SPEC Kit 334: Research Data Management Services · 23
SURVEY QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES
The SPEC Survey on Research Data Management Services was designed by Barbara E. Pralle, Head,
Entrepreneurial Library Program and Interim Manager JHU Data Management Services, David Fearon
and Betsy Gunia, Data Management Consultants, at the Johns Hopkins University Sheridan Libraries and
Andrew L. Sallans, Head of Strategic Data Initiatives, and Sherry Lake, Senior Scientific Data Consultant, at
the University of Virginia Library. These results are based on data submitted by 73 of the 125 ARL member
libraries (58%) by the deadline of May 6, 2013. The survey’s introductory text and questions are reproduced
below, followed by the response data and selected comments from the respondents.
This study surveys ARL member libraries on their activities related to access, management, and archiving of research data at their
institutions. This introduction will help identify who should respond to the survey questions, and we encourage involving others at
your institution to assist in filling out this survey.
Over the last decade, most research libraries have provided some degree of support services for research data access and use. Over
the last few years, many found they needed to extend and unify services around more aspects of data acquisition, management,
dissemination, and preservation. The steady increase in e-Science—digitally mediated research with large datasets and networked
collaborative use—is one reason researchers look to their libraries for help with organizing, sharing, and archiving data.
The survey’s purpose is to assess the current landscape of how libraries, in relation to their parent institutions, are providing research
data management services to their community. It will not only provide benchmarks for trends, but will also help libraries gauge their
level of service for further development, and discover and share new models of service. The survey explores the organization of
research data management services (including a few questions on broader data support services), how they are staffed and funded,
and what services they offer and to whom, among other questions.
This survey expands the 2009 ARL E-Science Task Force survey on E-Science and Data Support Services, updating recent
developments and adding scope and detail for services addressed in the 2009 survey. You may have received similar surveys. This
one is intended to go more deeply into the details of RDM services, as a benchmark survey of ARL member institutions.
Research Data Management Services support the management and curation of research data throughout its life cycle. RDM includes
services such as: data management plan consulting, data documentation/metadata, data organization, data security and backup,
data citation, funder requirements, ethical and legal issues, preserving digital data, sharing data and archiving data. For this survey,
services are for research data, not institutional data such as departmental records keeping or government archives. It can include
research data in the sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
NOTE: Respondents whose libraries are providing data management consulting, and/or operating data archives or institutional
archives that host data, will answer the majority of the questions. In some cases, this survey may take more than one hour to
complete. We thank you in advance for taking the extra time required for these questions, which will be an important benchmark for
mapping the development of research data services in research libraries.
SURVEY QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES
The SPEC Survey on Research Data Management Services was designed by Barbara E. Pralle, Head,
Entrepreneurial Library Program and Interim Manager JHU Data Management Services, David Fearon
and Betsy Gunia, Data Management Consultants, at the Johns Hopkins University Sheridan Libraries and
Andrew L. Sallans, Head of Strategic Data Initiatives, and Sherry Lake, Senior Scientific Data Consultant, at
the University of Virginia Library. These results are based on data submitted by 73 of the 125 ARL member
libraries (58%) by the deadline of May 6, 2013. The survey’s introductory text and questions are reproduced
below, followed by the response data and selected comments from the respondents.
This study surveys ARL member libraries on their activities related to access, management, and archiving of research data at their
institutions. This introduction will help identify who should respond to the survey questions, and we encourage involving others at
your institution to assist in filling out this survey.
Over the last decade, most research libraries have provided some degree of support services for research data access and use. Over
the last few years, many found they needed to extend and unify services around more aspects of data acquisition, management,
dissemination, and preservation. The steady increase in e-Science—digitally mediated research with large datasets and networked
collaborative use—is one reason researchers look to their libraries for help with organizing, sharing, and archiving data.
The survey’s purpose is to assess the current landscape of how libraries, in relation to their parent institutions, are providing research
data management services to their community. It will not only provide benchmarks for trends, but will also help libraries gauge their
level of service for further development, and discover and share new models of service. The survey explores the organization of
research data management services (including a few questions on broader data support services), how they are staffed and funded,
and what services they offer and to whom, among other questions.
This survey expands the 2009 ARL E-Science Task Force survey on E-Science and Data Support Services, updating recent
developments and adding scope and detail for services addressed in the 2009 survey. You may have received similar surveys. This
one is intended to go more deeply into the details of RDM services, as a benchmark survey of ARL member institutions.
Research Data Management Services support the management and curation of research data throughout its life cycle. RDM includes
services such as: data management plan consulting, data documentation/metadata, data organization, data security and backup,
data citation, funder requirements, ethical and legal issues, preserving digital data, sharing data and archiving data. For this survey,
services are for research data, not institutional data such as departmental records keeping or government archives. It can include
research data in the sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
NOTE: Respondents whose libraries are providing data management consulting, and/or operating data archives or institutional
archives that host data, will answer the majority of the questions. In some cases, this survey may take more than one hour to
complete. We thank you in advance for taking the extra time required for these questions, which will be an important benchmark for
mapping the development of research data services in research libraries.
