JARGONS ABOUT PHILOSOPHY

A priori: Knowledge or reasoning that is gained independently of experience, often through logical

deduction.

A posteriori: Knowledge or reasoning that is gained through experience or empirical evidence.

Ontology: The branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of being, existence, and reality.

Epistemology: The branch of philosophy concerned with the theory of knowledge and how knowledge is

acquired.

Metaphysics: The branch of philosophy concerned with the fundamental nature of reality and existence.

Ethics: The branch of philosophy concerned with moral principles and how individuals should behave.

Phenomenology: The study of conscious experience and the structures of consciousness.

Dialectic: A method of logical reasoning and argumentation often used in philosophical discourse.

Syllogism: A logical argument composed of two premises and a conclusion.

Teleology: The study of purpose and design in nature or the belief that there is a purpose to everything.

Rationalism: The belief that reason and logic are primary sources of knowledge and understanding.

Empiricism: The belief that knowledge is derived from sensory experience and observation.

Existentialism: A philosophical movement focused on individual existence, freedom, and subjective

experience.
Absurdism: The belief that life is inherently meaningless and irrational, but humans still have the

freedom to create their own meaning.

Nihilism: A philosophy that believes life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value.

Solipsism: The belief that only one's own mind is sure to exist, and the external world may not be

objectively real.

Logical positivism: A philosophy that focuses on the logic and language of science and dismisses

metaphysical or ethical claims as meaningless.

Utilitarianism: An ethical theory that emphasizes maximizing overall happiness and minimizing

suffering.

Deontology: An ethical theory that focuses on moral duties and obligations, rather than just

consequences.

Postmodernism: A philosophical and cultural movement that questions objective truth, rejects grand

narratives, and emphasizes the subjective nature of reality.

Phenomenology: A philosophical approach that focuses on the subjective experiences and

consciousness of individuals.

Dialectics: A method of reasoning and argumentation that involves examining and resolving

contradictions between opposing ideas or forces.

Idealism: The belief that reality is fundamentally shaped by the mind or consciousness.

Materialism: The belief that reality is fundamentally composed of physical matter and energy.
Pragmatism: A philosophical approach that emphasizes practical consequences and usefulness in

determining the truth and value of beliefs.

Hermeneutics: The study of interpretation and understanding, particularly in relation to texts, language,

and communication.

Ontological Argument: A deductive argument that seeks to prove the existence of God based on the

concept of a perfect being.

Teleological Argument: An argument for the existence of God that posits the presence of purpose or

design in the natural world.

Categorical Imperative: A moral principle introduced by Immanuel Kant that requires individuals to act

in accordance with universalizable maxims or principles.

Utilitarian Calculus: An approach in utilitarianism that involves assessing the overall happiness or utility

of actions based on factors such as intensity, duration, and extent.

Absolutism: The philosophy, developed by Hegel, viewing all possible states of being as part of a greater

totality of experiences.

Absurdism: The philosophy stating that the efforts of humanity to find meaning in the Universe will

ultimately fail because no such meaning exists (at least in relation to humanity). Absurdism is related to

existentialism, though should not be confused with it, nor with nihilism.

Accidentalism: Any system of thought that denies the causal nexus and maintains that events succeed

one another haphazardly or by chance (not in the mathematical but in the popular sense). In

metaphysics, accidentalism denies the doctrine that everything occurs or results from a definite cause.
In this connection it is synonymous with tychism (ruxi, chance), a term used by Charles Sanders Peirce

for the theories that make chance an objective factor in the process of the Universe.

Acosmism: The philosophy that denies the reality of the Universe, seeing it as ultimately illusory, and

only the infinite Unmanifest Absolute as real. In contrast to pantheism, acosmism begins with the

recognition that there is only one Reality, which is infinite, non-dual, blissful, etc. Yet the phenomenal

reality of which humans are normally aware is none of these things; it is in fact just the opposite—i.e.,

dualistic, finite, full of suffering and pain, and so on. And since the Absolute is the only reality, that

means that everything that is not Absolute cannot be real. Thus, according to this viewpoint, the

phenomenal dualistic world is ultimately an illusion ("Maya" to use the technical Indian term),

irrespective of the apparent reality it possesses at the mundane or empirical level.

