Perspectives of a New ArchivistPerspectives of a New Archivist

Jennifer Darragh

Data Archivist

Population Research Institute

Social Science Research Institute

The Pennsylvania State University

IASSIST Annual Conference

University of Connecticut

June 14, 2002

Author’s Notes

•I’ve been the Data Archivist for the Population Research Institute since September 2000 and for the Social Science Research Institute since its formation in July 2001. I’m a little nervous speaking in front of so many seasoned professionals. I feel like a kindergartener trying to teach college students their ABCs. I tend to crack jokes too when I’m nervous, so please bear with me.

•Prior to coming to Penn State, I worked as a research specialist on a primary data collection project at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. The data from this study is wonderful, but due to its sensitive content, it will not likely be released any time soon.

•I have found that coming from a data producing background to a data preserving and distributing background has helped me understand the perspectives of both the producer and the user. Understanding the needs of both has definitely helped in my relations with both.

•As a newer archivist, I have not had much experience at all with archiving before the internet convoluted or made things easier depending on your perspective. I am looking forward very much to hearing the rest of the panel and all of you sharing your perspectives on the changes that have occurred in archiving over time.

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Thoughts on Restricted Data and Thoughts on Restricted Data and Useful TipsUseful Tips

Where is Archiving Headed?Where is Archiving Headed?

Author’s Notes

•Rather than give you a lot of examples of particular restricted contracts – which would take up all the time we have here – I thought I would share some of the observations and tips that have proven useful when I deal with restricted data. If anyone would like to ask questions after the presentation or see me later about restricted data licensing for – The National Center for Education Statistics, Medicare Beneficiary Survey, National Longitudinal Survey of Youth Geocode Data, or the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, I’d be happy to share my experiences with you.

•I also thought that after I go through some issues pertaining to restricted data, that I would share some of my perceptions as a new archivist as to where archiving is headed.

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Thoughts on Restricted Data and Thoughts on Restricted Data and Useful TipsUseful Tips

• Making Contacts• “Public” Restricted Data• User Education• Keep Up With Changing Technology• Can We Simplify the Process of Obtaining

Restricted Data?

Author’s Notes

•I was specifically asked to speak to all of you today about my experiences with restricted data. I’m sure many of you have dealt with restricted data of different kinds. Each contract or agreement is different, and I thought I could possibly offer some tips that can help obtaining restricted data be more of a positive experience.

•MAKING CONTACTS - Tip number one is to always make contact with a human being whenever possible. Be it phone or email, make sure you have a real person to talk to for questions about the data, paperwork, and security provisions. Finding a good contact can sometimes be the luck of the draw. The best persons to look for are data managers, statistical managers, project managers, etc. When you are dealing with governmental agencies, it’s a little less specific, but usually you can find one person who can be a lifeline for dealing with all of the complications. I had an experience when I was attempting to call the person in charge of restricted contracting (at an agency that will remain nameless) and could not get this person at all, even via email. At the suggestion of PRI’s Data Archive Assistant Lisa Broniszewski, I pushed 0 when I got the voicemail (for the 10 th time) to see if I could get a receptionist. I did! This receptionist told me that the person is at their desk, and they didn’t understand why there was no answer. Well, the receptionist told the supervisor of the department, she contacted me, and I was finally able to fulfill a very important request for two of my faculty. Never underestimate the power of a contact. This contact has also proved to be very valuable when dealing with new data requests for this agency and for contractual changes that need made.

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•PUBLIC” RESTRICTED DATA – More often, web-available public datasets are requiring online registration before access is granted to each user. Depending upon how involved the registration is, it can almost seem as if you are going after restricted data. Users are frustrated and as an archivist, I’m frustrated because I am trying to take some pressure off of the user by obtaining data for them. Registration is important for the data producer to gather statistics on what research is being done with the data and by whom. Funding agencies often require this information. Just because registration is required doesn’t mean that the data can’t be archived. For example, Demographic and Health Survey data distributed by Macro International is part of PRI’s archive. Quite a few researchers use the data and like to have the data in the archive so they do not have to have it sitting on their own hard drives. I have obtained permission to download all of the public data to maintain our archive. Our archived data is on a Unix platform, so I have the data protected by restricted group and by Access Control List to enforce user registration. Anyone who wants to use the data registers on the site and sends their approval to me. Once I receive the approval, I add them to the secure users group and give them access to the specific countries they have approval for by using the ACL. ACL’s are also available on the NT platform as well. This may seem like overkill as researchers could still share data with those who haven’t registered, but it shows DHS that you are serious about maintaining their standards.

