Twitter chat transcript - qualitative methods

The latest transcript from our series of twitterchats, this time on qualitative research and new social media. If you couldn't make it, or if you did, but missed out on a link or snippet, the transcript is available after the jump. 

Thanks to everyone who joined - and apologies for the lateness in posting! 

@ultreia1x: @einterview Absolutely. I coach/volunteer w/ disability sport and we use whatever technology works - in classroom and on ski trails #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS Thanks everyone! #NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: Thanks everyone great to see you all. #nsmnss

@NSMNSS: Thanks again everyone, we're off, sorry we have to go, but we hope to see you at our final chat of 2012 in december! #NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: Hi all just to mention that @einterview will be leading a web seminar on these issues in Feb, we'll post details on the blog. #nsmnss

@ultreia1x: @TSchnoebelen good point. bit of both. I'm thinking more of txt message interviews with individuals who are deaf/hearing impaired #NSMNSS

@einterview: @TSchnoebelen Agreed! Good area to research ;-) #NSMNSS#NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: @einterview It's necessary/exciting to figure out how to talk about meaning (eg, "ranges of plausible interpretations") #NSMNSS

@einterview: Mark your calendars: Webinar on 5th Feb 4pm London time/11 am EST nRegistration/log in coming soon #NSMNSS n #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: and we'll post the transcript here shortly: http://t.co/weHNqIPV#NSMNSS

@einterview: @ultreia1x I teach online w/ some students w/disabilities so use similar approaches, also live transcriptionist #NSMNSS:n #NSMNSS

@ultreia1x: @einterview and email/text are great for individuals who are non-verbal or need more time to formulate responses - they set pace #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: Thanks everyone, almost time to wrap up! If you've suggestions for topics you'd like to cover in our Dec Tweetchat, let us know! #NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: A4: I'm still in a little bit of mourning for the demise of TwapperKeeper. (Not just it's name, tho obz that's a loss, too.) #NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: A4: For the statistically inclined, there is a package for R called TwitteR: http://t.co/iMDjXSul #NSMNSS

@ultreia1x: @einterview sometimes have text message window open to supplement/clarify when individuals are hard of hearing #NSMNSS

@ultreia1x: @einterview Whatever works. skype often w/out video for totally blind and with video for people who lip read/have hearing impairment#NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: @ultreia1x Is it more cues or just more control over cues. (Honest q--are in person cues from ppl with disabilities "invisible"?) #NSMNSS

@merry30: Q3. Asking permission of moderators/owners etc doesn't guarantee member participation, esp w a changing comm population @einterview#NSMNSS

@einterview: Q4 Mostly hand coding, create my transcripts, compile visual data- yes, new tools needed #NSMNSS - #NSMNSS

@SilvanaGregorio: A4 QSR's NCapture which works with NVivo 10 makes capturing and Analyzing Tweets, Facebook pages, LinkedIn groups accessible#NSMNSS

@einterview: ultreia1 Interesting- what kind of interview, text, video?#NSMNSS #NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: (As I tweeted a conf last month, a follower pinged Bravo's Andy Cohen to ask abt a catch-phrase under study. Awesome complication.)#NSMNSS

@ultreia1x: @TSchnoebelen @NSMNSS I interview people w/ disabilities - sometimes online means MORE cues and better communication #NSMNSS

@amcunningham: @StephenWNatCen no problem #nsmnss

@sarahthesheepu: @jess1ecat ive got ideas but too many for 140 characters#NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: Q4. What tools do you use for analysis online qual data? Do existing tools work or is there a need for new tools in the area? #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @einterview i have been kicked out on more than one occasion. you just keep going, seek out new communities, refine approach#nsmnss

@sarahthesheepu: @SilvanaGregorio yes thats why i like the netography work#NSMNSS

@StephenWNatCen: @amcunningham #nsmnss thanks for the docs on participation, really useful.

