require: Package dependencies for reproducible research

TL;DR

The paper introduces the require command for Stata, enabling researchers to verify and manage package dependencies to enhance reproducibility across different systems.

Contribution

It presents a new tool that simplifies dependency management in Stata, addressing a key reproducibility challenge.

Findings

Require verifies package installation and versions.

It can automatically install missing packages.

Enhances reproducibility in Stata research.

Abstract

The ability to conduct reproducible research in Stata is often limited by the lack of version control for community-contributed packages. This article introduces the require command, a tool designed to ensure Stata package dependencies are compatible across users and computer systems. Given a list of Stata packages, require verifies that each package is installed, checks for a minimum or exact version or package release date, and optionally installs the package if prompted by the researcher.