R For Social Science Librarians and Data Stewards

Data skills of all types are becoming increasingly important for librarians, including understanding how to use statistical analysis tools. Librarians often field requests from students and researchers who are using a variety of tools for statistical analysis, both open source and not. However, it can be daunting for librarians without training in programming or statistical analysis software to assist researchers. R is a powerful and versatile open-source programming language used for statistical analysis and visualization. Designed for librarians and information professionals with little to no prior experience in R, this panel introduces R and RStudio from the perspective of social science research support. We will provide a basic overview of the R environment and discuss popular packages for data preparation, analysis, and visualization. We will share real-world examples of common student and faculty research needs and offer guidance for how librarians and information professionals can support them. We will review best practices for preparing reusable and reproducible code, with a focus on documentation, project structuring, and version control. Attendees will leave with practical strategies for confidently supporting R users.