A közösségi média társadalomföldrajzi alkalmazásának etnikai-földrajzi példája
An ethnical-geographical example of the social geographical application of social media

Summary/Abstract: One of the fundamental challenges of socialgeography is to reveal what types of data canbe used to measure a process. Social mediaplatforms are an integral part of society, beingused by large masses as a daily routine without reflection. This type of usage and penetration can make it a tool of socialgeographical examination. In our work we use data from Instagram in research one tehnical features and we present the first steps of the development of an alternativemethod, which allows higher temporal resolution and, instead of data based on self declaration,it makes it possible to use databased on the social practice of users. Furthermore, our paper also contributes to the knowledge on boundaries of using Instagram as a data source in peripherial spaces. To test the new method, we examined the Romanian and Hungarian ethnical compostition in sample settlements located in the border region of Arad and Békés counties. Based on the accesible social media data, we could not approach the official statistical data convincingly; yet, our analysis suggested that by socially and spatially more focused sampling procedures or in spaces where social media use is more intense, the method could produce data reflecting actual processes precisely.

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