Aestheticism: A loosely defined movement in art and literature popular in late 19th-century Britain

which held that art does not have any didactic purpose (it need only be beautiful), and that life should

imitate art. The main characteristics of the movement were suggestion rather than statement,

sensuality, massive use of symbols, and synaesthetic effects – that is, correspondence between words,

colors, and music.

Agnostic atheism: The philosophical view that encompasses both atheism and agnosticism. Due to

definitional variance, an agnostic atheist does not believe in god or gods and by extension holds true

that "the existence and nonexistence of deities is currently unknown and may be absolutely

unknowable", or that "knowledge of the existence and nonexistence of deities is irrelevant or

unimportant", or that "abstention from claims of knowledge of the existence and nonexistence of

deities is optimal". Contrast agnostic theism.

Agnostic theism: The philosophical view that encompasses both theism and agnosticism. An agnostic

theist is one who views that the truth value of claims regarding the existence of god or gods is unknown
or inherently unknowable, but still chooses to believe in god or gods in spite of this. Contrast agnostic

atheism.

Agnosticism: The philosophical view that the truth values of certain claims — particularly theological

claims regarding the existence of god, gods, or deities — are unknown, inherently unknowable, or

incoherent, and therefore irrelevant to life. Agnosticism itself, in both its strong (explicit) and weak

(implicit) forms, is necessarily neither an atheist nor a theist position, though an agnostic person may

also be either an atheist, a theist, or one who endorses neither position.

Altruism: The belief that people have a moral obligation to serve others or the "greater good". It is

generally opposed to the concepts of self-interest and egoism.

Amor fati: A Latin phrase that may be translated as "love of fate" or "love of one's fate". It is used to

describe an attitude in which one sees everything that happens in one's life, including suffering and loss,

as good or, at the very least, necessary, in that they are among the facts of one's life and existence, so

they are always necessarily there whether one likes them or not. Moreover, amor fati is characterized by

a passive acceptance of the events or situations that occur in one's life.

Anarchism: The political position of any of a number of views and movements which advocate the

absence or elimination of rulership or government. Other than being opposed to the state, there is no

single defining position that all anarchists hold. Compare and contrast libertarianism.

Anarcho-capitalism: A philosophy based on the idea of individual sovereignty, and a prohibition against

initiatory coercion and fraud. It sees the only just basis for law as arising from private property norms

and an unlimited right of contract between sovereign individuals. From this basis, anarcho-capitalism

rejects the state as an unjustified monopolist and aggressor against sovereign individuals, and embraces

anti-statist laissez-faire capitalism. Anarcho-capitalists would aim to protect individual liberty and
property by replacing a government monopoly, which is involuntarily funded through taxation, with

private, competing businesses.

Anarcho-primitivism: An anarchist critique of the origins and progress of civilization. Primitivists argue

that the shift from hunter-gatherers to agricultural subsistence gave rise to social stratification, coercion,

and alienation. They advocate a return to non-"civilized" ways of life through deindustrialisation,

abolition of division of labor or specialization, and abandonment of technology.

Anarcho-syndicalism: A form of anarchism that allies itself with syndicalism, that is, with labor unions,

as a force for revolutionary social change. Anarcho-syndicalists seek to replace capitalism and the state

with a democratically worker-managed means of production. They seek to abolish the wage system and

most forms of private property.

Anima mundi: The "world soul"; a universal soul encompassing all individual souls within itself.

Animism: "Animism" has been applied to many different philosophical systems. This includes Aristotle's

view of the relation of soul and body held also by the stoics and scholastics. On the other hand,

monadology (Leibniz) has also been described as animistic. The name is most commonly applied to

vitalism, which makes life, or life and mind, the directive principle in evolution and growth, holding that

life is not merely mechanical but that there is a directive force that guides energy without altering its

amount. An entirely different class of ideas, also termed animistic, is the belief in the "world soul", held

by Plato, Schelling and others. Lastly, in discussions of religion, "animism" refers to the belief in

indwelling souls or spirits, particularly so-called "primitive" religions that consider everything inhabited

by spirits.

