What do researchers look for in Archives?

Data and Metadata on user requests and after-service tracking in the case of an emerging data sharing culture

Ch. Kappi, D. Kondyli, Ch. Frentzou, T. Linardis

Conference: IASSIST/IFDO 2009, Mobile Data and the Life Cycle

Session: G3: Building Data Archives and User Communities

Dates: 26/29-May-2009 Location: Tampere, Finland

OutlineSocial Research in Greece1. The state of the art2. Rising of needs

Establishment of the Greek Social Data Bank [GSDB]1. Structure of GSDB2. GSDB systems and their use

Facts on practices of a rising Data Archive1. Sources

i. Web basedii. Personal contactiii. Networking

2. A rising data sharing culture

3. Users’ characteristicsi. Affiliationii. Geographyiii. Utilityiv. Subject matter

Concluding Remarks1. Strengths2. Weaknesses3. The future

Topics addressed

This presentation aims at offering facts and their analysis on the profile of the Greek research community as studied by the Greek Social Data Bank.

•Research communities have different collective identities in relation to their stance towards data sharing

•This stance affects local data services

•Infrastructure for data sharing and exchange in Greece

1. The state of the art2. Rising of needs

Social Research in GreeceThe state of the art

• In Greece social research is limited, ▫ both in terms of finances and in terms of exploitation of results

• Suffers from a poor data sharing culture, ▫ thus hindering dissemination activities, which rely mainly on

the products of research to serve specific academic goals. • Research production is scattered due to lack of centralized

management of research needs and demands. ▫ This, among other reasons, results in the overlapping of

research activities and poor communication among research groups in the country which engage in research on similar fields.

• Targeted social research is minimal• it is rather focused on covering the prerequisites of the

financing organizations for successful management of funds. It is more determined by requirements of public organisations than by state-of-the-art demands of the society

Social Research in GreeceRising of needs

• 1990 and on the State engages in digitalisation projects at all levels of public administration

• Greece as an EU member is increasingly engaging in contributing to comparative figures for administrative and academic/research purposes

• The ‘history’ of research becomes part of research and archiving activities

• The National Centre for Social Research –the sole public funded social research organisation in the country is opening more effective communication paths with the State and society.

• Academic institutions develop affiliation with research institutes through a variety of networking activities

• Increasing unemployment of social scientists results in extending their period of studies and training

1. Structure of GSDB2. GSDB systems and their

use

Greek Social Data Bank [GSDB]

• The GSDB originated as a State financed project in 1997 within the framework of modernising and digitising the Greek public administration

• It was established as a Social Data Archive in 1998 acting as the supporting research infrastructure of the National Centre for Social Research (EKKE) with the purposes to aid, promote and disseminate results of social empirical research in Greece.

• Its aim was to become the credible Archive for social data in Greece covering the needs of the entire research community.

RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTUREFOR GREEK SOCIAL DATA

SPECIAL INFORMATION BANK (SIB)

The SIB is the main database of the GSDB where data and metadata are stored;

it contains:

• Completely documented research projects • A catalogue of research organisations at national and European level• A catalogue of data providers• Publications relative to social research• Information on the research staff at EKKE

NODE FOR SECONDARY PROCESSING (NSP)

• The NSP is a dynamic environment where research projects, micro and macro datasets, publications, organisations, are documented and indexed under the structure of subject matter databases.

• The databases designed at the NSP under the Node Programme, cover the scientific fields studied at EKKE; their content arises from research work at both national and European level;

• More databases will be build through external cooperation, as part of the NSP strategy to promote research activities through social research infrastructures

SOCIAL DATA & INDICATORS ARCHIVE (SDIA)

The SDIA contains:

• Completely documented research projects with data and metadata • Data sets which arose from primary research

• Variables with documentation

SOCIAL DATA MANAGEMENT ENVIRONMENT (SDME)

The SDME is an integrated complex of software tools for the management and processing of social data; it is complemented by search tools for information provided through the SIB. Both the SDME and SIB provide tools for data input, processing and searching. The SDME also contains a dictionary of terms and a data dictionary.

1. Sourcesi. Web basedii. Personal contactiii. Networking

Widening community: The process

▫ Research is organised across great distances of time and space, most prevalently expressed by the 3W technology, thus communication of scientists and new relations established without boundaries,

▫ Personal communication practices of scientists are mediated through technology, e.g.: in teaching, which traditionally has been the fortress of face-to-face transmission of knowledge.

