Politics, Participation and Big Data. Introductory Reflections on the Ontological, Epistemological, and Methodological Aspects of a Complex Relationship

Authors

  • Alice Mattoni Scuola Normale Superiore
  • Elena Pavan University of Trento

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1285/i20356609v11i2p313

Keywords:

big data, ontology, epistemology, methodology, political participation, social movements

Abstract

This editorial defines big data as an inherently political object and then briefly discusses its ontological, epistemological, and methodological implications in the social sciences. Furthermore, it addresses these issues in connections with the realm of politics, political participation and political mobilization. Finally, it addresses three main emergent themes related to big data in the broad realm of politics. First, big data as a methodological conundrum - something that can possibly empower or completely bias research activities and results. Second, big data as an object of study in its own right, a contested research and political terrain characterized by strong power dynamics between private and public actors and entwining with governance processes at all levels - from the national to the transnational one. Third, big data as research catalyser that can leverage our understanding of participation and contentious dynamics.

Author Biographies

Alice Mattoni, Scuola Normale Superiore

Alice Mattoni is Assistant Professor at the Scuola Normale Superiore, where she is the Principal Investigator of the research project PiCME – Political participation in Complex Media Environments: A Multi-Level and Multi-Method Approach. Her research lays at the intersection of media and politics. She did research on the perceptions of the journalistic profession in local newsrooms; activist media practices in precarious workers’ mobilizations; the use of social media during electoral campaigns; and the role of media technologies in pro-democracy and anti-austerity movements, with a special focus on protests in Italy, Spain and Greece. In the past years, Alice collaborated with several international universities, including the University of Toronto (Canada), the University of Technology, Sydney (Australia), the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute (Italy), the University of Pittsburgh (USA), Goldsmiths University of London (UK), and Lakehead University (Canada). Amongst other publications, she wrote the monograph Media Practices and Protest Politics. How Precarious Workers Mobilise (Ashgate, 2012) and she co-edited the following volumes: Spreading Protests. Social Movements in Times of Crisis (ECPR Press, 2014), Mediation and Protest Movements (Intellect, 2013), Advances in the Visual Analysis of Social Movements (Emerald, 2013). 

Elena Pavan, University of Trento

Elena Pavan is Senior Assistant Professor at the Department of Sociology and Social Research of the University of Trento. She holds a degree in Communication Sciences (University of Padova, Italy, 2004) and a PhD in Sociology (University of Trento, 2009). Her most recent research interests pertain to the relationships between collective action/political participation and digital media use. Within this area, she is working interdisciplinary combining technical and social knowledge as well as traditional qualitative and quantitative research methods with digital methods and big data approaches.

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Papers published in this Special Issue

Aragona B., C. Felaco, and M. Marino (2018), “The Politics of Big Data Assemblages”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 448-471.

Bracciale R., A. Martella, and C. Visentin (2018), “From Super-Participants to Super-Echoed. Participation in the 2018 Italian Electoral Twittersphere”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 361-393.

Marie Santini R., L. Agostini, C.E. Barros, D. Carvalho, R. Centeno de Rezende, D.G. Salles, K. Seto, C. Terra, and G. Tucci (2018), “Software Power as Soft Power. A Literature Review on Computational Propaganda Effects in Public Opinion and Political Process”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 332-360.

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Papers published in the Symposium

Bodrunova S.S. (2018), “When Context Matters. Analyzing Conflicts with the Use of Big Textual Corpora from Russian and International Social Media”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 497-510.

Earl J. (2018), “The Promise and Pitfalls of Big Data and Computational Studies of Poli-tics”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 484-496.

Okechukwu Amakoh K., B. Adeshina Faustino, F. Aanu Oloruntoba, and A. Odozi Og-wezzy-Ndisika (2018), “Big Data and Accountability in Nigeria. Insights from the BudgIT Organization and the #OpenNASS Campaign”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 472-483.

Panday j. and J. Malcolm (2018), “The Political Economy of Data Localization”, Parteci-pazione e conflitto, 11(2): 511-527.

Richterich A. (2018), “How Data-Driven Research Fuelled the Cambridge Analytica Controversy”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 528-543.

Rogers R. (2018), “Social Media Research After the Fake News Debacle”, Partecipa-zione e conflitto, 11(2): 557-570.

Vega Montiel A. (2018), “Gender Equality and Big Data in the Context of the Sustaina-ble Development Goals”, Partecipazione e conflitto, 11(2): 544-556.

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Published

13-09-2018

How to Cite

Mattoni, A., & Pavan, E. (2018). Politics, Participation and Big Data. Introductory Reflections on the Ontological, Epistemological, and Methodological Aspects of a Complex Relationship. PARTECIPAZIONE E CONFLITTO, 11(2), 313–331. https://doi.org/10.1285/i20356609v11i2p313

Issue

Vol. 11, No. 2 (2018). Special Issue: From Big Data in Politics to the Politics of Big Data

Section

Editorial

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