Mechanisms for Data Quality and Validation in Citizen Science

Submitted by Kevin Crowston on Sat, 2014-07-19 10:49

Publication Type:

Conference Paper

Authors:

Wiggins, Andrea; Newman, Greg; Stevenson, Robert D.; Kevin Crowston

Source:

"Computing for Citizen Science" workshop at the IEEE eScience Conference, Stockholm, Sweden (2011)

URL:

http://itee.uq.edu.au/ eresearch/workshops/compcitsci2011/index.html

Keywords:

Citizen Science, data quality, data validation

Abstract:

Data quality is a primary concern for researchers employing public participation in scientific research, or “citizen science,” to accomplish data collection and analysis tasks. This mode of scientific collaboration relies on contributions from a large, often unknown population of volunteers with widely variable expertise. In this paper, we review the commonly employed mechanisms for ensuring data quality. We also discuss results of a survey of citizen science projects that reports on the use of some of these mechanisms, noting that it is most common for projects to employ multiple mechanisms to ensure data quality and appropriate levels of validation.