Course: PGSP11388 - The use and evolution of digital data analysis and collection tools [2015] | University of Edinburgh Moodle

  • Course overview

    Course Convenor: James Stewart (STIS/SSPS)

    Course Description:

    Research techniques and methods have been developed and deployed to explore ‘digital life’ since the earliest days of computing and online communication. In this course we will address the opportunities and challenges of a range of traditional and emerging digital research approaches and techniques focusing on the relevance of their applications from a user perspective. It will cover ethical, practical, legal, methodological and economic issues in practice. The students will explore practice and knowledge in the field of research on email use, forums, SMS; internet use derived data sets; use of web analytics in engaging with consumers and citizens; opportunities and challenges of clickstream data & scraping data from internet services ; use of crowdsourcing for data collection, analysis and stakeholder engagement; use of behavioural data from IT systems, such as smart meters, GPS etc; using digital games and simulations to engage decision makers, customers and citizens, and in research on behaviour; deriving indicators from and the use of open administrative data in Policy Making 2.0.

    By reviewing a number of existing projects at the forefront of digital research, the student will develop skills to assess the relevance of digital research. By learning from how advanced digital research tools have been applied to inform practice in a number of different domains, the student will be able to anticipate further developments in the field. This course has three main aims: (i) to review case studies from experimental digital research projects; (ii) to provide students with knowledge about the existence of a number of data collection and analytics services developed in research environments and (iii) to provide students with tools to assess digital research approaches and findings, including issues of ethics and risk.

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  • Instructions: Clicking on the section name will show / hide the section.

    • 20% Reflective Exercise: Write a short summary of one of the main ethical issues is internet research Submission Week 2, 1st May
    • 30% Pair presentation on topic related to Using Open Data (Present 11th May 13:00-14:00 or 15th May 13:00-15:00) Submit by 15th May
    • 50% Essay (topic of own choice based on the course). Provisional hand in date 8 June.

  • Research on computer mediated communications has a long history, drawing on studies of telephony in the 1970s, through bulletin boards, email, online communities, and online games (MMOPRGs) through the subsequent decades. The Association of Internet Researchers was founded in 2000 as this research became mainstream, and many research disciplines have incorporated digital research into their activities. The lecture this week will make students aware of some of the history of research in these digital domains.

    However the main focus of the reading this week will be on the ethics of Internet research. How and when is it appropriate to study digital interactions and traces? How should researchers conduct themselves when recruiting participants for internet panels, behavioural studies etc.

  • This week looks at the phenomena of ‘open data’. Making data available for free and open use, instead of being kept proprietary and private. The aim of the week is to understand the rationale behind the promotion ‘Open Data’, identify how Open Knowledge is being promoted in government and industry, and learn some of the issues behind how to start an open data project.

    Instead of an online lecture this week, you will work though the the two sets of readings, and we will arrange two Collaborate Sessions to discuss the topic, and help choose your presentations.

  • Individual or Pair Presentations on a case of Open Data of students choosing.

    Use the readings and your reflections to inform a critical presentation on a particular case - of use, of policy, of a programme.  

    Consider issues such as conceptual framing, policy goals (transparency, economic development, service improvement etc), skills and organisation, value and benefits, evaluation and impact etc

    To be presented in a Collaborate session on the 8th or 11th May 13:00-14:00

  • This session will introduce the topic of crowdsourcing and citizen science as a means for collecting data, engaging a community and doing analysis. First it will address the development of the paid, voluntary and involuntary crowdsourcing , and then address how it is used in various sorts of commercial and academic research. 

    Citizen science has grown in importance with the development of the internet and mobile use and crowdsourcing tools, and is increasingly use in research in the Humanities, environmental sciences, and astronomy. Environmental citizen science is already used to provide the data for several National indicators.  We will discuss the potential for the use of crowdsourcing and citizen science in other domains, including social research.

    This topic is recommended for course essays

  • This week will largely devoted to providing support to developing your essays,  but there is some material provided by two firms on how they are using mobile research in their commercial practice,

    This is take a practical perspectives, with video interviews by practitioners from Ipso- MORI and Uservision, two firms with Edinburgh-based offices that develop and provide mobile based research services.