Anthropocentrism: Also called humanocentrism. The practice, conscious or otherwise, of regarding the

existence and concerns of human beings as the central fact of the universe. This is similar, but not
identical, to the practice of relating all that happens in the universe to the human experience. To clarify,

the first position concludes that the fact of human existence is the point of universal existence; the latter

merely compares all activity to that of humanity, without making any teleological conclusions.

Anthropomorphism: A form of personification involving the attribution of human characteristics and

qualities to non-human beings, objects, or natural phenomena. Animals, forces of nature, and unseen or

unknown authors of chance are frequent subjects of anthropomorphosis. Two examples are the

attribution of a human body or of human qualities generally to god (or the gods), and creating imaginary

persons who are the embodiment of an abstraction such as Death, Lust, War, or the Four Horsemen of

the Apocalypse. Anthropomorphism is similar to prosopopoeia (adopting the persona of another

person).

Antinatalism: A philosophical position that assigns a negative value to birth. Antinatalists argue that

people should refrain from procreation because it is morally bad.

Antinomianism: In theology, the idea that members of a particular religious group are under no

obligation to obey the laws of ethics or morality as presented by religious authorities. Antinomianism is

the polar opposite of legalism, the notion that obedience to a code of religious law is necessary for

salvation. The term has become a point of contention among opposed religious authorities. Few groups

or sects explicitly call themselves "antinomian", but the charge is often levelled by some sects against

competing sects.

Anti-realism: Any position involving either the denial of the objective reality of entities of a certain type

or the insistence that humans should be agnostic about their real existence. Thus, people may speak of

anti-realism with respect to other minds, the past, the future, universals, mathematical entities (such as

natural numbers), moral categories, the material world, or even thought.

Aristotelianism: The philosophical tradition that takes its defining inspiration from the work of Aristotle

and the Peripatetic school. Sometimes contrasted by critics with the rationalism and idealism of Plato,

Aristotelianism is understood by its proponents as critically developing Plato's theories. Most

particularly, Aristotelianism brings Plato's ideals down to Earth as goals and goods internal to natural

species that are realized in activity. This is the characteristically Aristotelian idea of teleology.

Arminianism: A school of soteriological thought in Protestant Christian theology founded by the Dutch

theologian Jacobus Arminius. Arminianism is closely related to Calvinism (or Reformed theology), and

the two systems share both their histories and many doctrines in common.

Asceticism: A way of life characterised by an austere existence that refrains from worldly pleasures.

Those who practice ascetic lifestyles often perceive their practices as virtuous and pursue them to

achieve greater spirituality. In a more cynical context, asceticism may connote some form of self-

mortification, ritual punishment of the body, or harsh renunciation of pleasure, though the word itself

does not necessarily imply a negative connotation.

Ascriptivism: The view that human beings are to be held responsible for their actions even if

determinism is true.[5]

Associationalism: A political project where "human welfare and liberty are both best served when as

many of the affairs of a society as possible are managed by voluntary and democratically self-governing

associations".[6] Associationalism "gives priority to freedom in its scale of values, but it contends that

such freedom can only be pursued effectively if individuals join with their fellows"

Atheism: The absence of belief in the existence of god or gods, thus contrasting with theism; a condition

of being without theistic beliefs. This definition includes both those who assert that there are no gods

and those who maintain no beliefs at all regarding the existence of gods. However, narrower definitions
often only qualify the former as atheism, with the latter falling under the more general (but rarely used)

term nontheism.

Atomism: The theory that all objects in the Universe are composed of very small, indestructible

elements called atoms. (This is the case for the Western [i.e., Greek] theories of atomism. Buddhists also

have well-developed theories of atomism, which involve momentary, or non-eternal, atoms, that flash in

and out of existence).

Authoritarianism: An organization or a state that enforces strong, and sometimes oppressive measures

against those in its sphere of influence, generally without attempts at gaining their consent and often

not allowing feedback on its policies. In an authoritarian state, citizens are subject to state authority in

many aspects of their lives, including many that other political philosophies would see as matters of

personal choice. There are various degrees of authoritarianism; even very democratic and liberal states

will show authoritarianism to some extent, for example in areas of national security.

