9 Google and Social Media as Methods of Research
Research methods are strategies used to gather information or data and they can be qualitative, quantitative, or mixed. Interviews, focus groups, observations, surveys, and questionnaires are all tools used to gather research data. One simple method of knowledge used by everyone is just by asking our ancestors or older family members about anything we want to know. Today however, with the advancement of technology and the internet, groups are using other methods of research and knowledge.
With the advancement of the Internet and social media, people today use these tools to do their research and gain knowledge about any topic. Google is probably one of the most used methods for research and it is in fact a great tool. People use Google to ask anything: to research addresses of businesses and directions, to find providers of services they need, to check the results of a game or match they just missed, and even to research what possible health problem they might have based on their symptoms. Google should not be an alternative for not going to the doctor’s, but many people tend to diagnose themselves and understand these medical diagnoses with the help of Google.
Another very current tool used to obtain knowledge is social media. Applicative tools such as WhatsApp, Twitter and Facebook are immensely used worldwide. People use them to share information and also find the answers they need. There are several groups on these platforms where people can advertise their services and also ask questions about services they are looking for or any kind of question. For example, I am part of a few groups on Facebook, and I can find a lot of information related to the topic of each group. One is called, “Brazilians in MD, VA and DC” and I can just type a service that I am looking for and I will find posts of people advertising or commenting about such service. If I have a question about any topic, I can just write a post and people will respond with their answers or suggestions. Another group I was part of is related to In-Vitro Fertilization, and I shared information, contributed, and asked questions to other women going through the same treatment. On WhatsApp there are also similar groups, and people just text the group with their questions or when they want to inform everybody about anything.
It is impossible to think of life without Google these days. Google is the biggest search engine today and an important marketing tool for businesses. There are other search engines on the internet, but Google is by far the most successful. We even have a new expression: “Google it”. Social Media also plays an important role when we want to find the information we need. Several people prefer to go straight to social media and ask questions or for referrals before doing their research on Google or other type of search engine. People want answers fast and most do not want to “waste” time doing research.
References:
Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (Fifth edition.). SAGE Publications, Inc.
