Twitter: A Digital Socioscope

A resource for social scientists on how Twitter data can be used to study individual behavior and social interaction.

Yelena Mejova (Edited by), Ingmar Weber (Edited by), Michael W. Macy (Edited by)

9781107102378, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 5 May 2015

184 pages, 53 b/w illus. 4 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.3 cm, 0.42 kg

How can Twitter data be used to study individual-level human behavior and social interaction on a global scale? This book introduces readers to the methods, opportunities, and challenges of using Twitter data to analyze phenomena ranging from the number of people infected by the flu, to national elections, to tomorrow's stock prices. Each chapter, written by leading domain experts in clear and accessible language, takes the reader to the forefront of the newly emerging field of computational social science. An introductory chapter on Twitter data analysis provides an overview of key tools and skills, and gives pointers on how to get started, while the case studies demonstrate shortcomings, limitations, and pitfalls of Twitter data as well as its advantages. The book will be an excellent resource for social science students and researchers wanting to explore the use of online data.

Introduction: opportunities and challenges for online social research Michael Macy and Scott Golder
1. Analyzing Twitter data Shamanth Kumar, Fred Morstatter and Huan Liu
2. Political opinion Daniel Gayo Avello
3. Socio-economic indicators Huina Mao
4. Hyperlocal happiness Daniele Quercia
5. Public health Patty Kostkova
6. Disaster monitoring Bella Robinson, Robert Power and Mark Cameron.

Subject Areas: Databases & the Web [UNN], Data mining [UNF], Ethical & social aspects of IT [UBJ]