Automatism: Also called surrealist automatism. An artistic technique of spontaneous writing, drawing,

or the like that is practiced without conscious aesthetic or moral self-censorship.

Behavioralism: An approach in political science that seeks to provide an objective, quantified approach

to explaining and predicting political behavior. It is associated with the rise of the behavioral sciences,

modeled after the natural sciences. It should not be confused with the behaviorism of psychology.

Behaviorism: An approach to psychology based on the proposition that behavior can be researched

scientifically without recourse to inner mental states. It is a form of materialism, denying any

independent significance for the mind. Its significance for psychological treatment has been profound,

making it one of the pillars of pharmacological therapy. It should not be confused with the

behavioralism of political science.

Biologism: Also called biological determinism. The interpretation of humans and human life from a

strictly biological point of view. It is closely related to and often used interchangeably with genetic

determinism.

Buddhism: A dharmic religion and philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha

Gautama. The basic teachings of Buddhism have to do with the nature of suffering or dissatisfaction

(dukkha) and its overcoming through ethical principles, meditation and wisdom (the Eightfold Path).

Buddhism originated in India, and is today largely followed in Southeast and East Asia, including China,

Japan, Korea, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand. Buddhism is divided into different sects and

movements, of which the largest are the Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana.

Capitalism: An economic system in which all or most of the means of production are privately owned

and operated (usually through employing wage labour, and for profit), and in which the investment of

capital and the production, distribution and prices of commodities and services are determined mainly

in a free market. Capitalism has also been called laissez-faire economy, free market economy, free

enterprise system, economic liberalism, and economic individualism.

Careerism: The desire to advance one's own career as a sole aim in life, often at the expense of personal

and social growth or development.

Cartesianism: A philosophy based on the ideas and works of the French philosopher René Descartes.

Christian existential humanism: A philosophy that argues that humans can make choices based on free

will through Christ's teachings.

Christian existentialism: The philosophical movement shares similar views to existentialism with the

added idea that the Judeo-Christian God plays an important part in coping with the underlying themes

of human existence.
Christian humanism: A philosophy in which human freedom and individualism are compatible with the

practice of Christianity or intrinsic in its doctrine. It is a combination of humanist and Christian values.

Christian materialism:The philosophical view that the only thing that can truly be said to 'exist' is matter

due to the teachings of Christ.

Christianism: Another name for Christianity, the monotheistic religion recognizing Jesus Christ as its

founder and central figure. With more than two billion adherents, or about one-third of the total world

population, it is the largest world religion. Its origins are intertwined with Judaism, with which it shares

much sacred lore, including the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible). Christianity is sometimes termed an

Abrahamic religion, along with Judaism and Islam.

Classical theism: Traditional ideas of the monotheistic religions such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Classical theism holds that God is an absolute, eternal, all-knowing (omniscient), all-powerful

(omnipotent), and perfect being. God is related to the world as its cause, but is unaffected by the world

(immutable). He is transcendent over the world, which exists relative to him as a temporal effect.

Classicism: In the arts, a high regard for classical antiquity, as setting standards for taste that the

classicist seeks to emulate. Classicism is usually contrasted with Romanticism; the art of classicism

typically seeks to be formal, restrained, and Apollonian (nothing in excess) rather than Dionysiac

(excessive), in Friedrich Nietzsche's opposition. It can also refer to the other periods of classicism. In

theater, Classicism was developed by 17th century French playwrights from what they judged to be the

rules of Greek classical theater, including the Classical unities of time, place and action.

Cognitivism;

In ethics, cognitivism: is the philosophical view that ethical sentences express propositions, and hence

are capable of being true or false. More generally, cognitivism with respect to any area of discourse is
the position that sentences used in that discourse are cognitive, that is, are meaningful and capable of

being true or false.

In psychology, cognitivism: is the approach to understanding the mind that argues that mental function

can be understood as the 'internal' rule bound manipulation of symbols. See Cognitivism (psychology).

