Data sharing in nursing research: advantages and challenges

The sharing of data between investigators has received little attention in the nursing literature. Among other advantages, data sharing reinforces open scientific inquiry, encourages the development of multiple perspectives, and reduces respondent burden. However, ownership and control of the shared data, preservation of respondents' anonymity, and the costs of data sharing are among the issues that need to be addressed in agreements and contracts involving primary investigators, secondary investigators, and data repositories. The original researcher must spend time and energy to make data sharing possible. It is only when such efforts are acknowledged and rewarded that data sharing is likely to become a norm in the nursing profession. The authors argue that research data should be shared and nurse researchers should seek to have data from all publicly funded projects deposited in accessible data repositories. Nurse researchers need to incorporate plans for data sharing into their research programs and press for the infrastructures required to enable data sharing.