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•USER EDUCATION – One of the most important aspects of my job is to educate our users on proper data use. We offer instruction on how to locate data on the web, search for data based upon variables needed, and most importantly how to follow restricted (and even public) data guidelines. I’ve found that researchers can sometimes be stubborn about following security plan guidelines. Even though they have no intentions of using the data improperly, the do not understand the seriousness of following security plans to a “T.” The best thing that I can do as the data archivist – as I am usually the custodian of the data or institutional liaison – is to hold mandatory review workshops on the basics of using the data following the proper access procedure and to check in with researchers who have individual data licenses. I have found that you should never assume that your researchers are following proper protocol. You need to make sure that they understand that if they break the rules, they may end up paying harsh consequences. Some of these consequences can include large fines and even possible jail time. Aside from personal consequences, if we break research respondent’s trust (which is the general population), people will not participate in surveys and will not allow personal data collected about them. Without participants, there will be no data which would make social science research (or any research using human participants for that matter) pretty weak.

KEEP UP WITH CHANGING TECHNOLOGY – Keeping up with technology is one of the most important things an archivist can do, in my opinion. We need to stay on top of the changes in secure technology in order to work with restricted data agencies. There isn’t a lot of trust, that I have noticed, in agencies the distribute restricted data. If we learn more, we can demonstrate technology that may help us to avoid stand alone computer set-ups, and have a computing environment that is secure, but user friendly.

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•CAN WE SIMPLIFY THE PROCESS OF OBTAINING RESTRICTED DATA? – This is a tough question, and a really good one. I think there are some things that we can simplify, but I don’t think there will be a time where we will be able to share licenses across institutions. The only time I have ever found where that is allowed is in the case of collaborative efforts between institutions. That usually only happens under special situations however, and with agencies that don’t make you sign your life away. Although we may not be permitted to share our licenses and contracts across institutions, we can help one another. Perhaps we could create a web page that contains mock-ups of how contracts are filled out for notoriously difficult data? I think we could benefit from one another’s expertise. Lisa Neidert will be talking about the Demographic Data Cooperative, and perhaps a shared FAQ for restricted data would be a beneficial addition to that effort.

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Where is Archiving Headed?Where is Archiving Headed?

• Data Enclaves More Prevalent• More Web Available Data – More Errata• Historic Data Must Be Preserved• Less Human Interaction – More Automation• The Cost of Obtaining Data Will Continue to

Decrease • More Users Relying on PC Based Applications

Author’s Notes

•For one, I think we’re going to see more data enclaves aka restricted data rooms. The reason why I believe this is due to the fact that as technology grows, agencies are going to have to learn to trust it. Learning to trust technology can sometimes be a lengthy process. At the project I was working on prior to coming here the PIs were so mistrusting of the internet that all personnel had stand alone PCs. It is true as well that as technology advances, so do hackers knowledge of said technology. I think we’re going to see more enclaves as an answer to the increased fear of hackers. Whether hackers are a legitimate fear in most cases is debatable.

•I think it is pretty obvious that more and more data is going to be available on the web. I believe that this is a positive advancement in the sense that it can simplify access to obtaining data, but the easier it is to put data on the web, data may not be checked as thoroughly as it should before it is released. I think there will end up being more errata, and archivists and users are going to have to get used to checking data sites often to check for updates. Sometimes data isn’t always re-released with fixes either which can potentially make the data less user friendly to those who may not know how to go in an change variables.

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•With more web data being available, I think it is going to become more important to archive older data. When I’ve obtained data from yearly studies, such as the National Health Interview Survey only the past five waves are usually available. What happens if someone wants data from the early eighties? Fortunately, NCHS is releasing older data on CD-ROM. I hope more organizations take their lead. In some cases when I’ve noticed more and more often that if you want something that isn’t current or is an earlier installment in a cumulative data set, it’s not available on the web and you often have to go through a lot of people before you can find out if the old data even exists.

•Also with web available data and extraction tools I think we’re going to see the following: Less human interaction, web extraction rather than full data files available, more registration (hoops to jump through), and less variables being considered public because there is more fear of disclosure when data is out there for anyone in the whole wide world to get a hold of.

•I also believe that users are moving away from command driven platforms and more towards PC based software. Secure technology is going to need to be understood by many levels of users. I believe more education is going to be needed on all levels producer – analysts and archivists – and end users.

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•Everyone is going to have to keep up to speed with technology: archivists, users, data agencies. In order to facilitate wide data use, everyone is going to need to learn more about technology in order to ensure that security isn’t compromised.

•WRAP UP – Even though I haven’t been around to see how things have been done for years, I feel that we are moving in a positive direction. We are going to be faced with many new challenges as research and technology changes. I believe archivists/data librarians need to be dynamic and flexible. My core director, who is a librarian (I am not), talked to me at length about the changes that have arisen due to the infiltration of electronic resources. She also believes the changes are positive and that saying we are moving away from “the traditional” is almost like saying a dirty word. Just because journals are available online does not mean that people will have all their questions answered. We will always be necessary. We guide, we enforce, we adapt. Change can always be somewhat frightening, but you have to find the excitement in change and learn to roll with the punches.

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