Lehtsalu: I have the impression that we are slowly getting to the point where most researchers have heard of open science, recognize it and practice it as and when they can. While there were initially differences between disciplines and generations, recent studies have shown that this not necessarily the case anymore: nowadays many older researchers are as committed to open science as younger ones, and vice versa.
Bellantone: Research funders have also
Played an important role here, as many of them have b2b email list and promoted open science. The European Commission has been very keen to anchor certain open science practices in its grants policy. So, anyone funded by its programmes inevitably has to adopt these practices. If there is anything that about elsewhere had already been talk! researchers, it is not a lack of willingness or scepticism, it’s the amount of work and time involved. For example managing research data and making them fit for being shared requires a lot of time and expertise.
Lehtsalu: This is where the important aspect of recognition comes into play. If we only evaluate the work of researchers according to their published articles and do not consider whether they curate data or involve society in their research, for example through citizen science projects that also take up an incredible sault data of time, we cannot expect researchers to invest this time, all their efforts will go towards publishing the next peer-reviewed article. Again, open science – for all its values – does not exist in a vacuum.
Is that why Eurac
Bellantone: Yes, we wish to reward researchers for their efforts to make their science more open. At the same time, it is an invitation for researchers to rethink their research cycle, to consider if open science practices were, or could be, incorporated. At European level, there is a major initiative to assess the performance of researchers more comprehensively by using parameters that are not just quantitative and based on publication metrics. It’s called CoAra which stands for the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment. On a small scale, we too can take steps in this direction and in doing so, foster a cultural shift.