Doing Open Social Science: A Guide for Researchers

Open science is a set of principles and practices that aims to make research from all fields accessible to everyone for the benefit of researchers and society as a whole. Doing Open Social Science: A Guide For Researchers is the first comprehensive book setting out the principles and practices of open research, tailored specifically for those in social science disciplines, at every career stage, offering practical advice on how to make research more transparent, trustworthy and reusable.

Divided into four parts, Part I examines the overall theoretical and methodological aspects of changing from long-established 'closed' approaches to research, setting out an ambitious and inclusive open social science agenda. Part II addresses the practical issues of improving the reproducibility of research through open approaches, including chapters on the principles and tools of documenting research as you go and on open data practices. Part III focuses in on open practices within qualitative social science disciplines. Chapters examine interview-based research, case studies and fieldwork, systematic documentation analysis, archival data and the role of openness in citizen (social) science. Part IV addresses shifting research cultures, including chapters on strategies for presenting research clearly and accessibly to maximise reach and impact, and on open access publishing. The book ends with a discussion of the future of open social science, arguing that openness as a wider cultural change can renew the social sciences and the core foundations for academic progress in more dynamic and sustainable ways than current approaches allow.

This is an essential guide for anyone working in the social sciences who wants to engage more effectively with open research, from doctoral candidates and early career researchers to experienced academics and practitioners.