@NSMNSS: last question all! #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: @petergloviczki thanks peter, great to have you here #NSMNSS

@einterview: TSchnoebelen re new cues: are there cultural issues, same understanding of meanings? Need common meaning w/participants? #NSMNSS#NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: great chat everyone! fascinating issues. i need to be going, but do keep in touch #nsmnss

@jess1ecat: @ultreia1x I can see that side too. #nsmnss

@einterview: Q3. Student researcher @ my school, observed community w/ permission. Members discovered she was observing, kicked her out! #NSMNSS#NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: @NSMNSS We certainly do create new/replacement cues -- I loooooove em :D -- but it's not the same amt of info. #NSMNSS

@einterview: amcunningham Do you consider yourself a "participant observer"? Like anthropologists, risk of going native?#nsmnss #NSMNSS

@ultreia1x: @jess1ecat Challenges certainly but really interesting connections are made that wouldn't happen if I maintained more distance. #NSMNSS

@amcunningham: @NSMNSS #nsmnss we've tried to assure community members that research will be participative https://t.co/C2qxuIPd

@NSMNSS: @TSchnoebelen do you think online can create new cues? ways of typing, acronyms used, etc? #NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: @ultreia1x do you not find that can cause problems with your role in cololection to data gathering and analysis? #nsmnss

@einterview: Q3. I am still in contact with participants from study- online interviews- 6 years ago. Created real bonds but never met f2f. #NSMNSS

@amcunningham: @NSMNSS if you are researching community you are part of then difficult.. Your presence not so obvious #nsmnss

@_Paul_Mason_: Following the tweet chat on quali research and social media with interest over at #NSMNSS - writing a report so watching from afar!

@jess1ecat: A3. agree here @sarahthesheepu if you're looking at communities it can be difficult to negotiate #nsmnss

@TSchnoebelen: a3b: There really are a lot of cues (good and bad) that occur in face-to-face conversations that you can't get online (pace Skype) #NSMNSS

@DrPetra: RT @jess1ecat: Interested in how social media are affecting qual research? Join our twitter chat today using #nsmnss, @NSMNSS for reminders, 5-6pm GMT.

@ultreia1x: @NSMNSS Absolutely! My 'participants' are also 'friends' & 'followers' - but the more I open up online the greater the return. #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @einterview yes indeed. i was speaking about text-based research. video changes the game. #nsmnss

@TSchnoebelen: a3: For a study on ppl who don't meet, then an only-electronic researcher fits; trouble if they have face interactions & you don't #NSMNSS

@SilvanaGregorio: @sarahthesheepu Could have some similarities to participant observation issues in offline research. #NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: RT @einterview: Q3. Depends on design....> Agreed, working with content rather than real-time interaction has less proximity risks #nsmnss

@StephenWNatCen: @NSMNSS A3 back to ethics for me. How we manage dynamics, harm, disclosure etc when not in the same physical space....#nsmnss

@einterview: petergloviczki Depends on how you interview: w/ video etc can grasp many cues and non-verbals #NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @NSMNSS i think it blurs boundaries as to be recognised in a community u need to be part of it #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @NSMNSS if we are studying their content (past) perhaps not as much, but if interviewing them online, lack of social cues is key #nsmnss

@einterview: Q3. Depends on design. W/interviews, can be close with participants. Some observations, analysis of posts more distance. #NSMNSS#NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: A3. I think it has the potential to blur the boundaries much more than in personal, face to face research #nsmnss

@einterview: See qual studies from AOIR conferences: http://t.co/Ao17SkAg#NSMNSS #NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @petergloviczki it does makes it central if u dont share people not interested #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: Q3. Does qualitative research using online social platforms change the relationship we have as researchers with participants? How? #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: thanks everyone, going to throw the third question out there now...#NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @sarahthesheepu thanks for sharing that. i'd imagine that it inspires engagement. #nsmnss

@einterview: Presenting: AoIR, TQR. Favorite in US, bi-annualhttp://t.co/526cSwGK #NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @petergloviczki yes especially in relation to engaging beyond the academy i was more focused on impact & engagement #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @sarahthesheepu @NSMNSS sarah, did working all online change the way you thought about your work? #nsmnss

@StephenWNatCen: @NSMNSS #NSMNSS yes....but we must not forget the sometimes unique and untested ethical considerations with this research

@jess1ecat: Sorry folks got called away, looks like the chat's been interesting so far. #nsmnss

@einterview: #NSMNSS: Yes, type of data influences design + analysis. Advantage: rich + interesting. Disadvantage: more steps to analysis #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @TSchnoebelen @einterview Tyler. Lots of good ones. One fave of mine is Critical Studies in Media Communication. #nsmnss

@dai_sc: #NSMNSS Q2: Yes. Research tasks are more fragmented in the age of SM and require more organization and integration skills from researchers

@sarahthesheepu: @NSMNSS due to illness i had to radically change my research to completely online methods meant i had to look at diff popn#NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: @einterview does that change the way you would design qual research project? what kind of advantages/disadvantages? #NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: @einterview Have a favorite venue for publication/presenting qual social media findings? #NSMNSS

