WHAT TO EXPECT
Researchers who post descriptions of their datasets in Dataset Records on The Love Consortium Dataverse have done so because they are open to collaboration with those data. These datasets are a treasure; they have sometimes been sitting without use for more than a decade yet could hold jewels of undiscovered findings. As such, the core requirement for researchers with data is to describe it.
Data seekers like you can search these standardized descriptions to find the types of populations, methods, and constructs best suited for your research question. Once you find a dataset description that holds promise for testing your question, you’ll see if the owner of the data has uploaded supplementary files or not (e.g., table of variables, materials), check out their customized notes about collaborating with that particular dataset, and use the contact button to ask more questions or suggest a collaboration.
Optimizing Your Search
To get a better idea of how to search for data you are looking for, it may help you to know the fields researchers are asked to complete when describing their datasets. The full list can be found here. Some of those fields – like commonly studied constructs or commonly used methods – use controlled vocabulary to keep things standardized; you can find those controlled vocabulary choices here .
Ask Questions
The Dataverse Record contains an email address for the primary contact person. Once you have reviewed the description, if you still have questions, reach out!
Tip: If it is a quick question, ask it quickly. If it requires the reader to have some background information, we still recommend including the bottom-line question in the first few sentences of the email or in the subject line.
Perspective Taking
When composing an email, we suggest following standard professional guidelines (see here ). Consider what will make it easiest for the person to respond. And if you haven’t heard back for awhile, give the person the benefit of the doubt and just assume they’re busy – feel free to send a gentle reminder about your question after a reasonable time has passed.
THE LOVE CONSORTIUM DATAVERSE
TOOLS FOR EFFECTIVE COLLABORATION
Example Concept Paper Form
After you have started discussing a possible project, we recommend the lead author pitch a concept paper for review by the owner of the data. It gives an opportunity to solidify the idea and is something for the data owner to show potential team members who may deserve authorship (and who may have helpful feedback based on their knowledge of the dataset); at the same time, it provides a record of the idea and agreement by all involved.
Considering Pre-Registration
Innovation requires exploration. Nonetheless, through the collaborative use of multiple datasets, The Love Consortium project provides a unique opportunity to combine exploratory and confirmatory analyses. If pre-registration is the right plan for your project, here are two commonly used sites:
Cite Your Data
Once you create the Dataset Record for your dataset, it will have a permanent digital object identifier (doi). Whereas many researchers are used to citing the first paper they published on a study to refer back to a broader dataset, instead you would be able to cite the dataset itself. The advantages of this are described here.
