Why and how should I cite SAMHDA data?

Citing data files in publications based on those data is important for several reasons:

• Other researchers may want to replicate research findings and need the bibliographic information provided in citations to identify and locate the referenced data;
• Citations appearing in publication references are harvested by key electronic social sciences indexes, such as Web of Science, providing credit to the researchers; and
• Data producers, funding agencies, and others can track citations to specific collections to determine types and levels of usage, thus measuring impact.

Where do I find the citation?

Citations for SAMHDA data can be found in the following locations:

1. Study descriptions on study home pages
2. File manifest
3. PDF study description file

Both the file manifest and the PDF study description file are automatically included with every download. Thus, every download is accompanied by a copy of the standard citation that can be copied and pasted.

What do the citations look like?

Here is an example:

United States Department of Health and Human Services. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality. National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2011. ICPSR34481-v3. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2014-05-19. http://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR34481.v3.

Note that we also include a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) at the end of each citation. A DOI provides a persistent link to a published digital object, such as an article or study. This means that if you publish an article using ICPSR data and you include the DOI in the data citation, you make it easy for other researchers to get back to the original data.

How can I let SAMHDA know about my publication?

Users of SAMHSA data are required to send the bibliographic citation for each completed manuscript or thesis abstract to SAMHDA. To have your publication added to the SAMHDA bibliography, complete the online form or email your citation to bibliography@icpsr.umich.edu.