Research Newsletter – Issue 108: Open Research in Action
The Reproducibles: Data, Code and the Quest for Reproducibility
Dr Eddie McGuinness - School of Health and Human Performance
Eddie’s research focuses on understanding and improving sprint performance in female athletes. During the early stages of his PhD, while conducting a systematic review, he encountered a major challenge: several potentially eligible studies had to be excluded because their authors had not shared data, and key methodological details were missing from published papers. Concurrently, growing concerns about replication and reproducibility in the field and across wider sciences were being highlighted in leading journals. This experience shaped Eddie’s commitment to open and transparent research practices.
John McDonough (DCU Librarian) and Dr Eddie McGuinness
In response to these challenges, Eddie embedded openness, transparency, and reproducibility throughout his own research. His work demonstrates open research in practice, applying openness at every stage of the research process, from study design to data sharing.
Open Methods:
Eddie’s studies examined how to accurately measure maximum sprinting speed in female athletes. Every aspect of the testing process was carefully documented so that other researchers could fully understand and replicate his methods. This included details such as the athletes’ starting sprint position, distance from the first timing gate, gate height, and the precise instructions given to participants. Different configurations of timing gates and sprint distances were tested to show how such factors can influence recorded speeds. This level of detail strengthened the credibility and reproducibility of the findings and serves as an example of how transparent methods enhance research quality.
Open Data:
The resulting publication made the full dataset publicly available, representing months of data collection. Given the limited research on female athletes, this dataset provides a valuable foundation for secondary analyses by other researchers, helping to expand knowledge in an underrepresented area of sport science. By sharing his data openly, Eddie has made it possible for others to build on his findings, turning the value of one study into many.
Open Software:
All statistical analyses were conducted using R, a freely available open-source software. Eddie shared the full R script alongside the dataset, allowing others to understand exactly how the analyses were conducted and to reuse or adapt the code for future projects. This ensures that his research is fully transparent, reproducible, and open for collaboration.
Open Research aims to increase openness, transparency and reproducibility across all parts of the research lifecycle. It is considered beneficial to all involved in the research process - funders, researchers, policymakers, and to society as a whole. DCU actively supports and facilitates researchers to practice Open Research. The DCU Open Research Steering Group is leading the University's implementation of the NORF Action Plan 2022-2030 and working more broadly to foster a culture of openness in all aspects of DCU research.
Further information and links to useful resources can be found on the DCU Open Research Website.