How can we gain new insights into media use and opinion formation by combining survey data and digital trace data?
Communication science research using measurement data of media usage (e.g. web tracking, social media data) has steadily increased in recent years. Since digital trace data also have great potential and numerous weaknesses and emergent challenges, the next step is to test the combination of surveys and digital traces. However, there are hardly any projects to date that combine the precision of measurement data on media use with the socio-demographic and attitude-related individual characteristics of the users collected in surveys.
In the joint expert workshop of the
Media Research Method Lab, the
Research Institute for Social Cohesion and the
POLTRACK project on the polarization of opinions in online environments, we are bringing together 25 international experts at the Hans Bredow Institute for a three-day event to discuss the best practices, experiences and challenges of these methodological combinations.
We are pleased that Kjerstin Thorson (Michigan State University) and Magdalena Wojcieszak (University of California Davis) will give the keynotes and that so many renowned scholars have accepted our invitation.
