Social Data Collaboratory

?? New Research Alert: Youth and Flavored Tobacco ?? Our team at NORC's Social Data Collaboratory (SDC) has just completed a groundbreaking study on youth tobacco use. Here are the key takeaways: 1. ?? Most youth who experiment with combustible tobacco products (CTPs) start with flavored versions (67.8% in 2013-2016, rising to 74.2% in 2016-2019). 2. ?? Frequent social media use is strongly associated with flavored CTP initiation among youth. 3. ?? White youth are more likely to initiate with flavored CTPs compared to Black youth. 4. ?? Household norms, susceptibility, and prior experimentation with vaping, alcohol, or cannabis are linked to CTP experimentation. 5. ?? Interestingly, youth who had previously vaped were less likely to initiate with flavored CTPs in our more recent cohort. This findings from this study, as contributed to by our brilliant SDC team members including Simon Page, Yoonsang Kim, Anna (Ganna) Kostygina, and Sherry Emery, underscore the complex relationship between flavored tobacco products and youth initiation. Our research highlights the urgent need for targeted interventions to prevent youth tobacco use, especially considering the role of social media and flavored products. Read more about the study here: https://lnkd.in/eKpBYhSZ We're committed to diving deeper into these trends. ?? Have ideas for future research directions or want to collaborate? We'd love to hear from you! Drop us a line in the comments or reach out directly. Together, we can work towards a healthier future for our youth. ?? #TobaccoResearch #YouthHealth #PublicHealth

With the slow demise of local news and the polarization of national news, what does it mean when influencers bring us the news? Is it more trustworthy? Less? Just as echo-chamber-y? Lots of work to be done in this research space! NORC's Social Data Collaboratory and AP-NORC's Public Affairs and Media Research (PAMR) teams love this stuff. Please reach out if you're interested!

There are so many wonderful team members here at the SDC at NORC at the University of Chicago that you may not know about... Get to know our Data Analyst II, Haoyu Shi! What's your favorite part of working in the SDC? "At SDC, we extract hot-debated topics, such as abortion, gun control, and substance use, through massive real-time social media data. As a Senior Data Analyst, I’m privileged to employ cutting-edge methods, such as sentiment analysis, topic modeling, and social network analysis." What's a current challenge you're excited to tackle? "I’m currently engrossed in the challenge of multimodal analysis for TikTok videos. Traditional content analysis methods, which heavily rely on manual review or Natural Language Processing (NLP) of transcripts, fall short with the explosive growth of short video content. Videos offer a wealth of information beyond just text - including the speaker's tone, background music, and even sign languages. Tackling this challenge means unlocking a treasure trove of data for more comprehensive analysis." What's a fun fact about you? "I have visited 4 NORC’s offices – Downtown Chicago, UChicago Campus, Bethesda/DC, and Boston." What's your go-to productivity hack? "Juggling multiple projects can be daunting, but my productivity hack lies in scheduling a series of meetings for each project and linking the notes directly to these meetings. This approach ensures that all team members have centralized access to everything related to the project in one place, greatly enhancing our efficiency and coherence as a team." Interested in working with us? https://lnkd.in/dMwUDB8D #DataScience #SocialMedia #Research

Our team at NORC at the University of Chicago's Social Data Collaboratory (SDC) is so proud of our member, Chandler Carter, who just presented groundbreaking research at the AAPOR conference! ???? In the age of AI and large language models, misinformation is a growing concern, especially for marginalized communities. We've developed a novel approach to detect online COVID-19 vaccine misinformation that focuses on message framing strategies rather than fact-checking. Why? Because health information evolves rapidly, and distinguishing facts from misinformation can be highly biased. Key takeaways from our research: 1. ?? We analyzed 10+ terabytes of data from Twitter and Instagram (2020-2023). 2. ?? Our model identifies rhetorical strategies like symbolism, anecdotes, and uncertainty. 3. ??? We found symbolism to be the most common strategy, especially on Instagram. 4. ?? Bias can creep in at every stage: data collection, labeling, and model development. 5. ?? We're working to mitigate these biases through diverse data sources, transparent labeling, and inclusive model design. Way to go, Chandler! This research is just the beginning. We're committed to developing more equitable AI models that can help combat misinformation across various topics. Have ideas on how we can further improve our approach or interested in collaborating? We'd love to hear from you! ?? Reach out to Alex Kresovich at [email protected] to start a conversation. Together, we can create a more informed and equitable digital landscape. Let's connect and make a difference! ?? #AIEthics #Misinformation #PublicHealth #DataScience #AAPOR2024