▫ The boundaries of scientific disciplines become more and more imponderable leading to new groupings and alliances

Widening community: the emerging needs

▫shared ‘language’, ▫shared culture/values and, consequently, cultural

resemblances, ▫shared media/technology,▫shared methods, ▫shared resources, ▫shared (and wide) audience▫multidisciplinary work-force

THE STRATEGY• Establish a data archive for the social sciences in

Greece

• Develop documentation standards for data and metadata standardisation

• Develop the infrastructures for data and metadata dissemination

• Develop a suitable environment for data documentation, analysis and process

• Build a mediating agency for the integration of national and European research

• Develop a research environment for research production/provision, which will act as a network facilitator

Monitoring change

•Advocating data circulation•Networking •Training•Offering data from EKKE production•Acquiring data from other producers•Processing for secondary use•Disseminating

The ‘view’ of GSDB from outside

•The web▫www.gsdb.gr▫www.ekke.gr/▫www.cessda.org/accessing/catalogue/

•Personal contact▫Researchers and the public

•Networking ▫Academia, international partners,

producers,....

http://www.gsdb.gr

2005 -2009

A. Linardis, M. Frydakis (2005). “Capturing Web User Profiles. The Case of the Greek Social Data Bank”, in: J. Kallas (ed.) The Node for Secondary Processing –a Comparative Research Infrastructure. Athens: National Centre for Social Research

GSDB data on requests 2007-2009

2005-2009

A. Linardis, M. Frydakis (2005). “Capturing Web User Profiles. The Case of the Greek Social Data Bank”, in: J. Kallas (ed.) The Node for Secondary Processing –a Comparative Research Infrastructure. Athens: National Centre for Social Research

GSDB data on requests 2007-2009

i. Affiliationii. Geographyiii. Utilityiv. Subject matter

Calculations were based on the period: June 2007 – April 2009.

Qualitative differences

Greece: higher percentage of student migration in the EU; 47,08 are concentrated in the UK . In numbers: 22486 students in the UK in a total of 46.919 studying abroad (except 4 countries) (Source: OECD 2003)

General statistics

The population of University students in Greece: 242.149

(all levels, graduate-post graduates , doctoral students), out of 10.206.595 inhabitants.

Scientific domains: Social Sciences, Business-Administration and Law:35%Humanities and Arts: 16,9%Education: 10% Sciences, Engineering, Construction: 31,8 (Source: Ministry of Education www.ypepth.gr, statistics 2004-5 )

StrengthsWeaknessesThe future

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES FUTURENETWORKING UNDERSTAFFED AND LIMITED

SPACEGSDB TO BE RECOGNISED AS THE GREEK NATIONAL ARCHIVE

OUR RESEARCH ACTIVITIES IN SOCIAL RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE ATTRACT FUNDING AND ACADEMIC INTEREST

POOR ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT; UNCLEAR LEGAL FRAMEWORK

STRONG NETWORKS CREATING A DYNAMIC FOR EXPANSION OF ACTIVITIES

OUR RESEARCHERS BUILD EXPERTISE ON NEW RESEARCH METHODS, WHICH IS PASSED ON TO YOUNG RESEARCHERS & SSH STUDENTS THROUGH WORK ON OUR PROJECTS

ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF DOING RESEARCH AND NOT BEING PROMOTED OR ACKNOWLEDGED

NEED TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE REVISION OF LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE FRAMEWORK TO MEET THE NEEDS FOR A STABLE STRATEGIC ON RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE

WE IMPROVE THE VISIBILITY AND USABILITY OF THE WORK OF EKKE AND GENERALLY OF SOCIAL RESEARCH IN THE COUNTRY

COOPERATION WITH RESEARCHERS IS WITH DIFFICULTIES DUE TO LIMITED EXPERTISE

OPEN COMMUNICATING CHANNELS WITH TRADITIONAL RESEARCH

OUR DAY-TO- DAY WORK ON DATABASE BUILDING ATTRACTS YOUNG RESEARCHERS

SLOW PROMOTION MECHANISM FOR RESEARCHER WORK

ESTABLISH NETWORKING FRAMEWORK WITH UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENTS