Enabling use of DOIs for data citation in longitudinal studies: A report on the DataCite UK Workshop for CLOSER

The UK’s longitudinal studies (including cohort and household panel studies) have been making their data available to researchers beyond their immediate staff for decades. Over this time, they have developed various models of data sharing and citation that have increased the value of the data collected.

DataCite was created in 2009 to encourage data sharing by allowing better practice in data citation using Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs). The British Library is a founding member of DataCite and works with UK organisations to ensure that their data, software and other research items can be uniquely identified DOIs. The British Library DataCite service is DataCite UK.

Use of DOIs for data citation has since become recommended practice, but as yet very few longitudinal studies in the UK are providing DOIs for their users to cite study datasets.

DataCite UK wanted to understand why this is the case, and with the support of the CLOSER project held a workshop at the British Library in May 2018 to discuss and explore the issues. Ultimately, we want to ensure that UK longitudinal research can be appropriately cited, increasing its reach and impact and our ability to understand and measure that reach and impact.

Attendees of the workshop included: representatives of UK longitudinal and cohort studies; representatives of the UK Medical Research Council, Economic and Social Research Council and Wellcome, as the funders of longitudinal studies; DataCite UK; and the UK Data Service. The aims of the workshop were to highlight the benefits of DOIs for the citation and management of longitudinal datasets, examine the impact and implications that DOI implementation may have on studies, and look at the work that might be needed to realise the benefits of having DOIs for data citation for longitudinal studies.