SODAS Data Discussion #2 (Fall 2024)

Copenhagen Center for Social Data Science (SODAS) aspires to be a resource for all students and researchers at the Faculty of Social Sciences. We therefore invite researchers across the faculty to present ongoing research projects, project applications or just loose ideas that relate to the subject of social data science.

Two researchers will present their work. The rules are simple: Short presentations of ten minutes are followed by twenty minutes of debate. No papers will be circulated beforehand, and the presentations cannot be longer than five slides.

Discussion 1

Presenter: Wiebke Junk

Title: Lobbying (A)Symmetry - The Dynamics Behind Informed Policy (LOBBYMETRY)

Abstract: 

Wiebke will present the “Lobbying (A)symmetry:  The Dynamics Behind Informed Policy” (LOBBYMETRY) project, which was recently awarded an ERC Starting Grant. The project addresses two types of imbalances in lobbying: 1) mobilisation asymmetries, which exclude some actors from the policy debate, and 2) information asymmetries, which empower specific groups in their exchanges with policymakers. The LOBBYMETRY project analyses these asymmetries and their relationship to each other, as well as their effects on the ways in which sectional and public interests feed into policymaking.

The project studies these asymmetries across populations of interest organisations in twelve European countries and at European Union level, as well as within the climate and digital policy fields, that vary strongly in mobilisation asymmetries and constitute areas where well- or ill-informed policies have vast consequences for humanity at large. LOBBYMETRY strives to open the black-box of policymaker-lobbyist information exchange within these areas, develop measures of informational quality and accuracy in lobbying, and evaluate how and when lobbying pulls outcomes away from the public interest.

Methodologically, the project combines cross-country surveys including an AI-aided survey experiment, cross-venue data on 100 issues in climate and digital policy, and different forms of participant observation of the information exchanges between policymakers and interest organisations in i) natural and ii) researcher-controlled settings. This innovative combination of methods will generate unprecedented quantitative and qualitative evidence on lobbyist-policymaker information exchange in varying contexts.

If successful, the project will shed light on a serious blind spot in the state-of-the-art literature: the mechanisms through which lobbying actually informs policies. Its findings will speak to pressing democratic challenges, such as the underrepresentation of citizen interests in digital policy, and the design of institutional interventions to improve consultation practices, lobbying regulation, and the quality of legislation.

Discussion 2

Presenter: Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen

Title: Coded Clues - Unraveling Learning at High Resolution

Abstract: 

Coded Clues investigates the impact of Intelligent Tutoring Systems on student learning and assessment. By leveraging advanced machine learning and econometric models, the research aims to evaluate the accuracy and fairness of these learning systems in measuring academic knowledge, the effects of teaching exposure, and the long-term learning outcomes. Utilizing high-resolution data from the learning platforms and Danish registry data, the findings will inform educational policy and promote data-driven discussions on the use of technology in education.