A data citation is a reference to the data themselves and appears in-text or as a footnote whenever the data are either mentioned or directly referenced as a source, and the reference list should contain a corresponding entry (Bornatici & Fedrigo, 2023; FORCE11, 2014). The granularity of the reference depends on the usage. The data citation can identify the entire dataset or a subset.
Six core components
To ensure proper identification and findability of the cited data, the data citation should comprise the following six core components (Bornatici & Fedrigo, 2023; Cousijn, H. et al., 2018; Finnish Committee for Research Data, 2018; IASSIST, 2012; Jessop, 2021; Silvello, 2018; UK Data Service, 2023b):
Name of each individual, research group, or organisational entity responsible for the creation of the data, sometimes referred to as data producer(s). This could also be the rights holder.
Complete title of the data.
Year the data were published or disseminated for the cited version of the data.
Version or edition number of the data. If not provided by the data publisher, the publication date or access date should be used instead.
Organisational entity (e.g., data repository) responsible for making the data available by preserving and/or disseminating the data.
Unique electronic identifier used to locate and access the data (such as a DOI).
Additional components
While the above components should always be present in a data citation, additional components might add value or be requested by the publisher’s or journal’s guidelines or by the bibliographic styles (Bornatici & Fedrigo, 2023; Finnish Committee for Research Data, 2018). These are for example:
Unique numerical identifier for the data, provided by the data publisher. The data number is not a persistent identifier.
General resource type, often provided after the title in square brackets, e.g., [dataset], [data file and documentation]. This allows instant differentiation of data citations from other resource types.
Physical location of the data publisher.
Examples of data citation
Following APA 7th edition (APA Style, n.d.), the formal data citation is formatted as follows:
Data author(s) (Publication year). Data title (Data number; Version) [Resource type]. Data publisher. Persistent identifier
Here are two examples of formal data citation following APA 7th edition guidelines:
Vanhanen, T. (2019). Measures of Democracy 1810-2018 (FSD1289, Version 8.0) [Dataset]. Finnish Social Science Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.60686/t-fsd1289
ISSP Research Group (2023). International Social Survey Programme: Environment IV – ISSP 2020 (ZA7650; Version 2.0.0) [Dataset]. GESIS. https://doi.org/10.4232/1.14153