Coherentism: There are two distinct types of coherentism. One refers to the coherence theory of truth,

which restricts true sentences to those that cohere with some specified set of sentences. Someone's

belief is true if and only if it is coherent with all or most of their other beliefs. Usually, coherence is taken

to imply something stronger than mere consistency. Statements that are comprehensive and meet the

requirements of Occam's razor are usually to be preferred. The second type of coherentism is the belief

in the coherence theory of justification, an epistemological theory opposing foundationalism and

offering a solution to the regress argument. In this epistemological capacity, it is a theory about how

belief can be justified.

Colbertism: A variation of mercantilism which was applied in France between 1661 and 1683 by the

superintendent of Finances Jean-Baptiste Colbert.

Collectivism: A theoretical or practical emphasis on the group, as opposed to (and seen by many of its

opponents to be at the expense of) the individual. Some psychologists define collectivism as a syndrome

of attitudes and behaviors based on the belief that the basic unit of survival lies within a group, not the

individual. Collectivists typically hold that the "greater good" of the group, is more important than the

good of any particular individual who is one part of that larger organization. Some collectivists argue

that the individual incidentally serves his own interests by working for the benefit of the group.[4]

Communal (disambiguation): Outside of South Asia, communalism involves a broad range of social

movements and social theories in some way centered upon the community. Communalism can take the
form of communal living or communal property, among others. It is sometimes said to put the interests

of the community above the interests of the individual, but this is usually only done on the principle that

the community exists for the benefit of the individuals who participate in it, so the best way to serve the

interests of the individual is through the interests of the community.

Communism: A theoretical system of social organization and a political movement based on common

ownership of the means of production. As a political movement, communism seeks to establish a

classless society.
 JARGONS ABOUT SOCIAL SCIENCE

Access: The act of making information available. Digital preservation is a requirement for providing long-

term access to digital content. Access is "the OAIS entity that contains the services and functions which

make the archival information holdings and related services visible to Consumers" (Reference Model for

an Open Archival Information System (OAIS), 2012 (pdf)). OAIS requires that an archive be able to find

and deliver digital content to authorized users; delivery may be to an individual or to an access delivery

system.

Administration: "The OAIS entity that contains the services and functions needed to control the

operation of the other OAIS functional entities on a day-to-day basis" (Reference Model for an Open
Archival Information System (OAIS), 2012 (pdf)). The OAIS Reference Model identifies the policies and

other documents that are the responsibility of Administration and are required by an OAIS.

Aggregate;

(noun) A total created from smaller units. For instance, the population of a county is an aggregate of the

populations of the cities, rural areas, etc., that comprise the county.

(verb) To total data from smaller units into a large unit. Example: "The Census Bureau aggregates data to

preserve the confidentiality of individuals."

Aggregate data: Data that have been aggregated. Contrast with microdata.

Archival Information Collection (AIC): "An Archival Information Package whose Content Information is

an aggregation of other Archival Information Packages" (Reference Model for an Open Archival

Information System (OAIS), 2012 (pdf)). The digital preservation function preserves the capability to

regenerate the DIPs (Dissemination Information Packages) as needed over time.

Archival Information Package (AIP): "An Information Package, consisting of the Content Information

and the associated Preservation Description Information (PDI), which is preserved within an OAIS"

(Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System (OAIS), 2012 (pdf)). The ICPSR AIP consists of

the original files deposited, processed versions of data files and documentation, normalized files, and

associated metadata.

Archival Storage: "The OAIS entity that contains the services and functions used for the storage and

retrieval of Archival Information Packages" (Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System

(OAIS), 2012 (pdf)). The Archival Storage function at ICPSR provides onsite and offsite redundancy

through online copies (and a tape copy as extra backup) of ICPSR's digital content, both the archival
copies and the access copies. ICPSR preserves the ability to regenerate the Dissemination Information

Package (DIP); we do not preserve the software-dependent files (e.g., SAS, SPSS, Stata) that are

distributed. Archival storage contributes to ensuring business continuity for ICPSR and is a component of

the disaster planning at ICPSR.

