Making sense of research activity data

Journal article

Oxford University is a research-intensive institution. Its research is diverse and unpredictable. Expertise, resources and outcomes vary from discipline to discipline, covering one or multiple subject fields. Research in Oxford also crosses organisational boundaries to other universities in the UK and abroad. Information about research activities across the University is published in websites using independent systems belonging to academic units, research centres, institutes, projects and individual researchers. These systems and information have been designed to fulfil the individual needs of each area of research activity and accouting for outside needs is beyong their aims. Seen all together they look like fragmented, dispersed systems resembling Oxford's federated, complex structure. From such heterogeneous sources of information it is very difficult to obtain a clear picture of research done in the University. Research activity information needs to be visible and easy to access to increase the research impact of the institution, and to boost collaboration and funding. Efforts are being made to create a research information infrastructure to collect research activity data from around the University, to classify and connect those sources and to make them available in a consistent and organised way. This paper explores the perspectives and issues related to the use of research activity information and the systems through which this information can be made visible and kept updated in an accurate and consistent way. The paper is focused on a stakeholder analysis done on a sample of Oxford academic and administrative units involved in research and related activities.

Authors: Loureiro-Koechlin, C

• Publication status: Not published
• Peer review status: Not peer reviewed
• Edition: Author's Original
• Language: English
• Keywords: structuration theory; research activity data; research information infrastructure; BRII
• Subjects: Information systems; Library & information science