Increasing transparency through open science badges

Conservation science is a multidisciplinary and collaborative discipline. This journal's policy to encourage transparent open practices in science, including sharing of data, code, survey instruments. Such are especially important light emerging, broader scientific issues, such as reproducibility research protocols results, wasting outputs resources, questionable data reporting practices. Biology promotes this agenda through its transparency openness guidelines checklist the publication registered reports. Transparency have potential improve design methods, provide opportunities validate models statistical analyses, collaboration, increase citations (Piwowar et al. 2007). Preregistration aims reduce selective unplanned exploratory analyses that can lead unreliable findings. The Center for Open Science has introduced “badges” way recognize authors who engage (for further information, see https://cos.io/our-services/open-science-badges/). badges step toward wider cultural change publishing which transparency, openness, preregistration rewarded. In particular, it hoped awarding practices, material preregistration, will replicability, prevalence waste resources. Authors adopt an article now able select from 3 badges: materials, preregistration. Badges appear on published articles visible recognition highlight these efforts community. There emerging body literature regarding influences badges, example, increased number with (Kidwell al 2016) rate (Rowhani-Farid 2018). However, another study, Rowhani-Farid (2020) found did not “noticeably motivate” researchers share data. Badges, far we know, only data-sharing incentive been tested empirically 2017). Rates code typically low (Herold 2015; Roche Archmiller 2020; Culina 2020). Since 2016, asked contributed papers, reviews, method practice notes tell us whether they “provided complete machine human-readable computer Supporting Information or public archive.” 31% said shared their all human-survey instruments via citation online link (i.e., materials). Of course, there may be good reasons why particular should cannot shared. For constraints arise because disclosure potentially sensitive location information rare threatened species, privacy personal human participants interviewees, confidentiality agreements funders. Reproducibility requires archive reusable sets materials. We understand archiving takes time learn do well. By offering encouraging materials preregister studies. Through incentive, taking additional publishes ultimate goals producing reliable findings, improving credibility accelerating discoveries knowledge creation our thank H. Fraser commenting earlier draft.