Metadata and DOI registration at DataCite (previously da|ra)

Introduction

This document describes how the MDM uses the DataCite¹ API to publish its metadata and to register a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) for each of its data package or analysis package versions. Until 2025, da|ra² was used to register DOIs, which is why it is possibly that da|ra is still mentioned in some parts of the documentation. Since da|ra itself registered the DOIs with DataCite, the information is to be understood synonymously.

The VerbundFDB³ harvests the published metadata of data packages from da|ra in order to make it available in its data search. It has therefore introduced some additional restrictions to the metadata schema of da|ra. These restrictions do not apply to analysis packages. With the switch to DataCite DOI registration the published metadata is currently not harvested.

This is an example of a registered data package at DataCite.

The following questions are answered in this document:

• When does the MDM send metadata to DataCite? When does it register a DOI?
• Which metadata does the MDM send to DataCite?
• Where can I find the current metadata schema of DataCite?
• Where can I find the specification of the additional restrictions introduced by the VerbundFDB?

When does the MDM send metadata to DataCite? When does it register a DOI?

The MDM sends metadata of a data package or an analysis package to DataCite in case of the following events:

1. Non-beta release of a new version of project (version >= 1.0.0):
   In this case the metadata of a data package or an anlysis package version is sent to DataCite for the first time (e. g. version 1.0.0 or 2.0.0). Therefore a new DOI (10.21249/DZHW:${projectId}:${version}) is registered at DataCite. The release is triggered by clicking the release button in the project cockpit of the MDM.
2. Re-release of an existing version of a project (version >= 1.0.0):
   In this case the metadata at DataCite is updated (overwritten). The release is triggered by clicking the release button in the project cockpit of the MDM using the same version number as before.
3. Related publications of a data package or an analysis package have changed (via import of the Citavi database):
   In this case the metadata at DataCite is updated (overwritten) automatically.
4. Project version (aka shadow copy) has been hidden in the MDM:
   In this case, the data package or analysis package is updated (overwritten) at DataCite meaning it is marked as "withdrawn" at DataCite. The delivered metadata is still available at DataCite, but the version is no longer available for public users of the MDM at all.

Which metadata does the MDM send to DataCite?

In each of the above cases a complete JSON document is sent to DataCite. Depending on the project configuration either a data package is sent to DataCite or an analysis package.

Data Package

The following table describes the mapping from the MDM domain model to DataCite schema (version 4.6). When Da|ra was still used to register DOIs, there were additional mandatory fields required by VerbundFDB⁴. Since DataCite does not maintain a full mapping for VerbundFDB, the mandatory fields are no longer relevant here. For more information on the restrictions imposed by VerbundFDB, see the following section: Where can I find the specification of the additional restrictions introduced by the VerbundFDB?

