Information, data and other records produced in connection with research must be managed according to the same principles as other public records produced at SLU.
The main principle of the Archives Act (SFS 1990:782) is that research data must be preserved. The Archives Act, as well as the Act on Public Access to Information and Secrecy (OSL) require systematic organisation, easy overview and management. Research material belongs to the university and must not be dispelled, removed or disposed of without a prior decision to do so.
SLU is responsible for archiving research material. The formal responsibility at department level rests with the head of department. Appraisal (disposal) according to applicable law or regulations may be delagated to a project manager, but this should always be done in consultation with SLU’s Documentation Unit.
Research activities covers fundamental research, applied research and development work according to Chapter 2 Section 2 of the Higher Education Act (1992:1434). A research project is defined as a delimited research activity of limited duration, linked to a specific mission and/or specific people.
A general definition of research material is:
”Research records received or created as part of an ongoing research project or continuing research activities”.
Research material belongs to the university and may not be dispelled, removed or disposed of without a valid, prior decision to do so.
From an information management perspective, there are four types of research records:
Raw data/primary material is usually classified as one of the following:
Research consists of actual acts such as taking measurements and samples. From this follows that it cannot be considered part of the university’s case handling. This means that research material will become public during the research process, and a request for data to be released can be submitted before the results have been published.
Having well organised research data from the outset is vital for the quality and reliability of the research.
The research process comprises different phases and activities. During each phase, various types of public records are created. Each phase needs to follow the applicable rules for information management and archiving. The phases are e.g. planning, collection, analysis, evaluation, dissemination/publication of results, financial statements and follow-up.
All public records must be managed and archived according to the legislation in force. Appraisal may only be done if this is provided for in an act or regulation. Any individual agreements stating otherwise are not valid at SLU, as the university is obligated to follow the regulations stipulated by the National Archives of Sweden in RA-FS (National Archives Statutes) and RA-MS (National Archives Regulations for Authorities).
Appraisal and disposal of research records are described in RA-FS 1991:1, National Archives regulations and advice for appraisal of records in government authorities’ research activities and and RA-MS 2013: 7 for records in clinical operations with a research connection.
The appraisal rules are media independent, and must be applied in the same way to paper documents as to electronic databases or datasets. Appraisal and disposal may only take place after the period prescribed and must always be documented.
The following records are always exempt from appraisal and disposal:
To consider appraisal and disposal according to the legislation in force, the following should be taken into account:
Each department or equivalent unit is responsible for archiving its research material. Always follow the central procedures for information management available on the staff web.
The head of department is ultimately responsible for archiving, with operational support offered by the Documentation Unit. The person responsible for registry and archiving at the department supports the actual work.
Coworkers and doctoral students taking part in a research project are responsible for documenting and controlling information management by drafting plans for data management, publishing and preservation.
Records/research data created during data collection and analysis (raw data/primary material and processed material) must always be evaluated and the preservation period decided according to the criteria below: