Using Twitter Data in Criminology Studies: Methodological Issues

• In Event: Social Media, Policing, Research, and Hactivism

Abstract

The Twitter platform allows programmers access to all public content shared in a given period, both text and metadata such as user details and data surrounding the post (geolocation information, language, reply/retweet, etc.). This data is used in marketing, geography, sociology, etc. Criminologists are also starting to use social media, not only in order to understand how these technologies are involved in crimes but also how deviants are sharing information. This presentation discusses the methodological aspects of using Twitter data to conduct research in criminology. Looking at previous studies and data from the Anonymous hacktivist group, I discuss three important areas of methodology: 1) profile analysis, 2) relationship analysis (SNA) and social media framework analysis (influence, exposure, and interactivity; Berger & Strathearn, 2013) and 3) content analysis. Results show that a great deal of validation and analysis is needed in order to obtain relevant results. The results also show that criminology should draw from methodologies used in other disciplines to analyze this data. Further research issues are also discussed.

Author

• Francis Fortin, Université de Montréal