By Jennifer Chow

Introduction

Given our digital age and the modern dependence on technology in daily life, it did not take long for historians to understand and develop the need for recording and understanding the world’s past through digital means. However, while digital technology has had a growing prominence in historical studies and the humanities, the social sciences have taken a vastly different approach to digital technology. While the social sciences and humanities have long been intertwined, the growing demand for data-driven methods of understanding have created a new set of relationships between the two.

Defining the Digital

Digital humanities is best defined as “field of study, research, teaching, and invention concerned with the intersection of computing and the disciplines of the humanities. It is methodological by nature and interdisciplinary in scope. It involves investigation, analysis, synthesis and presentation of information in electronic form. It studies how these media affect the disciplines in which they are used, and what these disciplines have to contribute to our knowledge of computing.”[1] Nevertheless, the definition of digital humanities remains ever changing, while the concept of digital social sciences remains ever more undefined and subject to interpretation. Each of these fields utilizes modern technology, but in a vastly different way, from providing the basic infrastructure for sharing computer-driven research to the foundation for studying society, politics, culture, technical means, psychology, and economics.[2]

Limitations of the Digital Social Sciences

While the social sciences have made limited strides in adopting the full undertaking of digital humanities into their coursework and overall field, they have arguably begun to welcome and adapt them. Nevertheless, several forms of digital learning within the realm of social sciences can be defined as part of the digital social sciences, including e-social science, computational social science, digital cultural heritage, and Internet studies.

E-Social Science/Digital Social Research

One of the most defined and well-known types of digital studies within social science is the stem of e-social science and digital social research. Within the field of social science, there has been an increase in the demand for “computationally-intensive research”, which bears a strong resemblance to the “e-science and humanities cyber infrastructure initiatives”.[3] However, e-social science varies from the natural sciences by focusing on smaller-scale models and case studies to better understand the problem. Currently social sciences rely on a combination of both qualitative and quantitative methods to determine correlation, but there are numerous research tools that have passed the rigorous tests of the social science community.

The most renowned organization pursuing digital social resource is the Economic and Social Research council that works to promote and increase the use of digital technology within the social science community.[4] Under the direction of the Professor David De Roure of Oxford University, the field of digital social research advises the community on the future implications and uses of digital technology in the realm of the social sciences. The Economic and Social Research Council developed the Digital Social Research strategy to outline the best practices for existing digital social research. This has been a crucial force behind the further development of the field of e-social sciences, with the main components covering quantitative, qualitative and mix-method approaches to each of the individual fields of the social sciences.

Matrix’s Public Philosophy Journal re-imagined the relationship between philosophy and everyday life by facilitating public spaces to foster discussion on contemporary public issues.  The Journal hopes to establish an open-access, peer-reviewed document library for scholars and students to have an online forum to share their ideas and research with one another. If successful the Public Philosophy Journal will be one of the few digital spaces that allows users to come together to collaborate about public philosophy. Merging the humanities through philosophy and the social sciences with breaking news and ideas creates a forum for the two disciplines to come together and reimagine traditional ways of approaching news.

One of the successful projects from the Economic and Social Research Council-funded grants was the Pilot Semantic Grid Service for Environmental Modelling from the University of Aberdeen in which the researchers sought to build a relationship between emerging land-use modeling grid technologies and current social sciences practices. Computer scientists and land-use experts were brought together to develop technology for land-use modeling within the grid context. The end goal of the project was to create a land-use modeling tool to be commonly used, an overall evaluation of current grid standards, and tools to expand their research to the social sciences. Following the project the social science community was better able to engage with computer sciences within the Sematic Grid.[5]

Computational Social Science

The field of computational social science applies substantial data sources in order to better understand human behavior. Using five-years of user data from Twitter, social scientists examined human communication and the advancement of social networks. Researchers were able to analyze over 100 million users, 230 million individual tweets and develop new findings regarding modern communication and the collective identity and emotions of different cultures as it occurs. The group concluded that in the new era of technology dependence humanity’s moods drastically changes physical, economic, political and social barriers are overcome through a simple one hundred and forty-character message to the world.

