The Good, the Bad, and the Useful: Using Social Media Effectively in Research

• In Event: The Academic, Version 2.0: The Scholar in the Era of Social Media

Abstract

Presenter 4 is Associate Professor of Higher Education at Epsilon University, where he also serves as Faculty Research Associate in several research centers. Named one of the most highly visible scholars in his field by The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education and Diverse Issues in Higher Education, Presenter 4 has embraced multiple forms of SM to leverage his research for public outreach and advocacy, sharing his work with local communities and agents such as parents and policymakers, as well as managing the work of his graduate research team.

Presenter 4 will share his experiences with social media as a researcher, director, and faculty member, including “the good and the bad”: what has been useful and less useful about engaging social media, as well as how he came to use Twitter effectively in his work. Today, his staff use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and multiple applications within these technologies to recruit participants, conduct research, disseminate findings, and connect with policymakers and educational leaders. As a senior scholar, Presenter 4’s use of social media has shifted from personal use to more professional, outreach, and advocacy uses, with an intentional focus on extending the visibility of his research program to broader and international markets. This will be further detailed in his segment of the panel.

Author

• Terrell Lamont Strayhorn, The Ohio State University