Data Theory (Paperback)

Simon Lindgren

ISBN 10: 150953928X / ISBN 13: 9781509539284

Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Oxford, 2020

About this Item

Paperback. The datafication of our world offers huge challenges and opportunities for social science. The data-drivenness of computational research can occur at the expense of theoretical reflection and interpretation. Additionally, it can be difficult to reconcile the quantitative dimensions of big data with the qualitative sensibilities needed for its understanding. At the same time, this opens up possibilities for reimagining key principles of social inquiry. In this experimental and provocative book, Simon Lindgren argues that a hybrid approach to data and theory must be developed in order to make sense of today's ambivalent, turbulent, and media-saturated political landscape. He pushes for the development of a critical science of data, joining the interpretive theoretical and ethical sensibilities of social science with the predictive and prognostic powers of data science and computational methods. In order for theories and research methods to be more useful and relevant, they must be dismantled and put together in new, alternative, and unexpected ways. Data Theory is essential reading for social scientists and data scientists, as well as students taking courses in social theory and data, digital methods, big data, and data and society. "A top scholar explores what social theory can do for data science"-- Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781509539284

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Data Theory (Paperback)
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Oxford
• Publication Date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 150953928X
• ISBN 13: 9781509539284
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

The datafication of our world offers huge challenges and opportunities for social science. The ‘data-drivenness’ of computational research can occur at the expense of theoretical reflection and interpretation. Additionally, it can be difficult to reconcile the ‘quantitative’ dimensions of big data with the ‘qualitative’ sensibilities needed for its understanding. At the same time, this opens up possibilities for reimagining key principles of social inquiry. 

In this experimental and provocative book, Simon Lindgren argues that a hybrid approach to data and theory must be developed in order to make sense of today's ambivalent, turbulent, and media-saturated political landscape. He pushes for the development of a critical science of data, joining the interpretive theoretical and ethical sensibilities of social science with the predictive and prognostic powers of data science and computational methods. In order for theories and research methods to be more useful and relevant, they must be dismantled and put together in new, alternative, and unexpected ways. 

Data Theory is essential reading for social scientists and data scientists, as well as students taking courses in social theory and data, digital methods, big data, and data and society.

About the Author

Simon Lindgren is Professor of Sociology at Umeå University.