Geolocation for research purposes: geotags as a data source

Abstract

The worldwide spread of social networks provides new opportunities to collect data for various applied research. The geotagging function, which is present in most social networks, is extremely useful in the case of spatial research. For urban researchers, this is more than just an opportunity to collect a huge amount of information about the behavior of people in space, but also to analyze the space itself. However, this type of data has both significant advantages and limitations. The article includes highlighting the most significant characteristics that urban researchers need to consider working with social networks: their volume (the ability to work with them as big data), non-reactivity (they are reproduced by the users themselves) and additional interpretations (they allow us to understand the meanings of certain elements of space for individual individuals or groups). The authors also illustrate the research opportunities provided by online data in combination with geotagging with various empirical examples.

Keywords

• social network
• geotagging
• geolocation
• urban studies