Generating codebooks to ensure the independent use of research data: Some guidelines.

Recently, the European Journal of Psychological Assessment (EJPA) has implemented practices that strongly encourage and support data sharing for any article accepted for publication at EJPA. An essential element of data sharing is the documentation of research data, that is, providing a codebook that allows independent researchers to interpret the data file without additional assistance. However, general standards on how to document data have not yet been developed. Here, we define the purpose of a codebook and showcase how a codebook could be formatted and which information could be included. Given that different researchers have different data structures and use different formats, we argue that the general purpose of a codebook must be fulfilled rather than adhering to a specific format. We further highlight useful resources and provide a starting point for anyone wanting to release their documented data. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved)
Source: European Journal of Psychological Assessment - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Source Type: research