rapportV01 |rapport version 1
