(Original interview in Dutch)
Openjournals has gained another journal. The Research Data Journal for the Humanities and Social Sciences (RDJ) has officially moved to the Openjournals platform. Publishing in diamond open access is particularly important for a journal that focuses on making datasets accessible. Thanks to the support of Openjournals, this unique journal can continue to publish without authors having to pay for it. This fits perfectly with Openjournals’ mission to make scientific knowledge freely available to everyone. But how exactly did the Research Data Journal end up at Openjournals? We spoke with editor-in-chief Christiaan van Bochove about the journal, its history, and the value of open science.
What kind of journal is RDJ?
“Our journal offers researchers from across the SSH domain the opportunity to publish short articles describing datasets that have been deposited in a certified data archive. This not only improves access to and reusability of those datasets, but also gives authors recognition for the often time-consuming task of collecting and organizing data.”
“Our journal is actually quite unique. We are peer-reviewed, but we do not publish in print and are therefore e-only. What’s more, we have been diamond open access since the beginning: publication is completely free of charge for authors – something that is rare among commercial publishers.”
How did RDJ come into being?
“Our journal was founded in 2016 by DANS, a center of expertise and repository for research data, and Brill Publishers. In 2021, CESSDA, the consortium of European data repositories in the social sciences, took over from DANS. Thanks to this collaboration, we have been able to establish a successful journal. Researchers are increasingly finding their way to our journal. In 2024, we published no fewer than 20 papers, and articles are also viewed and downloaded frequently. The article by my Utrecht colleague Eltjo Buringh takes the crown in this regard, with over 31,000 views and downloads.”
How did you end up at Openjournals?
“Our transition from Brill to Openjournals began when CESSDA had to reconsider its contribution to our journal in 2024. This was naturally disappointing news for our journal, but it also gave us the opportunity to explore other ways of publishing. Through my former colleague Aad Blok, we ended up at the International Institute of Social History and the non-profit initiative with which he had already had good experiences: Openjournals.”
Why is open science important to RDJ?
“I would actually prefer to make that question a little more general: why is open science important for science and society? The answer to that question is very complex. It is not only about ensuring that research is transparent and reproducible, that data is reusable and stored sustainably, but also that tools and publications are accessible to as many people as possible. As an e-only and diamond open access journal on a non-profit platform, we are doing our part to contribute to this.”
