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How do I cite research data?

In order to adequately document the use and subsequent use of one's own and other people's research data in the sense of good scientific practice, correct data citation is essential.

In the case of external data, this also acknowledges the scientific achievement of its 'originator'. As with the citation of other publications, the conventions for citing data may differ formally. In terms of content, however, they are united by the requirement of unambiguous identifiability of the data source. The FORCE11 Data Citation Synthesis Group has developed recommendations for data citation. According to them, a complete data citation includes:

Author(s), year, title of research data, data repository or archive, version, worldwide Persistent identifier

Other optional information that can be useful in the context of a citation is Edition, URI, Resource Type, Publisher, Unique Numeric Fingerprint (UNF) and Location (cf. Alex Ball & Monica Duke 2015) (PDF).

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