Sharing Prevention Science Data: Perspectives on Increasing Access

Over the last several years there has been an increasing focus on data sharing and it appears that requirements for sharing data collected using public funds will only increase. The Executive Office of the President Obama through the Office of Science and Technology Policy issued a memo in February 2013 seeking to increase access to the results of federally funded scientific research.  This memo makes clear that increasing research transparency, including an emphasis on public data sharing, will continue to be a priority.  Many scientific fields have established a culture of sharing data. For example, in genetics research sharing is expected and journals require that data be publicly available in order for papers to be published.  However, in some social science disciplines, including prevention research, practices for sharing data have not been as widely adopted. While many investigators are willing to allow others to publish from their data if the investigator continues to be involved, most do not make data publicly available through restricted or open access. Many investigators have valid concerns about sharing data including: concerns about disclosure risk, terms of consent agreements, IRB constraints, limited funding for preparation of data for deposit and so on. As greater demands are placed on investigators to share their data, it is crucial that the field of prevention science consider how best to make data available while ensuring that human subjects protections are not violated and other issues are adequately addressed. This roundtable discussion will consider different perspectives on data sharing and invite comments from the audience. Discussants will include senior prevention researchers with multiple viewpoints and experiences with sharing data, a project director from a major data archiving organization, and representatives from NIH involved with data sharing. The goal will be to identify important challenges in sharing prevention science data but to also to consider solutions to these challenges so that the field is prepared to move into an era when additional data sharing requirements are likely to be enacted.