Controlling Access to Data: An Empirical Study of Access Practices

In recent years, issues of access to scientific data have sparked intense controversy and public policy debate. Little has been written, however, on how scientists decide who gets access to which data and under what terms and conditions. Little has been written about how laws, regulations and policies shape and are shaped by data access practices. This project provides empirical study and analysis of this process. Drawing on insights and procedures from ethnographic studies of scientific laboratories, this project will examine actual practices of scientists regarding access to data. Using interviewing methods, the principal investigators will examine access practices in one scientific specialty: research on molecular structures (e.g., x-ray crystallography and NMR). They will interview four categories of respondents: scientists who have been involved in public debate about access to data, scientists who are 'gatekeepers,' such as journal editors; other scientists doing molecular structures research; and attorneys who have been involved in data access negotiations. The interviews will examine how scientists and others construct and erase boundaries to access, the relationship between circumstances and methods of control, and the terms in which scientists and lawyers frame arguments concerning data access and justify their practices and decisions. Comparisons will be made with results from a study of practices in molecular genetics. This proposal comes from a uniquely qualified pair of investigators who have found appropriate advisors with which to undertake the project. The topic is a central one in Ethics and Values Studies. Institutional auspices are very good. The framework and approach to the subject is suitable, and the research plan good. The project is likely to improve our understanding of how laws and other social sanctions affect data sharing and acknowledgement. I recommend support.