Archive: (noun) A data archive is a site where machine-readable materials are stored, preserved, and

possibly redistributed to individuals interested in using the materials. (verb) To place or store in an

archive.

ASCII: A character-encoding scheme used by many computers. The ASCII standard uses 7 of the 8 bits in

a byte to define the codes for 128 characters. Example: In ASCII, the number "7" is treated as a character

and is encoded as: 00010111. Because a byte can have a total of 256 possible values, there are an

additional 128 possible characters that can be encoded into a byte, but there is no formal ASCII standard

for those additional 128 characters. Most IBM-compatible personal computers do use an IBM

"extended" character set that includes international characters, line and box drawing characters, Greek

letters, and mathematical symbols. (ASCII stands for American Standard Code for Information

Interchange.) See also EBCDIC.

Binary format: Any file format in which information is encoded in some format other than a standard

character-encoding scheme. A file written in binary format contains information that is not displayable

as characters. Software capable of understanding the particular binary format method of encoding

information must be used to interpret the information in a binary-formatted file. Binary formats are

often used to store more information in less space than possible in a character format file. They can also

be searched and analyzed more quickly by appropriate software. A file written in binary format could

store the number "7" as a binary number (instead of as a character) in as little as 3 bits (i.e., 111), but

would more typically use 4 bits (i.e., 0111). Binary formats are not normally portable, however. Software
program files are written in binary format. Examples of numeric data files distributed in binary format

include the IBM-binary versions of the Center for Research in Security Prices files and the U.S.

Department of Commerce's National Trade Data Bank on CD-ROM. The International Monetary Fund

distributes International Financial Statistics in a mixed-character format and binary (packed-decimal)

format. SAS and SPSS store their system files in binary format.

Binary number: A number written using binary notation which only uses zeros and ones. Example:

Decimal number 7 in binary notation is: 111.

Bit: A bit is the smallest unit of information that a computer can work with. Each bit is either a "1" or a

"0". Often computers work with groups of bits rather than one bit at a time; the smallest group of bits a

computer usually works with is a byte, which is 8 bits.

Born-digital: A descriptor for information that is created in digital form, as opposed to digitized from

analog sources. The majority of ICPSR deposits consist of born digital content. There are some examples

of hard copy and anolog materials that might be made digital (digitized) by ICPSR.

Business Continuity: "Describes the processes and procedures an organization puts in place to ensure

that essential functions can continue during and after a disaster." [SearchStorage.com] A note regarding

preservation: "Backups vs Preservation: Disaster recovery strategies and backup systems are not

sufficient to ensure survival and access to authentic digital resources over time. A backup is a short-term

data recovery solution following loss or corruption and is fundamentally different to an electronic

preservation archive." ["Continued access to authentic digital assets," JISC Digital Preservation Paper,

Nov 26, 2006.]

Byte: Eight bits. A byte is simply a chunk of 8 ones and zeros. For example: 01000001 is a byte. A

computer often works with groups of bits rather than individual bits and the smallest group of bits that a
computer usually works with is a byte. A byte is equal to one column in a file written in character format.

Most data files distributed by ICPSR are in character format.

Canonical Formats: "In information technology, canonicalization is the process of making something

[conform] with some specification... and is in an approved format. Canonicalization may sometimes

mean generating canonical data from noncanonical data." (Clifford Lynch, "Canonicalization: A

Fundamental Tool to Facilitate Preservation and Management of Digital Information," D-Lib Magazine,

September 1999, volume 5, Number 9.) Canonical formats are widely supported and considered to be

optimal for long-term preservation.

Card image: (1) Eighty characters of data stored as a single physical record. (2) A file storage format of

80 characters or bytes per record. The card-image format is a remnant of the time when data were

literally input on punch cards that had physical limits of 80 characters per card. Usually a case or all the

data for a single respondent is stored on several 80-character "cards." Each "card" is numbered and

stored in numerical sequence. Cards with the same sequence number (i.e., having a common format for

the layout and contents of variables) are called a "deck"; thus cards are often referred to in

documentation by their "deck number." Example: "The variable for age is stored in Deck 01 in columns

10-11 and the variable for race is stored in Deck 02 in column 10."