DataCite Sequence	DataCite Property	MDM property	DataCite restrictions
1.	identifier	Composition from dataAcquisitionProject.masterId and dataAcquisitionProject.release.version
2	creator	List of dataPackage.projectContributors[], additionally one entry for dataPackage.institutions	mandatory (1-n)
2.1	creators.name	dataPackage.projectContributors[].lastName, dataPackage.projectContributors[].firstName, dataPackage.projectContributors[].middleName
2.1.a	creators.nameType	Personal for persons, Organizational for institutions
2.2	creators.givenName	dataPackage.projectContributors[].lastName, dataPackage.projectContributors[].firstName, dataPackage.projectContributors[].middleName
2.3	creators.familyName	dataPackage.projectContributors[].lastName
	creators.nameIdentifiers	List of identifiers of each creator
2.4	creators.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifier	dataPackage.projectContributors[].orcid
2.4.a	creators.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifierScheme	static value ORCID
2.4.b	creators.nameIdentifiers.schemeUri	static value "https://orcid.org"
	creators.affiliation	List of affiliations for each creator (only specified if there is only one institution in the data package)
2.5	creators.affiliation.name	dataPackage.institutions[].de or dataPackage.institutions[].de
	titles	List of dataPackage.title[]	mandatory (1-n)
3.	titles.title	dataPackage.title[].de, dataPackage.title[].en
	publisher	List with constant entry for DZHW	mandatory (1)
4	publisher.name	constant value "German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW)"
4.a	publisher.publisherIdentifier	constant value "https://ror.org/01n8j6z65"
4.b	publisher.publisherIdentifierScheme	constant value "ROR"
4.c	publisher.schemeUri	constant value "https://ror.org/"
5	publicationYear	dataAcquisitionProject.release.firstDate, if null: current year	mandatory (1)
	subjects	List with entries for each tag and elsst tag in all languages
6.	subjects.subject	dataPackage.tags[] or dataPackage.elsstTags[].prefLabel
6.a	subjects.subjectScheme	constant value "CESSDA European Language Social Science Thesaurus (ELSST)" for all ELSST tags
6.b	subjects.schemeUri	constant value "https://thesauri.cessda.eu/elsst-4/en/" for all ELSST tags
6.c	subjects.valueUri	the values URI at https://thesauri.cessda.eu/elsst-4/en/
	contributors	List of dataPackage.dataCurators[], additionally constant entry for DZHW
7.a	contributors.contributorType	DataCurator for persons, Distributor for DZHW entry
7.1	contributors.name	for persons dataPackage.dataCurators[].lastName, dataPackage.dataCurators[].firstName, dataPackage.dataCurators[].middleName
7.1.a	contributors.nameType	Personal for persons, Organizational for institutions
7.2	contributors.givenName	dataPackage.dataCurators[].lastName, dataPackage.dataCurators[].firstName, dataPackage.dataCurators[].middleName
7.3	contributors.familyName	dataPackage.dataCurators[].lastName
	contributors.nameIdentifiers	List of identifiers
7.4	contributors.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifier	dataPackage.dataCurators[].orcid
7.4.a	contributors.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifierScheme	constant value ORCID
7.4.b	contributors.nameIdentifiers.schemeUri	constant value "https://orcid.org"
	contributors.affiliation	all contributors get DZHW as their affiliation
7.5	contributors.affiliation.name	constant value Deutsches Zentrum für Hochschul- und Wissenschaftsforschung (DZHW)
7.5.a	contributors.affiliation.affiliationIdentifier	constant value "https://ror.org/01n8j6z65"
7.5.b	contributors.affiliation.affiliationIdentifierScheme	constant value ROR
7.5.c	contributors.affiliation.schemeUri	constant value "https://ror.org/"
	dates	a list of release related dates (release date, embargo date, date of withdrawal), and field periods for all surveys
8.	dates.date	dataAcquisitionProject.release.firstDate, if null: current date, for surveys: survey.fieldPeriod.start and survey.fieldPeriod.end, format: YYYY-MM-DD
8.a	dates.dateType	Withdrawn for hidden projects (date: always current date), Available for released (date: release date) or pre-released projects (date: embargo date), Accepted for pre-released projects (date: release date), Collected for survey dates
8.b	dates.dateInformation	only available for hidden projects or embargo date, survey.title for survey dates
	types	constant object	mandatory (1)
10.a	types.resourceTypeGeneral	constant value Dataset
	alternateIdentifiers	list of alternate identifiers
11.	alternateIdentifiers.alternateIdentifier	constant 1 for VerbundFDB, constant 2 for QDN
11.a	alternateIdentifiers.alternateIdentifierType	constant value VerbundFDB or QDN
	relatedIdentifiers	list of DOI identifiers of previous or new versions of the data package
12.	relatedIdentifiers.relatedIdentifier	the DOI of the previous or new version
12.a	relatedIdentifiers.relatedIdentifierType	constant value "DOI"
12.b	relatedIdentifiers.relationType	constant value "isNewVersionOf" or "isPreviousVersionOf"
15.	version	dataAcquisitionProject.release.version
	rightsList	list of rights
16.	rightsList.rights	constant value that indicates the necessity of application to access data
	descriptions	list of data package and survey population descriptions
17.	descriptions.description	dataPackage.description or survey.population.description
17.a	descriptions.descriptionType	Abstract for dataPackage.description, Methods for survey.population.description
	geoLocations	list of survey population locations
18.3	geoLocations.geoLocationPlace	country name of survey.population.geographicCoverage
	fundingReferences	list of dataPackage.sponsors
19.1	fundingReferences.funderName	dataPackage.sponsors[].name

Analysis Package

The following table describes the mapping from the MDM domain model to DataCite schema (version 4.6).

