Increasing the Productivity of Interactions Between Subject and Institutional Repositories

Abstract

The Subject and Institutional Repositories Interactions Study (SIRIS) was undertaken for JISC in 2008 with a brief to produce a set of practical recommendations to improve interactions between institutional and subject repositories in the UK in respect to scholarly articles. The study was based on interviews with stakeholders and a questionnaire distributed to institutional repository managers. The different types of repository and their functional requirements are defined. The authors consider the reasons repositories interact and the types of interaction they might engage in. The current situation in the UK repository system is described. Key findings that emerged from the study concern achievement of critical mass, collection priorities, metadata, identifiers and versions, and the issue of trust as it affects engagement on the part of community members. The authors develop a number of scenarios for possible evolutions in repository interactions in the near future, organized around four key drivers: population of repositories, statistics and metrics, preservation, and aggregation of research outputs. The study's final report addressed seven recommendations to various stakeholder groups within the repository community: JISC, research funders, repository managers, publishers, content creators, and software developers. These recommendations concern standardization, best practice, and community engagement and dialogue.