The ubiquity of social media in the world today presents new opportunities and challenges when it comes to social research. This course considers the use of social media in survey research. Throughout the survey lifecycle (questionnaire design and testing, subject recruitment, respondent tracking, and longitudinal panel retention), social media and crowdsourcing platforms offer some new ways to reach respondents at a time when traditional methods have seen declining participation. Social media data can also be considered as supplementary or proxy data for surveys. This course will present specific examples of the use of social media and crowdsourcing in survey research, highlighting the topics, methods, and ethical considerations that accompany this growing sub-discipline. We end with considerations for the role of social media and crowdsourcing in public opinion research in the future as this area of research evolves.

Registration fees
- CSS Students: $30
- UNC CH Students: $40
- UNC CH Faculty/Staff/Post Docs
- Non UNC CH: $60