Thread by @chrisdc77

Thread on two research transparency initiatives we are launching today at the journal Cortex, where I serve as an editor. This is a big day for us, in preparation for a long time. /1

The initiatives are the Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) guidelines and Badges for Open Practices /2

The TOP guidelines are a self-certification scheme in which journals declare their adherence to a series of modular standards for enabling research transparency & reproducibility. In short, TOP is about being transparent about the level of transparency the journal requires. /3

At Cortex we are adopting high levels across the board -- minimum Level 2 on all standards. What does this mean in practice for authors? /4

All data, code & digital materials necessary for supporting the claims in papers must be publicly archived OR authors must state in the paper the legal or ethical barriers that prevent archiving & how readers can gain access. Only legal or ethical barriers are eligible. /5

Note: this makes Cortex compliant at policy level with @richarddmorey's Peer Reviewers' Openness (PRO) Initiative opennessinitiative.org

So, PRO reviewers, from today you can review for Cortex without needing to first check availability of data and materials. /6

Next, our TOP level adoption means that all empirical papers must state whether or not the study design or analysis plans were publicly preregistered. Prereg is not mandatory and no explanation is needed for lack of prereg. But it must be declared in the paper either way. /7

To further increas- design and analysis transparency, all empirical papers must also include the following statement, adapted from @uri_sohn's 21 word solution: /8

"We report how we determined our sample size, all data exclusions (if any), all data inclusion/exclusion criteria, whether inclusion/exclusion criteria were established prior to data analysis, all manipulations, and all measures in the study” /9

In addition to the TOP guidelines, we are also launching Badges for Open Practices, including Open Data, Open Materials, and Preregistered badges. These will be awarded as a matter of course by the journal (authors need not apply for them) /10

Recognising that Cortex publishes a significant no. of clinical studies where data cannot be archived w/o restrictions, we will also be offering lesser known badges such as "Open Data-Protected Access", for when data is deposited securely in a 3rd party repository. /11

For further information on all of the above:
My editorial introducing TOP and Badges: drive.google.com/file/d/12SKCrI…
The complete TOP policy: elsevier.com/__data/promis_…
TOP FAQs for authors: elsevier.com/__data/promis_…

Vive la (open science) révolution

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