Challenges and Opportunities of Using Social Media for Social Science ResearchWednesday 9th July9.15am-12.45pm
Convenor: Kandy Woodfield, Director of LearningNatCen Social Research
Our panel Blurring the boundaries: a network of
researchers using social media – Kelsey Beninger, NatCen Social Research
Social media and prediction - Dr Luke Sloan & Dr Matthew Williams, Cardiff University, COSMOS team
Using social media to curate a collaborative social research hub - Donna Peach, Huddersfield University
Tea and coffee break Myths & mythologies - Jamie Bartlett & Carl Miller,
Demos From Flickr to Snapchat – Dr Farida Vis, Sheffield
University
Blurring the boundaries? InnovationCollaboration
InspirationFresh
thinking New social media, new social
science? Network of methodological
innovation Funded by NCRM, May 2012-May
2013 500+ members worldwide Open membership, all
welcome Interdisciplinary Peer network, member led
Aims of the network
InnovationCollaboratio
nInspiration
Fresh thinking On & off line community of practice
Forge links between academics, practitioners & disciplines
Catalyse debate Address challenges social media present
for social science research Share approaches, tools & experiences of
using social media Identify good practice Co-created content & guidance to be
shared with the wider community
What do we do InnovationCollaboration
InspirationFresh thinkingNetwork activities across a range
of platforms:Twitter: @NSMNSS, #NSMNSS – tweets, twitter chats, Q&AsBlogs: http://nsmnss.blogspot.co.uk/ - we welcome contributors – contact us @NSMNSS or via the blogYou Tube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NSMNSS - presentations from eventsFace to face events – knowledge exchange seminars, conferences, webinars
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Blurring the boundaries: findings from a network of researchers using social media Kelsey BeningerNatCen Social Research
What have we learnt? I Social media being used in most soc sci
disciplines Research innovation & ground breaking
use of technologies Great examples of multi-disciplinary
research using social media Silos & divides do still exist and are
counter-productive to moving social media methodology(ies) forward
No single methodology for social media research – many approaches, many tools, different epistemological stances
What have we learnt? IIPersisting uncertainty about whether we are ‘getting it right’ Ethical dilemmas - lack of consistent,
relevant guidance What are the political, ethical, legal
issues? Do we understand the digital world well
enough to make these choices? Lack of research with users of social media
platforms or engagement with platform providers
What have we learnt? III
‘Getting it right’ is also about methodological quality: What is a robust sample from Twitter or
Facebook? Need to develop methodological courage and
confidence to defend the methodScepticism and cynicism persist Digital literacy & methodological skills gaps Lack of experience and understanding in
institutions, ethics boards and funders
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Context
Social Media provides new opportunities
Recent studies: NatCen:
www.natcen.ac.uk/our-research/research/ research-using-social-media-users-views/
NSMNSS: nsmnss.blogspot.co.uk
Challenges
Recruitment & data collection
Researcher identity & wellbeing
Analysis & presentation of data
Recruitment & Data CollectionRecruitment Participant’s views: scepticism,
acceptance and ambiguity. Digital identities Digital risks for participants Exclusion of particular groupsInformed consent1. Morally and legally required2. Promote trust 3. Verify user views haven’t
changed4. To publish photos or imagery
Data Collection Ownership and
expectations
Researcher identity & wellbeing
Your digital identity Impact on research outcomes Managing communication w participants Credibility and transparency
Analysis and presentation of dataAnalysis Third Party Software How much is too much? Validity and representativeness
People behave differently online and offline Exaggerated views Impulsive comments Inaccurate profiles
Presentation Traceability of participant data Short & long term implications for participants
Recommendations Is SM the right
methodology for your research Q?
Don’t make assumptions
Review case studies & existing research
Recruitment: Transparency in materials Explicit about privacy
terms of the platform used
Collecting/generating data: Consider implications of
legally permitted vs. intellectual property
Acknowledge limits of accessing different user types
Reporting results: Test traceability of data, and
paraphrase or remove handle
Reasonably seek consent for use of verbatim/sensitive content
Thank you!Questions?
[email protected]@natcen.ac.uk