Fostering habits of care: Reframing qualitative data sharing policies and practices

Abstract

This article argues that navigating the formalized, regulated and institutionalized data sharing landscape is challenging for researchers tasked with making qualitative data available for re-use. Archiving empirical material has progressively become a requirement enshrined in the policies of UK research institutions. Yet, how qualitative researchers feature – as data (co)creators and curators – within a process governed largely by quantitative data management strategies remains undocumented. Using examples from the ESRC Timescapes initiative, this article argues that to advance ethical practice in qualitative secondary analysis (QSA), data sharing policies and practices need to be re-framed to respect, value and care for the particularities of qualitative data and the emotional, intellectual and temporal investments made by qualitative researchers working in an increasingly pressurized Higher Education (HE) environment. Accordingly, ideas from the ethics of care literature are employed to propose areas where ‘habits of care’, attuned to the needs of qualitative researchers and data, can be fostered.

Dados Abertos Na Pesquisa Em Educação Em Ciências: Perspectivas, Desafios E Possibilidades

“…Um dos principais desafios associados ao uso de dados abertos em pesquisas qualitativas reside na reutilização fora do contexto original. Os dados qualitativos encapsulam experiências individuais por meio de palavras, imagens ou comportamentos, sendo moldados por observações, entrevistas, documentos e artefatos (Chauvette et al, 2019;Weller, 2023). A singularidade dos dados qualitativos emerge de contextos históricos, culturais e sociais, conferindo-lhes uma natureza inimitável (Creswell & Poth, 2018;Weller, 2023).…”

“…Os dados qualitativos encapsulam experiências individuais por meio de palavras, imagens ou comportamentos, sendo moldados por observações, entrevistas, documentos e artefatos (Chauvette et al, 2019;Weller, 2023). A singularidade dos dados qualitativos emerge de contextos históricos, culturais e sociais, conferindo-lhes uma natureza inimitável (Creswell & Poth, 2018;Weller, 2023). A relação entre pessoas pesquisadoras e participantes conduz à construção conjunta do conhecimento, realçando, assim, a importância do contexto dos dados.…”

Open Data in Science Education Research: Perspectives, Challenges, and Possibilities

“…One of the main challenges associated with using open data in qualitative studies is the reuse outside the original context. The qualitative data encapsulate individual experiences through words, images, or behaviors and are shaped through observations, interviews, documents, and artifacts (Chauvette et al, 2019;Weller, 2023). The singularity of the qualitative data emerges from historical, cultural, and social contexts, which gives them an inimitable nature (Creswell & Poth, 2018;Weller, 2023).…”

“…The qualitative data encapsulate individual experiences through words, images, or behaviors and are shaped through observations, interviews, documents, and artifacts (Chauvette et al, 2019;Weller, 2023). The singularity of the qualitative data emerges from historical, cultural, and social contexts, which gives them an inimitable nature (Creswell & Poth, 2018;Weller, 2023). The relationship between researchers and participants leads to the joint construction of knowledge, thus highlighting the importance of the context of the data.…”

Reflection over compliance: Critiquing mandatory data sharing policies for qualitative research

“…Participants may not be able to understand the complexity of the issues or informedly consent to their raw data being made open free from coercion. MIRD minimises the researchers' flexibility to accommodate participant boundaries and care in research (Weller, 2023). Under MIRD, participants who (reasonably) do not consent to their raw data being opened must be excluded from participation altogether, which is a problem when considering research on minority or marginalised groups.…”