RESEARCH DATA MANAGEMENT SERVICES: AN INVESTIGATION OF RESEARCH DATA MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AT THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (NUST)
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Date
2017
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Abstract
The study sought to gain a holistic understanding of NUST researcher's data management
practices in the Faculty of Applied Sciences and the faculty of communication and information
science as they relate to the creation, management, and preservation of research data with a view
to introduce research data management services (RDMS).A mixed methods convergent parallel
research design employing some elements of the Data Asset Framework (OAF) was adopted for
the study. Data was gathered through questionnaires and face to face interviews. Study findings
revealed that some data were still being collected in out-dated formats; data management
practices were guided by intuition rather than informed by good practice and data were
sometimes neglected once a project is complete. The findings of the study also showed a general
lack of data sharing through repositories and journals in favour of sharing via personal
communication. Concerns among researchers about the amount of time required in preparing
data for sharing and the potential for misuse of data hindered them from sharing research data.
Researchers also rarely created metadata or other documentation for data. Data storage needs and
behaviours varied, with different storage devices being used at different research lifecycle stages.
Researchers identified a number of services that they would find valuable including assistance
with data management planning and backup/storage services. The findings of the study may be
used to inform development of research data management services at NUST Library.