Meaningful measures of human society in the twenty-first century.

Science rarely proceeds beyond what scientists can observe and measure, and sometimes what can be observed proceeds far ahead of scientific understanding. The twenty-first century offers such a moment in the study of human societies. A vastly larger share of behaviours is observed today than would have been imaginable at the close of the twentieth century. Our interpersonal communication, our movements and many of our everyday actions, are all potentially accessible for scientific research; sometimes through purposive instrumentation for scientific objectives (for example, satellite imagery), but far more often these objectives are, literally, an afterthought (for example, Twitter data streams). Here we evaluate the potential of this massive instrumentation-the creation of techniques for the structured representation and quantification-of human behaviour through the lens of scientific measurement and its principles. In particular, we focus on the question of how we extract scientific meaning from data that often were not created for such purposes. These data present conceptual, computational and ethical challenges that require a rejuvenation of our scientific theories to keep up with the rapidly changing social realities and our capacities to capture them. We require, in other words, new approaches to manage, use and analyse data.

Relationship Between Internet Use and Change in Health Status: Panel Study of Young Adults.

BACKGROUND: Using the internet for health information is a widespread phenomenon documented in considerable scholarship. Less common, however, is the analysis of panel data to examine how internet use may relate to change in health status over time. OBJECTIVE: This study examines whether internet use and internet use related to health are associated with a change in health status among young adults. METHODS: We used a unique panel survey data set collected about young adults' internet use in 2012 and 2016 (n=384). We applied logistic regression to examine the relationships between sociodemographics, internet experiences, frequency of health-related internet use, and sharing health content online with change in health status over time. We additionally examined the variables characterizing sharing health content online (via Facebook, Twitter, and email) in separate models. RESULTS: In the second wave, over half (236/384, 61.5%) of the sample used the internet for health at least weekly. Approximately one-third (141/384, 36.7%) used Facebook for health-content sharing, while using Twitter and email for sharing health content were far less frequent (14/384, 3.6%, and 55/384, 14.3%, respectively). A change in health status occurred for 43.0% (165/384) of the sample; 18.5% (71/384) reported an improvement while 24.5% (94/384) reported a decline. Greater frequency of internet use was associated with health decline over time (B=-0.58, P=.02). We also found that frequent health-related internet use was related to enhanced health or maintained health (B=0.58, P=.03). Sharing health content on social media or email, however, was not related to young adults' health changes. CONCLUSIONS: Young adults exhibit a pattern of using the internet for health that influences their health status. Our finding that frequent health-related internet use may promote improved or maintained health suggests that this type of online activity might also support healthy living.

Piercing the Pandemic Social Bubble: Disability and Social Media Use About COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing stay-at-home orders caused tremendous restrictions in social contacts, which led to increasing use of the internet for daily tasks and social interactions. As prior research has established, people with disabilities (PWD) had already been using the internet for such purposes prior to the pandemic, especially for health-related content. Through a national survey administered during the first few weeks of the pandemic in the United States, we explore how people with and without disabilities used social media to exchange information and engage in activities about COVID-19. Findings reveal that PWD were more engaged with information about COVID-19 than those without disabilities, even when controlling for sociodemographics and internet experiences and skills. These differences are especially pronounced concerning more active engagement such as sharing information, interacting, and supporting others on social media. Although the content is about a health crisis in which PWD are disproportionately vulnerable, these effects largely remain when we enter controls for health status, belonging to high-risk groups for COVID-19, and personal experiences with COVID-19. Findings highlight the benefits of universal design, both for PWD specifically, and for society more broadly, as the general population ramps up use of tools long fought for and used by PWD.

Inquiring minds acquiring wellness: uses of online and offline sources for health information.

Variation in ability to access and use health information is a key pathway through which social status may impact health. Digital media offer new opportunities for health information seeking, potentially lowering barriers to such content. Using a data set with nuanced information about what sources a diverse group of college students consults for different types of health material, coupled with detailed measures of Internet experiences, this article explores factors related to where young adults turn for health content. Results suggest considerable sex differences in practices across sources of health information. We also find differences in Hispanic students' actions based on parents' country of origin across sources. Finally, challenging assumptions about the universal savvy of young adults, findings suggest that those who are more highly skilled with the Internet are more likely to use it for health information seeking, and Internet experiences are especially important for explaining who turns to online discussions in this realm. Our findings not only contribute to a better understanding of health information seeking and health inequality, but also point to possible sites of intervention to ameliorate health disparities.

Digital inequality in communication during a time of physical distancing: The case of COVID-19.

In times of physical distancing, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic, people are likely to turn to digital communication to replace in-person interactions. Yet, persisting digital inequality suggests that not everyone will be equally able or disposed to increasing digital communication during a public health crisis. Using survey data from a national sample of U.S. participants (N = 2,925) that we collected during the early months of the pandemic, we analyzed how sociodemographics, living arrangements, and Internet experiences and skills relate to increases and decreases in various digital communication methods. We find that people privileged in their socioeconomic status, their Internet skills and online experiences are more likely to increase and less likely to decrease digital communication during the pandemic. The findings illustrate how digital inequalities can put already disadvantaged groups at greater risk of diminished social contact during a public health crisis. We discuss the theoretical implications of our findings for digital inequality research, the practical implications for inclusive crisis responses, and directions for future research.

Changes in Digital Communication During the COVID-19 Global Pandemic: Implications for Digital Inequality and Future Research.

Governments and public health institutions across the globe have set social distancing and stay-at-home guidelines to battle the COVID-19 pandemic. With reduced opportunities to spend time together in person come new challenges to remain socially connected. This essay addresses how the pandemic has changed people's use of digital communication methods, and how inequalities in the use of these methods may arise. We draw on data collected from 1,374 American adults between 4 and 8 April 2020, about two weeks after lockdown measures were introduced in various parts of the United States. We first address whether people changed their digital media use to reach out to friends and family, looking into voice calls, video calls, text messaging, social media, and online games. Then, we show how age, gender, living alone, concerns about Internet access, and Internet skills relate to changes in social contact during the pandemic. We discuss how the use of digital media for social connection during a global public health crisis may be unequally distributed among citizens and may continue to shape inequalities even after the pandemic is over. Such insights are important considering the possible impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people's social wellbeing. We also discuss how changes in digital media use might outlast the pandemic, and what this means for future communication and media research.

From Zero to a National Data Set in 2 Weeks: Reflections on a COVID-19 Collaborative Survey Project.

In March 2020, like much of the rest of the world, we went into lockdown. A week into our new reality, we decided to do a survey study about how people were experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic. In this piece, we describe what motivated us to do the study, how we went about it, and what others can learn from our experiences.

Health information-seeking in the digital age.

OBJECTIVE: The authors examined the sources of health information among first-year university students and whether the predictors of information-seeking varied by information source. PARTICIPANTS: First-year students in a required course at a midwestern public university were eligible to participate, and 82% (n = 1,060) completed the study. METHODS: Students completed a survey questionnaire regarding information-seeking behaviors and Internet uses in domains including health. The authors used regression analyses to examine predictors of source-specific health information-seeking. RESULTS: Young women are much more likely than young men to seek health information. The characteristics associated with looking online for health information are different than those for using other information sources, and students who look online for health information also report greater use of other information sources. CONCLUSIONS: Although the Internet is an important source of health information for students, health professionals should be aware that not all students equally utilize this resource.