Data and material availability

Research Data Transparency

ScienceBank requires Authors to provide details about the Study Design and Method sufficient to allow assessment and the replication of the study by others. Critical to this process is making available the materials, samples, and data used in the study for any researcher to directly replicate the procedures and outcomes. Where statistical analysis is used, the Authors must describe statistical methods and models to a standard that allows appropriately knowledgeable readers to verify the results with the original data.

Why Data and Material Transparency are Important?

Transparency is key to providing openness in the scientific process and is advocated by ScienceBank. Making data and use of materials transparent and available for results and conclusions to be validated by readers improves research integrity and enhances the value and impact of the research.

Data: How to Provide Access?

Data Availability Statement: This statement must be submitted with every manuscript that involves the use of materials, samples, or data as part of the methods and findings of research. The statement must list the name of the repository or repositories as well as digital object identifiers (DOIs), accession numbers or codes, or a long-lasting reference to a resource such as Persistent Identifier (PID) for all relevant data. ScienceBank will publish the Data Availability Statement in combination with the accepted manuscript. If there are valid reasons why access to data is not available, then the Authors must include them in the Data Availability Statement.  (See below ‘Exceptions when data cannot be shared’).

Data repositories: ScienceBank requests Authors to store data within an accessible data repository to improve its discoverability, accessibility, and long-term preservation. Authors are only required to provide the data that was analysed and referenced in the research. Examples of repositories include Figshare, Open Science Framework, Dryad, and Github. Where applicable, Authors should select repositories appropriate to their field of study.

Supporting Information files: Authors can also provide data as part of the supporting information with a maximum file size as outlined in the submission process. ScienceBank will make supporting information files available to readers alongside the manuscript. In addition, during the peer-review process, Authors will be able to respond to the Editor and Reviewers’ comments by attaching files such as videos, Excel, PDFs, and images to their responses. These materials will be visible to readers once a manuscript is published.

Qualitative data: Authors should make videos and transcripts relevant to the study available in an appropriate data repository and within the paper.

Data privacy: Authors must anonymize personal identifying information for any research that involves humans. The following are examples of data that should not be shared:

• Name, initials, physical address
• Specific dates (birth dates, death dates, examination dates)
• Contact information such as phone number, email address, or social media handles
• Location data
• Internet protocol (IP) address
• Personal identifiers

Authors must also ensure that combinations of data provided do not accidentally reveal or make it possible to target individuals. For example, providing demographic information across a small or very specific population may make it easy to identify participants because the combination of data is unique to those individuals.

Citation standards: All data, program code, and other methods must be appropriately cited using digital object identifiers (DOIs), journal citations, or other persistent identifiers.

Materials: How to Provide Access?

The guidelines for providing access to material are the same as how to provide access to data. The main difference is the use of appropriate repositories for materials and samples. For example, USA-based researchers may consider using repositories such as the American Type Culture Collection. Authors are advised to follow the international standards for their field and institution guidelines.

Exceptions to the Requirement to Share Data and Materials

There may be legitimate reasons why data and materials cannot be provided to readers. Authors must seek advice from appropriate authorities or contact ScienceBank to determine whether their reasons are considered legitimate. 

Outlined below are scenarios that describe ScienceBank’s position:

1. Legal or ethical reasons. Access to data or materials may be restricted when studies involve human research. If there are ethical or legal restrictions on sharing a sensitive data set, Authors should provide the following information within their Data Availability Statement upon submission:

• A detailed explanation of the restrictions, including any data containing potentially identifying or sensitive patient information.
• Provide contact information for a data access committee, ethics committee, or other institutional body where data requests can be directed.

2. Third-party or Proprietary data. Authors must ensure that access is obtainable by Reviewers and readers. The Data Access Statement must include:

• A thorough description of the dataset and its third-party or proprietary source. If applicable, provide verification of permission to use the dataset.
• All necessary contact information that others would require to apply for access to the data.

ScienceBank discourages the use of proprietary data that does not allow for open access standards to be met. Therefore, ScienceBank will in most cases reject manuscripts where proprietary data was used for a study but could not be accessed by Reviewers and readers. ScienceBank may consider exceptions if Authors can allow Editors and Reviewers to access the data during peer review.

3. Restricting access for personal interest gains. ScienceBank will not accept submissions if data or materials are withheld because it serves the Authors’ self-interest such as waiting for future publications or filing patents. Authors must be prepared to abide by the open access principles and allow data and materials to be accessible, and reusable. ScienceBank will be open to discussing scenarios where Authors want to withhold data and materials to not impact a patent filing. But in most cases, this will likely lead to a recommendation to delay publication until patent filings are resolved.

Consequence of Not Providing Access

Prohibiting access to data and materials without a valid reason or providing insufficient levels of appropriate description will result in ScienceBank rejecting manuscripts for publication. Exceptional circumstances requiring special treatment, such as protection of personal privacy or purchase of datasets from third-party sources, should be discussed with ScienceBank as early as possible, and no later than at the manuscript revision stage during pre-publication. Approval to publish will require Data and Material Availability to be achieved to the appropriate levels set out by ScienceBank.