Ten Simple Rules for Initial Data Analysis

Initial data analysis (IDA) is a common task for all quantitative research. Do not underestimate the challenge of an effective IDA to conduct all necessary phases, but also do not underestimate the return on this investment. It is a crucial step and aims for transparency and integrity by providing you with an analysis-ready data set and reliable information about its properties that enables you to perform the statistical analyses in a responsible manner and interpret the obtained results. Following the Ten Simple Rules can also help your future Self to reliably reuse your data and research outputs, by making the often-hidden decisions of data analysis more transparent, by helping to separate the phases of IDA from the final data analysis, and publishing all relevant research materials including metadata, code and IDA reports. IDA has the following phases: (1) metadata setup, (2) data cleaning, (3) data screening, (4) initial data reporting, (5) refining and updating the research analysis plan, and (6) documenting and reporting IDA. PLOS Computational Biology, 2022 in the Ten Simple Rules Series. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009819