The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research
Recent computing power and storage advancements have meant more data are being collected and stored. Referred to as 'Big data', these data sources offer researchers myriad opportunities to make observations about the social world. These data can be massive, provide insight into whole popu...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Yerevan State University
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Banber Erevani Hamalsarani. Sots'iologia |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://pub.ysu.am/index.php/bulletin-ysu-sociology/article/view/8468 |
| _version_ | 1797952722354307072 |
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| author | Scot Hunter Marina Shapira |
| author_facet | Scot Hunter Marina Shapira |
| author_sort | Scot Hunter |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
Recent computing power and storage advancements have meant more data are being collected and stored. Referred to as 'Big data', these data sources offer researchers myriad opportunities to make observations about the social world. These data can be massive, provide insight into whole populations rather than just a sample, and be used to analyse social behaviour in real time. Administrative data, a subcategory under the big data umbrella, also offers researchers abundant opportunities to conduct highly relevant research in many areas, including sociology, social policy, education, health studies and many more. This paper offers reflections on social research during the digital age by examining different forms of data, both 'big' and 'small', and their associated advantages and disadvantages. The paper concludes by suggesting that although big data has some promising elements, it also comes with some limitations and povwill not replace 'traditional' social surveys. And yet, when used in conjunction with social surveys, appropriately and ethically, big data could offer the researchers additional valuable insights.
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| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T22:51:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b077ecd2945c4bc3850942d04f47e0a0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2579-2938 2738-263X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T22:51:53Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | Yerevan State University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Banber Erevani Hamalsarani. Sots'iologia |
| spelling | doaj.art-b077ecd2945c4bc3850942d04f47e0a02023-01-15T07:22:02ZengYerevan State UniversityBanber Erevani Hamalsarani. Sots'iologia2579-29382738-263X2022-12-01132 (36)10.46991/BYSU:F/2022.13.2.028The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research Scot Hunter0Marina Shapira1University of StirlingUniversity of Stirling Recent computing power and storage advancements have meant more data are being collected and stored. Referred to as 'Big data', these data sources offer researchers myriad opportunities to make observations about the social world. These data can be massive, provide insight into whole populations rather than just a sample, and be used to analyse social behaviour in real time. Administrative data, a subcategory under the big data umbrella, also offers researchers abundant opportunities to conduct highly relevant research in many areas, including sociology, social policy, education, health studies and many more. This paper offers reflections on social research during the digital age by examining different forms of data, both 'big' and 'small', and their associated advantages and disadvantages. The paper concludes by suggesting that although big data has some promising elements, it also comes with some limitations and povwill not replace 'traditional' social surveys. And yet, when used in conjunction with social surveys, appropriately and ethically, big data could offer the researchers additional valuable insights. https://pub.ysu.am/index.php/bulletin-ysu-sociology/article/view/8468social researchsociologybig dataadministrative dataquantitative data analysismethodology |
| spellingShingle | Scot Hunter Marina Shapira The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research Banber Erevani Hamalsarani. Sots'iologia social research sociology big data administrative data quantitative data analysis methodology |
| title | The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research |
| title_full | The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research |
| title_fullStr | The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research |
| title_full_unstemmed | The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research |
| title_short | The State of Data: Reflections on Using 'Big' and Administrative Data Sources in Social Research |
| title_sort | state of data reflections on using big and administrative data sources in social research |
| topic | social research sociology big data administrative data quantitative data analysis methodology |
| url | https://pub.ysu.am/index.php/bulletin-ysu-sociology/article/view/8468 |
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