Guideline 11
Methods and standards
To answer research questions, researchers use scientifically sound and appropriate methods. When developing and applying new methods, they attach particular importance to quality assurance and the establishment of standards.
Explanation
The application of a method normally requires specific expertise that is ensured, where necessary, by suitable cooperative arrangements. The establishment of standards for methods, the use of software, the collection of research data and the description of research results is essential for the comparability and transferability of research outcomes.
Comments
- Comparability and transferability
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Knowledge-oriented and method-oriented research
Research methods are the tools of research, but they can also be the subject of research.
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Quality standards in connection with rapid publication
Rapid publication of research data and findings by no means allows any compromise to be made in terms of accepted quality standards in the given field.
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Further links on the subject of methods and standards
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Methods and standards in the life sciences
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Reusable and open methods and protocols in the life sciences
Recommendations for detailed recording of research methods
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Standards/references
In the engineering sciences, a standard is something that is arrived at the end of a prolonged process. In the context of research in the field of engineering science, it makes more sense to regard a standard as a point of reference
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Use of standards in the geosciences
It is always preferable to use standards that have been developed in the relevant subject areas.
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Utilisation of existing data sets in medicine/the life sciences
The systematic evaluation and validation of models or methods is carried out through scientific discussion and in comparison with references or other data.