ICPSR launches new repository for COVID-19 data
ICPSR has created a new archive for data examining the social, behavioral, public health, and economic impact of the novel coronavirus global pandemic.
The COVID-19 Data Repository is a free, self-publishing option for any researcher or journalist who wants to share data related to COVID-19. The data will be available to any interested user for secondary analysis.
The project is being led by ICPSR Director and University of Michigan researcher Margaret Levenstein, who said the repository will capture data to help researchers and journalists understand and respond to the pandemic.
“The response of the scientific community, including social, behavioral, and economic scientists, as well as the amazing efforts of journalists, to the COVID-19 pandemic has created a wealth of data that will help us to respond to the current crisis, address its long term impacts, and build policies and institutions so that this never happens again,” Levenstein said. “This is only possible if these data are FAIR – Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable – so ICPSR has stepped in, leveraging its 58 years of experience stewarding data resources, to create the COVID-19 Data Repository. We encourage scientists, journalists, students, and others to share data resources that they create through the repository. Each data deposit will receive a unique persistent identifier (a digital ID), a standardized citation, and most importantly, will be accessible to others for future analysis.”
Levenstein emphasized that, especially with the rapid pace of both the pandemic and the understanding of it, capturing data that is developed at different points in time is key to understanding it and improving response. “As a mission-driven organization, committed to social science in the public interest, ICPSR is pleased to be able to offer this resource to the community,” Levenstein said. “Please share with others and encourage them to share their data. And please let those who are looking for data on the social, behavioral, public health, and economic aspects of the epidemic to look in the COVID-19 data repository.”
Ready to start your COVID-19 data deposit?
ICPSR has put together a resource page for guidelines on publishing data in the COVID-19 Data Repository. For best practices in preparing data for sharing, ICPSR also has a handy Guide to Social Science Data Preparation. COVID-19 repository deposits are most useful if they include all data, annotated program code, command files, and documentation necessary to understand the data collection and/or replicate research findings.
Potential depositors are encouraged to email ICPSR User Support at ICPSR-help@umich.edu with questions about the process of publishing data in the COVID-19 Data Repository with openICPSR.
About ICPSR
Founded in 1962, the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR), part of the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research, is one of the world’s oldest and largest social science data archives. ICPSR, a winner of the 2019 National Medal for Library and Museum Service, has almost 800 member institutions worldwide. ICPSR's mission is to advance and expand social and behavioral research, acting as a global leader in data stewardship and providing rich data resources and responsive educational opportunities for present and future generations. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
For more information
Guide to Social Science Data Preparation
Contact: Dory Knight-Ingram
Apr 27, 2020