Metadata is data about data that provides potential users with the necessary information to be able to understand and re-use the data. Importantly, it also enhances the searchability and findability of scientific data. Metadata includes various useful information, for example on how the data was collected, at what time the data collection took place. It should also include information on the user license and access conditions that apply to the data. Metadata is always published under the Creative Commons Attribution CC0 1.0 Universal License, which means that it is accessible to everyone and its information may be used in any way persons see fit (as long as it is cited).
What metadata is needed when publishing data with DATICE?
When data is published with DATICE certain metadata must accompany the data (see table below). DATICE follows the internationally recognized DDI 2.5 metadata standard of the Data Documentation Initiative and the CESSDA Metadata Model (CMM). These standards are well suited for various types of research data, including social and education science data.
Overview of necessary metadata
| Metadata | Explanation | Example |
| Title | Title of dataset or original study. | The Icelandic National Election Study 2017 |
| Author(s) | Name of author(s), or name of the institution. | Anna Jónsdóttir, University of Iceland |
| Contact | Contact name and address, or name of organization that responds to queries about the dataset. | Jón Jónsson, University of Iceland, jonj(at)hi.is |
| Description | Description or an abstract that describes the purpose, nature and scope of the data. | |
| Subject | Subject/field of study (if more than one word, separated by a semicolon). | Social Science |
| Keywords | 5-7 terms that describe important aspects of the dataset. Only terms from the systematic vocabulary of CESSDA (ELSST multilingual thesaurus) is used: https://thesauri.cessda.eu/elsst/en/ | accountability; health behaviour, trust in government |
| Topic classification | 5-7 terms that describe the broad topics covered by the dataset. Only terms from the CESSDA Topic Classification are used here: https://vocabularies.cessda.eu/vocabulary/TopicClassification | public health; censuses; education |
| Language | Language of the dataset. | Icelandic; English |
| Grant information | The agency or individual that provided funding for the study/data collection, along with grant number if applicable (put "NA" if no funding). | University of Iceland Research Fund |
| Producer | Name of individual(s) or institution that carried out the research. | Social Science Research Institute |
| Production place | The country where research/data collection took place. | Iceland |
| Depositor | The contributor of the data; the name of individual(s) or institution. | Social Science Research Institute |
| Date of collection | The period during which data collection took place, from start to end (year-month-day). | Start: 2017-10-30; End: 2018-02-02 |
| Kind of data | The type of data. | Survey data |
| Software | Software(s) used, along with version number | SPSS 26.0 |
| Geographic coverage | Country/territory covered by the study. | Iceland |
| Unit of analysis | The basic unit of sampling. | Individual |
| Universe | Information on the study sample. | All individuals 18 years and older |
| Time method | The time method of the study. | Cross-sectional |
| Data collector | Name of the individual(s) or institution that oversaw the collection of the data. | Social Science Research Institute |
| Sampling procedure | The method used to select the study sample. | A random sample of individuals from the National Registry |
| Collection mode | The method(s) used to collect the data. | phone-survey; questionnaire survey |
| Type of instrument | Type of research instrument(s) or tool(s). | questionnaire; interview |
Examples of optional metadata
| Metadata | Explanation | Example |
| Related publications | Published content that relates to the dataset (e.g., scientific paper, book chapter, research report). In the form of an APA-style citation. | Name of author. (Publication year). Title of paper. Journal title, Volume(Issue), p. xx–xx. https://doi.org/xx.xxxxx/xxxxx. |
| Related datasets | Other related data (e.g., data that belongs to the same research project). In the form of an APA-style citation. | Name of author. (Publication year). Title of dataset (version x) [dataset]. Name of data service. https://doi.org/xx.xxxxx/xxxxx. |
| Weighting of data | Information on the grounds on which the data were weighted (if applicable). | The data were weighted on the basis of gender, age and residency. |
| Response rate | Information on response rates (if applicable). | The gross response rate was 51.8% and the net response rate was 52.8%. |