Social media as data in migration research

This Research Gym has been adapted to an online format. We have a limited number of spots. Please register early so you won't be disappointed.

About the workshop:

This workshop will introduce researchers and graduate students in the field of migration to the increasing use of social media as a means to gather information about migration behaviours and mobility patterns. We will explore cases using Twitter and online forums to conduct migration research, identify a set of best practices, and introduce tools to assist researchers in mining social media data. 

Participants will be introduced to applications of social media data to migration topics such as the formation of an online identity, identifying ethnic and language networks, gauging public opinions on topics, and identifying spatial integration of ethnic groups.

Netlytic is explored in this seminar.

(No prior programming experience required)

 (PDF file) Workshop outline:

Workshop leaders:

Priya Kumar is a Research Fellow at Ryerson University’s Social Media Lab. Kumar completed her PhD on global diaspora politics at SOAS, University of London. In her dissertation, Priya examined online representations of stateless diaspora communities, with a focus on the Middle East and South Asia. Dr. Kumar combines social network analysis with digital qualitative research methods to study online identity politics, with a focus on exploring the dynamic interplay between digital media communication technologies, human rights, democracy, and foreign policy

Stein Monteiro is a Research Fellow in the CERC in Migration and Integration program at Ryerson University.  His research focuses on issues of assimilation and integration among new immigrant groups and the causal relationships between the socio-structural characteristics of the host or sending country and the potential migrant's decision. Stein holds a PhD Economics from York University. As a part of his dissertation, Stein explored themes related to family dynamics and its influence on migration decisions on individuals within an extended family context, in addition to the role of co-ethnic networks in affecting assimilation rates among new immigrant groups in Canada. Stein has advanced data science skills to analyze large administrative and survey data sets. Stein recently contributed to a project at the International Growth Center (London School of Economics) which identifies the impact of road building in rural areas of Ethiopia on village-level crop yields and income. Working with linked administrative and survey data at Statistics Canada’s Research Data Centre, he aims to identify how the properties of typical social networks play a role in the process of integration among new immigrant groups.

Workshop fee:

Regular price $100 (discounted fee for students $20)  

Due to these uncertain times, we are offering these workshops free of charge.