Research data management and sharing – new assignments for academic libraries, with the example of the Gdańsk University of Technology Library

Abstract

Academic libraries have always pioneered in implementing the principles of openness, creating appropriate tools such as web platforms and institutional repositories, and providing training to academic and research staff. Correspondingly, the same pattern applies to the more and more intense implementation of the Open Access policy that also includes research data. In either assignments, the role of academic libraries and their staff is vital. Consequently, new specialisations emerge, such as the data librarian or data steward, who are responsible not only for providing support to the faculty through instruction and consultation in issues related to Open Research Data but also offer direct assistance for research teams in data management and data sharing.Library services that support researchers and research institutions across a wide spectrum of disciplines in managing research data are constantly evolving. As a result, new assignments for libraries tend to be different from those previously attached to them. Being part of the data management process in an institution, librarians are beginning to get seriously involved in the research process from the very onset of the data life cycle. Their expertise and involvement are expected at various stages, from creating Data Management Plans to retrieving, describing, storage, and providing access to data. In addition, librarians will also be responsible for providing the environment for appropriate use and citation of data sets prepared by research teams. The biggest challenge for the future librarian will be to balance the demand for research data management with all other library tasks for which librarians are usually responsible. The number of electronic resources is steadily growing, while traditional printed books will not disappear from the shelves. As a result, librarians will be necessitated to match traditional assignments with the new responsibilities related to the progress and advances in technology. This article presents the activities of the Open Science Competence Center in the Library of the Gdańsk University of Technology – the first unit of this kind in Poland that actively supports the process of data management at the university and provides services in advice, assistance and training for the research and library communities. In this way, a new organisational and functional form of a library unit emerging in academic libraries is presented and discussed. The qualitative research method was used – a case study, which makes it possible to identify and describe extreme cases, differing from others, already known. This, no doubt, expands our knowledge of the phenomenon described and provides additional comparative data for further studies.