Time to consider animal data governance: perspectives from neuroscience

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Bioethics
• Data Science

Background:

• Scientific research generates vast multimodal, multidimensional big data from human and non-human animal sources.
• Unlike human data, non-human animal data lacks established regulatory frameworks for sharing and reuse.
• Existing legal and ethical principles governing animal data generation vary significantly across regions, yet data is shared globally without governance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To highlight the need for animal data governance informed by ethical concerns.
• To explore perspectives on the necessity and approaches to animal data governance.
• To address the challenges posed by the plurality of ethical views in animal research.

Main Methods:

• Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 participants (10 males, 2 females).
• A total of 13 interviews were transcribed and managed using Nvivo 12.
• Thematic analysis was applied to the transcribed interview data.

Main Results:

• Participants agreed on the urgency of animal data governance, citing regulatory differences, ethical variations, and data quality concerns.
• Insights into potential governance approaches were provided by participants.
• The need for governance was linked to differing ethical principles, values, and beliefs.

Conclusions:

• A procedural approach to data governance is essential.
• This approach should facilitate understanding of ethical concerns and debates without prescribing specific ethical stances.
• It aims to enable cross-cultural and international collaboration by accommodating diverse ethical perspectives.