@huwcdavies: http://t.co/rDS9TW6P http://t.co/FpK4N8Y9 this is a good resource #nsmnss

@einterview: Q2. Yes. Options for using visual, verbal, text data to create rich stories. #NSMNSS #NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: @huwcdavies Hopefully not all computer science makes bum claims: http://t.co/tg9nvMlg #NSMNSS

@SilvanaGregorio: Q2 yes - allows for the possibility of tracking interactions in real time. #NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: @NSMNSS No easy online/offline divide; limiting to one depends on the research q. But acknowledging why just 1 seems important#NSMNSS

@einterview: Q2. Yes, we can re-interpret qual methodologies and methods in new ways. Chance to be a pioneer! #nsmnss #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @sarahthesheepu certainly. but i know of one case where a researcher didn't know she had been plagiarized. colleague brought it up.#nsmnss

@huwcdavies: A2 unprecedented size and depth of datasets which can be updated in real time #NSMNSS

@dai_sc: #NSMNSS friending your informants on FB would make it easier to follow their online activities, but that raises ethical issues, for sure.

@sarahthesheepu: @NSMNSS gives us different access to populations allows geotagging of data #NSMNSS

@einterview: Q2. Yes. How? Can study globally with diverse participants and little money! #NSMNSS #NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @petergloviczki well a search on google of a phrase / string normally shows it up #NSMNSS

@huwcdavies: computer science ahead of sociology etc in digital methods but in my experience makes unsustainable claims based on quant evidence #nsmnss

@petergloviczki: @sarahthesheepu the possibility is always there, sadly. how to stop it? #nsmnss

@dai_sc: #NSMNSS I follow key informants only, with their consent (I use netnography as a method). But it is still tricky with the multiple platforms

@NSMNSS: Q2. Are social media affecting the way we do qual research, and how? #NSMNSS

@einterview: Some info on informed consent and sample form using SurveyMonkey: http://t.co/goAOszUH. I keep updating as I learn more!#NSMNSS #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: thanks everyone, going to move on to the second question now...#NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @petergloviczki i dont know was at conference yesterday people were terrified of being plagiarised #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS: Q1 Literature growing but little how-to material or agreement on appropriate methods #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @NSMNSS @dai_sc Great question about ethics issues re: following, I would say it depends, in part, on consent #nsmnss

@intersurgical: RT @DGFoord: Twitter chat on #NSMNSS about qualitative methods & social media research: 5-6pm today #nhssm #hcsm #hcsmuk @NSMNSS http://t.co/yxCz0b11

@SilvanaGregorio: @einterview Agree there is a digital divide but it also give us the opportunity to get at hard to reach groups. #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: @dai_sc any 'tricks' for following people across platforms? do you think it creates potential ethical issues by following? #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS: re. educate the ethics panels and methods faculty, yes, how to reach them? n #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @sarahthesheepu @jess1ecat Sarah, reminds me of the importance of an evenhanded consideration. How should we work towards that? #nsmnss.

@sarahthesheepu: @einterview yes have to consider digital exclusion#NSMNSS

@merry30: @einterview Q1 Definitely an issue. Social media research still in its infancy, really - some staff just don't "get it" #nsmnss (or want to)

@SocialWorkKent: #nsmnss A1 finding studies which may have used similar methodology online can be tricky.

@einterview: #NSMNSS: re. online + offline = world: there is still a digital divide, need to acknowledge when sampling #NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @jess1ecat there is indeed many dont see the positives only negatives #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS: or using online methods to study online life.#NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @SilvanaGregorio @TSchnoebelen #nsmnss I agree. There is no online world and offline world, by now, it is just the world.

@dai_sc: @NSMNSS to me the biggest challenge is the volume of data...but following people/informants across multiple platforms is also hard. #NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: A1 there is need to educate the ethics panels too about what the real risks are, difficult to just apply F2F ethics to online #nsmnss

@einterview: #NSMNSS Many options- use online methods to reach diverse participants and collect data on "real" life or #NSMNSS

@KMetzlerSAGE: @huwcdavies You should check out the Reading the Riots project about how rumours spread on twitter! http://t.co/w7w9MIEn #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS Yes, IRB or ethics boards see red flags where there are none but miss critical issues #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: @TSchnoebelen does that mean that there's no easy distinction between on and off line research? can we limit just to online? #NSMNSS

@SilvanaGregorio: @TSchnoebelen agree about life online is part of life offline#NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: a1b: And our research becomes part of what moves around in the media (eg, I study emoticons on Twitter and: http://t.co/xkMTwGL3)#NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @einterview and then there is the issue of IRB approval, which dovetails those concerns, too. #nsmnss

@SilvanaGregorio: Agree about ethics and negotiating online identity.#NSMNSS

@VickiMcDermott: @BillyMacfarlane follow #NSMNSS for discussion about social media research...

