Seeing the Forest Through the Trees: Using Big Data to Combat Violence and Injustice
Madeline Stenersen, PhD | September 22 | 1:45-2:45 pm
Topic: Conceptual, Research | Knowledge Level: Intermediate
Now more than ever, decisions that have widespread impact on our world are made based on data collected on a nationwide and/or multinational scale (i.e., big data). This data can come from many sources including governmental efforts (e.g., census), academic pursuits (e.g., ABCD) and/or the efforts of community and/or national organizations (e.g., Transpop). Though much of this data is available to the public, it’s potential remains often unknown and/or underutilized by community experts, activists, and researchers. This presentation will focus on how community members, and researchers can find and use big data ethically to examine, understand, and combat violence and injustice on a national scale. The presenter will first discuss how even those without advanced statistical knowledge might find out about, access, and utilize big data for their cause. Dr. Stenersen will then present a recent effort that used big data to unearth the extent of police harassment and violence towards transgender and gender diverse people involved in sex trade in the United States. The presentation will then include a brief demonstration on how to use a free software (JASP) to conduct analyses using publicly available data. Finally, the presentation will conclude with a discussion in which audience members can share their own topics of interest and brainstorm how big data can be used to support their cause.
Presentation Objectives:
· Discuss how to find, access, and use big data to combat injustice
· Provide an example in real time about how to use big data to answer community- and researcher- generated questions
· Discuss how audience members can integrate big data into their own work