Managing research data is essential for the success of any research project. It helps save time and resources, prevents errors, and increases the quality of analyses. Good data management also allows others to validate and replicate findings, improving research integrity. Accurate and complete research data are necessary to evaluate and validate research results, as well as reconstruct the events and processes that led to them.
In recent years, government mandates from the National Institutes of Health and the data exchange policies of major publishers have increased pressure on researchers to share their data and processes. Depending on the discipline, this data may include documentation of the process and procedure. There are several very good reasons why research data must be properly managed, including the need for reproducibility, research integrity, additional research, or challenge. Data management is a relevant topic that needs to be kept up to date.
Resources such as continuing education classes offered by the Medical Library Association can help researchers understand the principles of data management. Companies and organizations are also striving to help the research community manage rapidly growing research data, educate the next generation of researchers in managing research data, and train more researchers who use technology to manage their results. Data citation is also important for recognizing data as a primary research result rather than a by-product of research. This includes all staff who advise researchers on the storage, management, publication, and archiving of their research data.
