Politics and Society

Politics and Society

Our work on Politics and Society focuses on the intersection of digital technologies and political science. We employ advanced computational methods to analyze political attitudes and behavior in digital spaces. This enables us to build on and move beyond traditional social science research methods, testing the relevance of existing theories and developing new models for the digital world. Our primary focus is on the politics of Europe and the European Union, parties and party systems, voting behavior, political participation, and the politics of gender, migration, climate change, and security.

Methods

Quantitative Analysis of Text and Online Behaviour: We use Natural Language Processing (NLP) methods to conduct large-scale text analysis and identify patterns in online political behavior. Working with social media content, party manifestos, news media, and other sources allows us to uncover trends in political trust, polarization, and participation to identify influential political actors, and to test theories of the dynamics of political participation online.

Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Research Designs: Research designs such as conjoint and vignette experiments enable us to test the effects of different conditions and prompts on political attitudes and behavior, and to make causal claims about these relationships. Applying these methods via digital tools among online communities allows us to scale up our research and analyze a variety of contexts quickly and efficiently.

Digital Ethnography: Our approach involves digital ethnography to explore and understand the nuances of online political engagement. By studying the digital footprint left on social media and online forums, we gain insights into the evolving nature of political discourse and the impact of technology on public opinion.

Contact

alexander.hartland (AT) uni-saarland (DOT) de

djamila.jabra (AT) uni-saarland (DOT) de

Relevant Papers