The "Pre-Research Stage" is mainly the conceptional stage of the research lifecycle. This is where the research idea is conceived and ideas about development are generated. This is also when and where all the data management planning should be brainstormed and worked out ideally, in order to prevent headaches and problems down the road that could be expensive/costly to the overall research. Although data management planning can happen at any stage in the research life cycle, it is preferred and ideal if it happens in the "Pre-Research Stage."
