Journal Articles

Big Data under the Microscope and Brains in Social Context: Integrating Methods from Computational Social Science and Neuroscience

---

Methods for analyzing neural and computational social science data are usually used by different types of scientists and generally seen as distinct, but they strongly complement one another. Computational social science methodologies can strengthen and contextualize individual-level analysis, specifically our understanding of the brain. Neuroscience can help to unpack the mechanisms that lead from micro- through meso- to macro-level observations. Integrating levels of analysis is essential to unified progress in social research. We present two example areas that illustrate this integration. First, combining egocentric social network data with neural variables from the “egos” provides insight about why and for whom certain types of antismoking messages may be more or less effective. Second, combining tools from natural language processing with neuroimaging reveals mechanisms involved in successful message propagation, and suggests links from microscopic to macroscopic scales.

---

Availability

No copy data

Detail Information

Series Title

THE ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCINCE

Call Number

-

Publisher

Thousand Oaks : Sage Publications., 2015

Collation

-

Language

English

ISBN/ISSN

978-1-5063-1463-1

Classification

NONE

Content Type

-

Media Type

-

Carrier Type

-

Edition

Volume 659, May 2015, pages 260-273

Subject(s)

Social network analysis

Specific Detail Info

-

Statement of Responsibility

-

Other version/related

File Attachment

Comments

---

You must be logged in to post a comment