@sarahthesheepu: @merry30 yes its when can you withdraw #NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @jess1ecat indeed there is and how you become seen as a professional in online spaces #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS Q1 Teach the teachers? Methods faculty unfamiliar with e-methods-or Internet culture/ communications- hard for student researchers

@NSMNSS: @cpheth welcome along! #NSMNSS

@TSchnoebelen: A1: Social media lets us study circulation...but ideas circulate in other places, too; ie, life online is part of real life #NSMNSS

@merry30: Agree! @sarahthesheepu - not just our issues but those of participants. #nsmnss

@jess1ecat: @PostPhDoc can you say more about why it lends itself so well?#nsmnss

@jess1ecat: A1 ethics, & HT @sarahthesheepu there is also something about negotiating your online identity as a researcher #nsmnss

@PostPhDoc: @NSMNSS Have to say, qualitative research lends itself v. well to social media research. R1 #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS Q1 Yes, public and private distinction and related ethics are big concerns for observation + use of posts

@SilvanaGregorio: Q1 is a big question. For me it is to understand what research questions are best served by social media; theoretical frameworks etc#NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: @huwcdavies hi there good to see you. #nsmnss

@cpheth: @NSMNSS Hello I'm a #webscience PhD researcher using mixed methods to look at how to analyse charitable marketing on social media.#nsmnss

@huwcdavies: A1 for me, generalising with small (but rich) sample data#NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: Q1 issues relating to public & private space and ethics i still find tricky #NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: @petergloviczki we do applied policy research in all spheres of social policy #nsmnss

@VickiMcDermott: RT @NSMNSS: Q1. What are the biggest methodological challenges when using qualitative methods in social media research? #NSMNSS

@merry30: Hi I'm Sarah. Doctoral researcher, looking at friendships and social media, and using mixed methods. #nsmnss

@SilvanaGregorio: Hi, I'm Silvana di Gregorio, qualitative sociologist who has a little experience of using social media tools in research. #NSMNSS

@huwcdavies: Hi I'm Huw Davies 2nd yr PhD using mixed methods to find out how/if young people are persuaded by misinformation online #nsmnss

@petergloviczki: @jess1ecat thanks, i enjoy it. I am inspired by the stories in the groups. What kind of work do you do? #nsmnss

@NSMNSS: Q1. What are the biggest methodological challenges when using qualitative methods in social media research? #NSMNSS

@NSMNSS: To start off with... #NSMNSS

@sarahthesheepu: @jess1ecat hello! im using tweet chat to follow this people might like that easy to use #NSMNSS

@einterview: #NSMNSS Mid-morning here: beautiful day in the Rocky Mountains!

@jess1ecat: @TSchnoebelen welcome to the discussion #nsmnss

@NSMNSS: Hi all, great that you could all come along and join in #NSMNSS

@jess1ecat: @petergloviczki hi Peter good to see you, your research sounds v. interesting. #nsmnss

@TSchnoebelen: Linguistics (gender, emotion, Twitter, etc):http://t.co/HNBIXhwj; also user experience design/research #NSMNSS

@petergloviczki: @NSMNSS will do #nsmnss

@jess1ecat: @einterview how are you doing Janet not too early for you I hope :) #nsmnss

@petergloviczki: @petergloviczki @NSMNSS Greetings! My name is Peter Gloviczki and I research online memorial groups using qualitative approaches.#nsmnss

@NSMNSS: @petergloviczki hi peter, remember to include #nsmnss at the end of your tweets so we can all see them, http://t.co/df52h1zN is helpful

@jess1ecat: @sarahthesheepu hi Sarah great to see you here #nsmnss

@einterview: #NSMNSS Janet Salmons in Boulder, CO.Capella faculty, author Online Interviews in Real Time and Cases, both from Sage. http://t.co/ekB5lcdk

@sarahthesheepu: Hello, i'm Sarah I am a digital social scientist / digital humanist my work looks at using digital media for Qualitative work #NSMNSS

@KMetzlerSAGE: Hi, I'm Katie Metzler, Commissioning Editor for Research Methods at SAGE #NSMNSS