Department of Sociology, University of Copenhagen, Øster Farimagsgade 5, 1353, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Danish Centre for Studies in Research and Research Policy, Department of Political Science, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 7, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark.
Sci Data. 2023 Apr 21;10(1):233. doi: 10.1038/s41597-023-02129-8.
Open data sharing is critical for scientific progress. Yet, many authors refrain from sharing scientific data, even when they have promised to do so. Through a preregistered, randomized audit experiment (N = 1,634), we tested possible ethnic, gender and status-related bias in scientists' data-sharing willingness. 814 (54%) authors of papers where data were indicated to be 'available upon request' responded to our data requests, and 226 (14%) either shared or indicated willingness to share all or some data. While our preregistered hypotheses regarding bias in data-sharing willingness were not confirmed, we observed systematically lower response rates for data requests made by putatively Chinese treatments compared to putatively Anglo-Saxon treatments. Further analysis indicated a theoretically plausible heterogeneity in the causal effect of ethnicity on data-sharing. In interaction analyses, we found indications of lower responsiveness and data-sharing willingness towards male but not female data requestors with Chinese names. These disparities, which likely arise from stereotypic beliefs about male Chinese requestors' trustworthiness and deservingness, impede scientific progress by preventing the free circulation of knowledge.
开放数据共享对于科学进步至关重要。然而，许多作者即使承诺分享科学数据，也不愿这样做。通过预先注册的随机审计实验（N=1634），我们测试了科学家数据共享意愿中可能存在的种族、性别和地位相关偏见。在那些数据被表示为“可根据要求提供”的论文中，有 814 名（54%）作者回复了我们的数据请求，有 226 名（14%）作者要么分享了全部或部分数据，要么表示愿意分享。虽然我们关于数据共享意愿偏见的预先注册假设没有得到证实，但我们观察到，与假定的盎格鲁-撒克逊治疗相比，针对假定的中国治疗的数据请求的回复率要低得多。进一步的分析表明，种族对数据共享的因果效应存在理论上的异质性。在交互分析中，我们发现，对于姓氏为中文的男性数据请求者，他们的响应性和数据共享意愿较低，但对于女性数据请求者则没有这种情况。这些差异可能源于对中国男性请求者可信度和应得性的刻板印象，通过阻止知识的自由流通，阻碍了科学进步。