DataCite Sequence	DataCite Property	MDM property	DataCite restrictions
1.	Identifier	Composition from dataAcquisitionProject.masterId and dataAcquisitionProject.release.version
2	Creator	List of analysisPackage.authors[], additionally one entry for analysisPackage.institutions	mandatory (1-n)
2.1	creators.name	analysisPackage.authors[].lastName, analysisPackage.authors[].firstName, analysisPackage.authors[].middleName
2.1.a	creators.nameType	Personal for persons, Organizational for institutions
2.2	creators.givenName	analysisPackage.authors[].lastName, analysisPackage.authors[].firstName, dataPackage.authors[].middleName
2.3	creators.familyName	analysisPackage.authors[].lastName
	creators.nameIdentifiers	List of identifiers of each creator
2.4	creators.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifier	analysisPackage.authors[].orcid
2.4.a	creators.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifierScheme	static value ORCID
2.4.b	creators.nameIdentifiers.schemeUri	static value "https://orcid.org"
	creators.affiliation	List of affiliations for each creator (only specified if there is only one institution in the analysis package)
2.5	creators.affiliation.name	analysisPackage.institutions[].de or analysisPackage.institutions[].de
	titles	List of analysisPackage.title[]	mandatory (1-n)
3.	titles.title	analysisPackage.title[].de, analysisPackage.title[].en
	publisher	List with constant entry for DZHW	mandatory (1)
4	publisher.name	constant value "German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW)"
4.a	publisher.publisherIdentifier	constant value "https://ror.org/01n8j6z65"
4.b	publisher.publisherIdentifierScheme	constant value "ROR"
4.c	publisher.schemeUri	constant value "https://ror.org/"
5	publicationYear	dataAcquisitionProject.release.firstDate, if null: current year	mandatory (1)
	subjects	List with entries for each tag and elsst tag in all languages
6.	subjects.subject	analysisPackage.tags[] or analysisPackage.elsstTags[].prefLabel
6.a	subjects.subjectScheme	constant value "CESSDA European Language Social Science Thesaurus (ELSST)" for all ELSST tags
6.b	subjects.schemeUri	constant value "https://thesauri.cessda.eu/elsst-4/en/" for all ELSST tags
6.c	subjects.valueUri	the values URI at https://thesauri.cessda.eu/elsst-4/en/
	contributors	List of analysisPackage.dataCurators[], additionally constant entry for DZHW
7.a	contributors.contributorType	DataCurator for persons, Distributor for DZHW entry
7.1	contributors.name	for persons analysisPackage.dataCurators[].lastName, analysisPackage.dataCurators[].firstName, analysisPackage.dataCurators[].middleName
7.1.a	contributors.nameType	Personal for persons, Organizational for institutions
7.2	contributors.givenName	analysisPackage.dataCurators[].lastName, analysisPackage.dataCurators[].firstName, analysisPackage.dataCurators[].middleName
7.3	contributors.familyName	analysisPackage.dataCurators[].lastName
	contributors.nameIdentifiers	List of identifiers
7.4	contributors.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifier	analysisPackage.dataCurators[].orcid
7.4.a	contributors.nameIdentifiers.nameIdentifierScheme	constant value ORCID
7.4.b	contributors.nameIdentifiers.schemeUri	constant value "https://orcid.org"
	contributors.affiliation	all contributors get DZHW as their affiliation
7.5	contributors.affiliation.name	constant value Deutsches Zentrum für Hochschul- und Wissenschaftsforschung (DZHW)
7.5.a	contributors.affiliation.affiliationIdentifier	constant value "https://ror.org/01n8j6z65"
7.5.b	contributors.affiliation.affiliationIdentifierScheme	constant value ROR
7.5.c	contributors.affiliation.schemeUri	constant value "https://ror.org/"
	dates	a list of release related dates (release date, embargo date, date of withdrawal)
8.	dates.date	dataAcquisitionProject.release.firstDate, if null: current date, format: YYYY-MM-DD
8.a	dates.dateType	Withdrawn for hidden projects (date: always current date), Available for released (date: release date) or pre-released projects (date: embargo date), Accepted for pre-released projects (date: release date)
8.b	dates.dateInformation	only available for hidden projects or embargo date
	types	constant object	mandatory (1)
10.a	types.resourceTypeGeneral	constant value Dataset
	relatedIdentifiers	list of DOI identifiers of previous or new versions of the analysis package
12.	relatedIdentifiers.relatedIdentifier	the DOI of the previous or new version
12.a	relatedIdentifiers.relatedIdentifierType	constant value "DOI"
12.b	relatedIdentifiers.relationType	constant value "isNewVersionOf" or "isPreviousVersionOf"
15.	version	dataAcquisitionProject.release.version
	rightsList	list of rights
16.	rightsList.rights	constant value that indicates the necessity of application to access data
	descriptions	list of analysis package
17.	descriptions.description	analysisPackage.description
17.a	descriptions.descriptionType	Abstract for analysisPackage.description
	fundingReferences	list of analysisPackage.sponsors
19.1	fundingReferences.funderName	analysisPackage.sponsors[].name

Where can I find the current metadata schema of DataCite?

The metadata JSON schema is best described here. It also includes examples and controlled vocabulary.

The documentation of the DataCite API can be found here.

Where can I find the specification of the additional restrictions introduced by the VerbundFDB?

The additional restrictions introduced by the VerbundFDB (aka Kernset) are described here.

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¹ DataCite is an international consortium assigning persistent identifiers to data sets. It organizes the administration of DOI prefixes and the connection to the International DOI Foundation (IDF).
² da|ra is a DOI registration agency for social and economic data in Germany. It is connected to DataCite which organizes the administration of prefixes and the connection to the International DOI Foundation (IDF).
³ The VerbundFDB is a research data infrastructure for empirical educational research collecting and sharing research data and information. The FDZ-DZHW is a network partner within the VerbundFDB.
⁴ If both da|ra restrictions and VerbundFDB restrictions have "---", this means we send these attributes voluntarily and/or the attributes are marked "optional" by the VerbundFDB Kernset