Digital Cultural Heritage

Digital culture heritage examines the role of digital technology in “representing, disseminating and preserving cultures”.[7] Michigan State University’s Matrix: Center for Digital Humanities and Social Sciences is one of the nation’s leading online resources or training in innovative teaching technologies and act as a forum “for the exchange of ideas and expertise in the field”.[8] One of the reasons that Matrix remains so successful is because of its continued commitment to building and maintaining relationships with external organizations to assist with digitizing collections, allowing them to be preserved and presented online for future teaching and research purposes. Matrix’s staff members are engrossed with bestowing discussions of the best practices in digital research and provide open-resource and inexpensive technology to allow for a sustainable flow of information between groups and individuals.[9]

Both the digital humanities and the digital social sciences work to capture communities, regions, and ethnicities’ digital heritages in a way that is culturally relevant and empowering. The grassroots organization platform Mukurtu works with individual groups of people to “manage, share, preserve, and exchange their digital heritage” in a way that truly represents their past.[10] Started in 2007 as a response to for the worldwide need for indigenous cultures to have a similar platform to preserve and manage their unique cultural heritage. Mukurtu was later updated in 2008 to include institutional and tribal records and allow for multiple communities to interact within the same portal. It remains a worldwide platform for communities and developers to work to preserve and educate the future about the past. Using Murkutu allows indigenous cultures to preserve and share their past for the first time. Murkutu serves as the platform for merging the digital humanities with the social sciences, combining history, anthropology, sociology and technology into one organization. This is one of the numerous examples that the social sciences can further develop their technical collaborations and introduce modern technology into the field.

In 2012 Mukurtu connected with Northeastern State University to create their I’M READY project that would equip librarians with the knowledge and expertise to serve Native American students in the poverty-stricken communities of Oklahoma while developing a standardized curriculum centered on traditional forms of learning. Through the partnership Mukurtu gathered the vast knowledge from the local Native American communities with the help of specialists from Washington State University. They then used SmartBoards, shareable PDFs and PowerPoint presentations to distribute their resources while respecting the wishes of the Native American community to maintain the secrecy of the information. Project I’M READY showcased Mukurtu’s ability to maintain cultural sensitivity while sharing crucial knowledge with the social science community.

One of the leading digital advances within the field of social science is the ability to digitally share high-quality data and research findings with other experts in the research community. Through Open Context Data scholars have the ability to review, document and read others publications contributed by others. Open Context Data’s library has the ability to “complement and enhance conventional publications through comprehensive dissemination and preservation of rich digital data and media”.[11] Researchers constantly strive for their work to be peer-reviewed to increased the accuracy of their research findings and through the Open Context Data community they have the ability to seamlessly share their publications, safely store their work and receive quality and crucial feedback from their institutional peers. Additionally, Open Context Data publishes all of their publications free and eliminate all barriers that would otherwise hinder discovery of new work and their subsequent analysis. Open Context Data overcomes traditional physical and institutional barriers to enhancing research and the further development of the social sciences by aligning scholars in one community. This is crucial to foster peer-reviewed work and further establish the legitimacy of the social sciences.

The British Library, the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, and the Oxford Internet Institute partnered to create a project targeted at streamlining the data collection and analytical process in their blog, Big UK Domain Data for the Arts and Humanities. One of the main project objectives was to create a “theoretical and methodological framework” to study a United Kingdom dataset ranging from 1996 to 2013, which would be later applicable on a national scale. Researchers on this project successfully worked with approximately 65 terabytes of data and assisted in paving the way for future big data studies in the humanities.

Internet Studies

Internet studies are the best example of the combination between the social sciences and technical sciences. Built upon a foundation of political science, sociology, psychology, economics, library and information sciences along with computer science, “internet studies the social and cultural implications of the widespread diffusion and diverse uses of the Internet, the Web, and related information and communication technologies”.[12] While the development of online media as a universally accepted form of communication in the field of politics is relatively recent, the social sciences could expand its reaches to the changes in international diplomacy with the introduction and subsequent dependence of technology.

Despite the ambiguity of Internet Studies within the realm of social sciences, students at Oxford University have created a project addressing public policy online in their Policy and Internet Blog. The blog “investigates the relationship between the Internet and public policy” by drawing directly from the Oxford University Internet Institute in addition to works published in the Policy and Internet journal.[13] Within the blog, users are exposed to a number of different subtopics within the field of public policy as it relates to the Internet-through the politics and governance, laws and regulations, ethics, health, education and future developments. While each entry varies based on the author, the Policy and Internet Blog successfully educates audiences about the current policies regarding Internet policy in a way that merges the digital humanities and political science. The digital humanities serves as a model for merging technology and social sciences in a way that addresses the current needs of the twenty-first century and maintaining the nature of the discipline.

Digital Ethnography

Digital ethnography merges the humanities and the social sciences by depicting real-life cultures through the lens of digital storytelling.[14] While the typical mediums for digital ethnography exist in the form of computers, tablets and smartphones, Wendy Hsu worked to expand the traditional definition of digital ethnography to capture, transfer and save data within different online communities. Through a three-part series Hsu demonstrated the use of various computational tools to expand the traditional scope of digital ethnography. Hsu proved that despite the long-held beliefs that technology and the social sciences must be separated, data mining can prove to be a persuasive practice when acquiring market research data.[15] Through her experiences with digital ethnography Hsu was able to combine physical interviews and traditional data collection methods with software field practice to better understand contemporary society and the role that digital infrastructure plays within it.

