Data Analytics for Policy Informatics: The Case of E-Petitioning

Loni Hagen, Teresa M. Harrison, Catherine L. Dumas

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter

Abstract

To contribute to the development of policy informatics, we discuss the benefits of analyzing electronic petitions (e-petitions), a form of citizen-government discourse with deep historic roots that has recently transitioned into a technologically-enabled and novel form of political communication. We begin by presenting a rationale for the analysis of e-petitions as a type of e-participation that can contribute to the development of public policy, provided that it is possible to analyze the large volumes of data produced in petitioning processes. From there we consider two data analytic strategies that offer promising approaches to the analysis of e-petitions and that lend themselves to the future creation of policy informatics tools. We discuss the application of  topic modeling  to the analysis of e-petition textual data to identify emergent topics of substantial concern to the public. We further propose the application of  social network analysis  to data related to the dynamics of petitioning processes, such as the social connections between petition initiators and signers, and tweets that solicit petition signatures in petitioning campaigns; both may be useful in revealing patterns of collective action. The paper concludes by reflecting on issues that should be brought to bear on the construction of policy informatics tools that make use of e-petitioning data.
Original languageAmerican English
Title of host publicationPolicy Analytics, Modelling, and Informatics
StatePublished - Oct 4 2017

Keywords

  • Electronic petitions
  • e-Petition
  • Topic modeling
  • Social network analysis
  • Collective action
  • Social media
  • Political communication

Disciplines

  • Social and Behavioral Sciences

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