Case: In survey research, an individual respondent. Contrast with unit of analysis.

CD-ROM: Compact Disc Read-Only Memory. A storage medium. Data are "stamped" onto the disc

during the manufacturing process. The disc is read-only. A variant has appeared that is rewritable, but

this variant is not in use for the dissemination of data.

Character-encoding scheme: A method of encoding characters including alphabetic characters (A-Z,

uppercase and lowercase), numbers 0-9, punctuation and other marks (e.g., comma, period, space, &,
*), and various "control characters" (e.g., tab, carriage return, linefeed) using binary numbers. For a

computer to print a capital "A" or a number "7" on the computer screen, for instance, we must have a

way of telling the computer that a particular group of bits represents an "A" or a "7". There are

standards, commonly called "character sets," that establish that a particular byte stands for an "A" and a

different byte stands for a "7". The two most common standards for representing characters in bytes are

ASCII and EBCDIC.

Character format: Any file format in which information is encoded as characters using only a standard

character-encoding scheme. A file written in "character format" contains only those bytes that are

prescribed in the encoding scheme as corresponding to the characters in the scheme (e.g., alphabetic

and numeric characters, punctuation marks, and spaces). A file written in the ASCII character format, for

instance, would store the number "7" in eight bits (i.e., one byte): 00010111. A file written in EBCDIC

would store the number "7" in eight bits as 11110111. Contrast with binary format.

Cleaning: Process to check data for adherence to standards, internal consistency, referential integrity,

valid domain, and to replace/repair incorrect data with correct data. To "clean" a data file is to check for

wild codes and inconsistent responses (see consistency check); to verify that the file has the correct and

expected number of records, cases, and cards or records per case; and to correct errors found.

Code: In most numeric data files, answers to questions are recorded with numbers rather than text, and

often even numeric answers are recorded with numbers other than the actual response. The numbers

used in the data file are called "codes." Thus, for instance, when a respondent identifies herself as a

member of a particular religion, a code of "1" might be used for Catholic, a "2" for Jewish, etc. Likewise,

a person's age of 18 might be coded as a 2 indicating "18 or over." The codes that are used and their

correspondence to the actual responses are listed in a codebook.

Codebook: Generically, any information on the structure, contents, and layout of a data file. Typically, a

codebook includes: column locations and widths for each variable; definitions of different record types;

response codes for each variable; codes used to indicate nonresponse and missing data; exact questions

and skip patterns used in a survey; and other indications of the content of each variable. Many

codebooks also include frequencies of response. Codebooks vary widely in quality and amount of

information included.

Codec: "A codec is the means by which sound and video files are compressed for storage and

transmission purposes. There are various forms of compression: 'lossy' and 'lossless', but most codecs

perform lossless compression because of the much larger data reduction ratios that occur [with lossy

compression]. Most codecs are software, although in some areas codecs are hardware components of

image and sound systems. Codecs are necessary for playback, since they uncompress [or decompress]

the moving image and sound files and allow them to be rendered."

Column: In a data file, a single vertical column, each being one byte in length. Fixed format data files are

traditionally described as being arranged in lines and columns. In a fixed format file, column locations

describe the locations of variables.

Column location: The precise location in a data file of a variable expressed in column numbers,

beginning with the first column in a physical record as column number 1.

Common Services: "The supporting services such as inter-process communication, name services,

temporary storage allocation, exception handling, security, and directory services necessary to support

the OAIS" (Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System (OAIS), 2012 (pdf)).
Compression: A method of reducing the size of computer files. There are several compression programs

available, such as gzip and WinZip.

Compression ratio or reduction ratio: The ratio that is used to discuss the quantity of original data

versus the quantity of data after compression.

Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI)/Personal Interviewing (CAPI): A method of coding

information from telephone or personal interviews directly into a computer during the interview.

CATI/CAPI software usually has built-in consistency checks, will not allow wild codes to be entered, and

automatically prompts the interviewer for correct skip pattern questions.