?? Excited to share that next Monday, I’ll be presenting Social Data Collaboratory's latest project focused on evaluating #GPT's accuracy and bias on classifying social media and open-end survey responses. This work provides valuable insights for improving model performance and applicability in diverse fields. #AI #OpenAI #LLM #SocialScience #SocialMediaResearch #Innovation #Survey

?? New Season, Same Dedication to Social Media Insights ?? As the leaves change, our commitment to understanding social media's impact remains evergreen. Meet the NORC at the University of Chicago Social Data Collaboratory team! From data scientists to communication experts, we're a diverse mix – each bringing unique flavors to our research, like the varied colors of autumn. Year-round, we're exploring how social media shapes society, health, and politics. Curious about our latest findings? Discover our ongoing projects and meet our team: https://lnkd.in/ey4bVcHh #SocialMediaResearch #TeamSpotlight #DataScience ((Haoyu Shi Simon Page Chandler Carter Alex Kresovich Sherry Emery Dani Heide Anna (Ganna) Kostygina Miao Feng ))

Social media companies have been steadily restricting researcher's access to their data, but collecting and reselling vast amounts of personal information for profit. NORC's Social Data Collaboratory is working to empower individuals to take control of their own social media data and use it to inform research on society's most pressing questions. Stay tuned...

?? Exciting developments at the intersection of social media and STEM education! ??????? NORC at the University of Chicago's Social Data Collaboratory is partnering with Slover Linnett on a groundbreaking project exploring the potential of Twitch and YouTube as platforms for STEM learning. This collaboration showcases our cutting-edge research capabilities and innovative approach to understanding digital spaces. ???? Why #Twitch and #YouTube? These platforms have become cultural phenomena, attracting millions of young users daily. By leveraging advanced data analytics and machine learning techniques, we're diving deep into these digital ecosystems to uncover new opportunities for STEM engagement. ???? Our state-of-the-art research methodologies allow us to: ? Analyze vast amounts of streaming data in real-time ?? ? Identify emerging trends and patterns in STEM content consumption ?? ? Utilize natural language processing to understand user engagement ?? ? Employ advanced visualization techniques to present complex findings ?? This project exemplifies SDC's commitment to pushing the boundaries of social media research. By combining NORC's data science expertise with Slover Linnett's deep understanding of learning and engagement, we're not just observing the digital landscape – we're shaping its future. ?? Our innovative approach doesn't stop here. The Social Data Collaboratory at NORC specializes in transforming digital traces into actionable insights across various domains. From predictive modeling to sentiment analysis, our toolkit is designed to tackle the most complex research questions in today's fast-paced digital world. ???? Curious about how our cutting-edge social media research capabilities could illuminate your research questions? Discover how we can elevate your next project with data-driven insights: https://lnkd.in/eGPdDJNm ?? #SocialMediaResearch #DataScience #STEMEducation #InnovativeTechnology

SDC is excitedly busy preparing the next annual report for 'Smoking in Films' - a fun and important partnership with Truth Initiative for their Tobacco in Pop Culture research. Our report will share the latest trends for tobacco and smoking imagery in popular films released in 2023. ??Catch up by reading last years' report summarizing 2022 data. Visit the NORC project page to learn more about this work: https://lnkd.in/d_E_K-Qg

Taking inspiration from NORC at the University of Chicago's Education Department, SDC presents its version of #BacktoSchool #Throwbacks! Check out our team's elementary and junior high school pictures. Join the fun and share your own throwback school photos! Featured from SDC include researchers Sherry Emery, Dani Heide, Alex Kresovich, Simon Page, and Nada Adibah Learn more about SDC and our research team by visiting https://lnkd.in/geneem-g