Unreported flexibility in data analysis can reduce the credibility of reported results and invalidate common tools of statistical inference. By submitting a detailed study protocol and statistical analysis plan to a public registry prior to conducting the work (i.e., preregistering with an analysis plan), the scientist makes a clearer distinction between planned hypothesis tests (i.e., confirmatory tests) and unplanned discovery research (i.e., screening or exploratory research). Preregistration of laboratory protocols— detailed descriptions of the methods used in the experiment, including equipment and reagents—is becoming more common and facilitates replicability. Preregistration is particularly important for studies that make an inferential claim from a sampled group or population, as well as studies that are reporting and testing hypotheses. After a project is completed, protocols and preregistration analysis plans can be used in conjunction with the final study and analysis by researchers seeking to replicate, reproduce, and build upon findings.

(From Developing a Toolkit for Fostering Open Science Practices: Proceedings of a Workshop which is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0))

Research projects may generate code that is used as a means to run, analyze, or interpret research data. The ability to independently confirm results and conclusions is critical for evaluating scientific rigor and informing future research activities. To extract maximum value from research findings and available data, any code deployed to process these data must therefore be widely and freely available. Research findings are not fully open unless the tools necessary to understand and test them are also made available.

Research projects may also generate software that is the product of the project rather than the byproduct, a specified deliverable designed to perform a specific task. Making the underlying code for this type of research output open source can encourage collaboration, further development, community engagement, and enhanced return on funders’ investment.

(From Developing a Toolkit for Fostering Open Science Practices: Proceedings of a Workshop which is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0))