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Risky business: Data-at-risk in a dynamic and evolving multidisciplinary research environment
(2024-03) Patterton, Louise H; Bothma, TJD; Van Deventer, MJ
At-risk data is an unfortunate research reality and can be present in all data formats in a range of research disciplines. This is defined as data that are at risk of loss due to various factors, including deterioration of the media, lack of accompanying documentation and data that exists in non-digital formats, which are often irreplaceable. Continued access to older data has a range of benefits. The factors that place valuable data at risk are therefore a cause for concern. This paper reports on a multi-method case study, comprising a survey and interviews. A web-based questionnaire was distributed to all research group leaders based at a leading South African research institute. This was followed by one-on-one interviews that were held with a sub-section of the same group of researchers. The combined findings of the two methods enabled a picture to be formed regarding factors that jeopardise research data, data rescue obstacles that the researchers encountered and the state of data rescue at the institute.