Consistency check: A process of data cleaning that eliminates inappropriate responses to branched

questions. For instance, one question might ask if the respondent attended church last week; a response

of "no" should indicate that questions about church attendance should be coded as "inapplicable." If

those questions were coded any other way than "inapplicable," this would be inconsistent with the skip

patterns of the survey instrument.

Consumer: "The role played by those persons, or client systems, who interact with OAIS services to find

preserved information of interest and to access that information in detail. This can include other OAISs,

as well as internal OAIS persons or systems." Member institutions and other users are the Consumers of

ICPSR digital assets.

Cross-sectional study: In survey research, a study in which data from particular subjects are obtained

only once. Contrast with longitudinal studies, in which a panel of individuals is interviewed repeatedly

over a period of time. Note that questions in a cross-sectional study can apply to previous time periods.

DAT: Digital Audio Tape. A high-density storage medium.

Data: For social science, data is generally numeric files originating from social research methodologies or

administrative records, from which statistics are produced. At ICPSR, the majority of digital content

matches this definition of data. ICPSR's collections are expanding to include audio, video, geospatial,

Web-based and other digital content that pertains to social science research.

Data Documentation Initiative (DDI): An effort to develop a specification for documenting data files in

XML. The DDI Alliance is the organization that created the specification, though "DDI" is often used to

refer to the actual DTD created by the DDI Committee. More information can be found on the DDI

website.

Data entry: The process of converting verbal or written responses to electronic form.

Data Management: "The OAIS entity that contains the services and functions for populating,

maintaining, and accessing a wide variety of information. Some examples of this information are

catalogs and inventories on what may be retrieved from Archival Storage, processing algorithms that

may be run on retrieved data, Consumer access statistics, Consumer billing, Event Based Orders, security

controls, and OAIS schedules, policies, and procedures" (Reference Model for an Open Archival

Information System (OAIS), 2012 (pdf)).

Data management plan: A data management plan (DMP) is a formal document that outlines the

creation, management, sharing, and preservation of data, both during and after a research project.

Many funding agencies require researchers prepare a DMP as part of funding proposals.

Data Processing: Within the field of information technology, data processing typically means the

processing of information by machines. Data processing is defined by procedures designed to make a

data collection easier to use, ensure its accuracy, enhance its utility, optimize its format, protect

confidentiality, etc. For archival purposes, the process and results of data processing must be
systematically and comprehensively captured so that the process applied to the data is transparent to

users.

Dataset: Or "data set." A collection of data records. In the SAS statistical software, a "SAS data set" is the

internal representation of data.

DDI instance: An XML document marked up according to the DDI DTD. In other words, a codebook or

catalog record marked up in DDI-compliant XML.

Decompression: Used to restore data to uncompressed form after compression.

Designated Community: An OAIS concept describing the constituency for which the archived

information should be relevant and understandable. The ICPSR Designated Community includes

depositors (Producers) and users (Consumers) who are typically members of the social science research

community or extensions of that community, e.g., data librarians, digital archivists.

Dictionary file: A special form of machine-readable codebook that contains information about the

structure of a data file and the locations and, often, the names of variables in the data file. Typically, a

researcher uses a dictionary file and a data file together with statistical software; the statistical software

uses the dictionary to specify variables by name, rather than specifying their locations in the file.

Digital Curation: "Digital curation is all about maintaining and adding value to a trusted body of digital

information for future and current use; specifically, the active management and appraisal of data over

the entire life cycle. Digital curation builds upon the underlying concepts of digital preservation whilst

emphasizing opportunities for added value and knowledge through annotation and continuing resource

management. Preservation is a curation activity, although both are concerned with managing digital
resources with no significant (or only controlled) changes over time." Curation of social science research

data has always been the mission and purpose of ICPSR, if not the term used to described what we do.

Digital object identifier (DOI): A DOI is a unique persistent identifier for a published digital object, such

as an article or a study. DOIs are included in ICPSR citations to data collections.

Digital Preservation: A term that encompasses all of the activities required to ensure that the digital

content designated for long-term preservation is maintained in usable formats, for as long as access to

that content is needed or desired.