While Hsu does not advocate for the end of printed text as a form of sharing and documenting findings, she does lobby for interactive and multimedia platforms that come from digital technology. UCLA’s Hi-Fi Hypercities collection is a multimedia story that uses, text, audio, video and images to convey the stories of Los Angeles’ Historic Filipinotown. While the creators could have conveyed their stories using traditional standalone text and images, the visual framing appeals to their users’ senses and strengthens the connection they have with the information. Nevertheless, it is important to understand that digital ethnography takes many different types of user interfaces to educate their audiences, and while this spatial construct suites Hi-Fi other narratives would benefit from text and visuals coming secondary on their website. Within digital content, scholars do not need to be confined to traditional forms of conveying their knowledge and messages, but present raw data in a way that maintains cultural sensibility.

Connecting the Digital Humanities and Digital Social Sciences

While the relationship between the digital humanities and the digital social sciences remains unclear, the two can both benefit from the further integration of modern technology into their fields. Digital humanists and digital social scientists work in similar data mining labs and with similar software so the transition between the two fields can be undoubtedly amplified as both fields work to better integrate technology.

However, in order to begin the process social scientists must develop a richer awareness of alternative digital methods to address their research and work alongside humanists to gain an understanding of how to apply parallel techniques.[16] Doing so would allow both disciplines to continue to work to enhance the definition and understanding of their prospective field. Leaving such an important and growing discipline loosely defined ensures that they will remain concentrated within their own respective area, preventing crossover between the two.

Fostering a stronger relationship between the two disciplines would allow researchers to approach common questions together, ensuring that their results can benefit the greater academic community. While it is essential to strengthen the connection between the digital humanities and the digital social sciences, both sectors need to recognize the crucial variances between them. Humanists tend to approach research questions through ethical and social implications of their social research and data results while social scientists employ statistical methods to draw concrete conclusions.[17]

Humanists question the ethics and timeline leading up to present times, while social sciences approach their understanding of the future through present understanding. The humanities adapted to the digital integration because both fields study “sciences of the artificial”.[18] While both disciplines work to understand the past and how it affects modern-day and the future, together they are able to combine resources and confront mutual issues. In the same manner in which the digital humanities the digital social sciences faces training new community scholars, ensuring that research is peer-reviewed by the community for future funding and recognition opportunities and encouraging relationships between the social sciences and the computer sciences.

Both the digital humanities and the digital social sciences approach contemporary questions in order to increase their understanding of how the world develops over time. While humanists and social sciences attempt to make accurate predictions in world progress, scientific enterprises equip their ability to make projections. The social sciences have the ability to adopt digital methods into their field because they both are dependent on the use of the scientific method to revalidate their approaches. While the scientific method is a validated and peer-reviewed process to develop insight, humanists approach similar questions primary understand human-created artifacts to understand the world around them.[19] Nevertheless, it is important that social scientists not solely rely on the scientific method because their only output is science and society does not nearly always follow such a precise timeline. Humanists can introduce alternative methods, and sometimes more appropriate alternatives, to gaining insight.

In Spring 2010 the Fordham University composed a number of digital humanities projects dedicated to the resources that would foster digital and computation humanities scholarship within the university. The university maintained its strong commitment to the digital humanities and continues to promote additional projects and further research to enhance the university community.[20] Additionally, one of the best models for combing the digital humanities and the digital social sciences is the D-Lab at the University of California, Berkeley, which promotes cross-disciplinary resources, faculty advising in addition to software and infrastructure needs. By focusing on data-intensive social science research through technological means, the D-Lab builds relationships across fields within the university and beyond.[21] UC Berkeley’s D-Lab is one of the first in the country to emphasize research design and experimentation in data-driven social science through infrastructure services. Staffed by scientific and technical staff the D-Lab provides crucial knowledge to better integrate digital technology into the data-driven social sciences and humanities. While the D-Lab is targeted towards the social science community, it has opened its resources to the social sector, government, industries and moreover the humanities.

Conclusion

While the field of digital humanities is continually developing as researchers embrace the use of technology in the field, the digital social science is just beginning to emerge and define itself. Humanities have embraced the influence and presence of technology within society and are utilizing various tools to gain additional insight into civilization, but the social sciences could drastically benefit from adding a digital standard to their scientific research methods. Despite the relationships that can be forged between the social sciences and the humanities it is crucial that both fields retain their self-awareness while learning from the cross-discipline methods. In order to integrate the digital sciences into the social sciences, social scientists should explore the nature and structure of the digital humanities via the multidisciplinary relationships between humanists and computer scientists. Doing so would establish a superior understanding of the emerging field of digital humanities and digital social sciences.

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