How to Deposit Qualitative Data into the Qualitative Data Repository (QDR)

Updated

To deposit data, start at qdr.syr.edu and use the Deposit Data entry point in the site navigation. Before submitting, review the Just Getting Started? guidance and the QDR's Services section, which explain the support available to new depositors. The site presents deposit as a distinct pathway alongside Discover Data (browsing existing projects) and Browse Guidance and Resources (methods and management help), so you do not need to explore the collections first in order to begin a deposit.

What QDR Is and What It Holds

The Qualitative Data Repository is a repository for qualitative research data, hosted at qdr.syr.edu. Its homepage organizes activity into three areas: discovering data, depositing data, and guidance/resources. The featured projects show the range of material the repository holds:

Featured project What was deposited
Usability of a visual key information toolkit for informed consent Usability testing data from a think-aloud study of a one-page consent template
COVID Diaries, state response to COVID vaccination 5,223 unique documents published on governors' and health department websites across all 50 U.S. states, December 2020–September 2021
Precariously employed food retail and service workers De-identified, generalized transcripts of individual semi-structured interviews from a two-state multiple case study

These examples indicate that QDR accepts both interview-based qualitative data and document collections, and that deposits are linked to published research. The consent-toolkit project, for instance, cites its related qualitative article and data DOI alongside the pilot-testing article, which suggests deposits are expected to connect to the scholarly record.

Steps to Deposit

  1. Go to qdr.syr.edu and locate the Deposit Data link in the main navigation.
  2. Read the "Just Getting Started?" guidance first if you are new to the repository. The homepage explicitly offers this as the entry point for people unfamiliar with QDR.
  3. Check QDR's Services to understand what support is offered around deposit and data management.
  4. Prepare your data consistent with what the featured deposits demonstrate: de-identified and generalized transcripts for interview studies, or organized document sets with a clear scope and date range for archival material.
  5. Submit through the Deposit Data pathway and expect your project to be described with a project overview, as the featured projects are.

What to Check Before You Submit

  • De-identification: the interview-based deposit describes its transcripts as "de-identified and generalized," which is the standard to plan for.
  • Scope description: the COVID Diaries deposit states its source (official state government and health department websites), its size (5,223 documents), and its date range. A deposit with a comparably clear scope is easier to review and reuse.
  • Linked publications: where your data underlie a published article, note the related article and any prior data DOI, as the consent-toolkit project does.

Common Sticking Points

  • Skipping the guidance: the site separates "Just Getting Started?" and "Guidance and Resources" from the deposit pathway itself. New depositors who go straight to Deposit Data may miss the preparation material QDR points to.
  • Confusing discovery with deposit: Discover Data is for browsing existing projects; it is not the submission route.
  • Assuming support details: the homepage names QDR's Services and Resources sections but the excerpt does not spell out their contents. Read those pages directly rather than relying on secondhand summaries.

For questions about eligibility, file formats, or access conditions that the homepage does not answer, consult the Services and Guidance pages on qdr.syr.edu before submitting.