Student Insights: Unlocking Industry Collaborations for the Social Sciences
Workshop11/06/2024
I had the privilege of attending the Unlocking Industry Collaborations for the Social Sciences Workshop, organised by Dr Francesco Rampazzo, Lecturer in Demography, in early June, held in the University of Oxford’s Department of Sociology. I was invited as a current undergraduate reading Human Sciences at the University, with a particular interest in the Demography and Sociology modules I cover. Francesco has kindly agreed to be my supervisor for the dissertation I have selected over the next 9 months; Analysing the Influence of Advertising on Male Cultural Norms: A Comparative Study of Fertility Rates in the UK and South Korea from 2005 to Present Day. I was hopeful that from this workshop I would understand more about how this field is already being explored, especially the former question; how is advertising and media consumption shaped by, and how does it shape cultural norms? I can confidently say that the workshop was hugely valuable in both providing me with a plethora of avenues down which my research could travel and genuinely enthusing me for my upcoming dissertation.
Grace White, Human Sciences student
We began the day by listening to Francesco Rampazzo speak about his work in progress. He presented on behalf of Ross Barker, PhD student from LSE, about the disaggregation of dating-app data, and behaviour/usage patterns. Then, we heard from Micol Morellini, DPhil from the Dept of Sociology, fascinatingly explaining how consumer data can be used for understanding migrant fertility behaviour, with a focus on the Italian “brain drain”. Following this, Morten Thomson, DPhil from the Dept of Sociology, gave a focused lecture on transgender lives and the disparities in data, highlighting findings from collaborating with Getty Images, something which I am eager to apply to my own research. Subsequent lectures came from Andreas Edel who is the Executive Secretary of Population Europe and Flavio Nappi who is the CEO of ‘MammaPack’ – a business aimed at providing Italian international migrants with an authentic flavour of home. We also heard speak: Dilan Başak from ‘Cosmic Latte’, the business behind LGBTQ+ apps “Zoe” (LBTQ+) and “Surge” (GBTQ+) and Suzy Warnock representing ‘Nielson BookData’, investigating consumer behaviour and the demographics behind book sales, library borrowings and audiobook sales from retailers – what are people reading, and why?
Dr Rebecca Swift, Senior Vice President - Creative, Getty Images
Two lectures which were most relevant and exciting to me in terms of my upcoming research were those given by Sara Denby and Dr. Rebecca Swift, representing the Unstereotype Alliance of UN Women, and Getty Images, respectively. Denby discussed the ways in which advertising should be centred as a force for good – highlighting inequalities within advertising, the inauthenticity in some advertising representation, and how social norms are shifted within, and by, the consumption of advertising media. The most inticing part, for me, of Denby’s presentation was the discussion around ‘leaving’ men and boys ‘behind’. Denby discussed how there has not been such a huge change in male representations over the last 75 years as has been seen for women, and that this may be reflected in advertising. Social policy was intertwined into this discussion in elucidating how laws surrounding e.g. LGBTQ+ individuals would impact the media consumed by differing nations, contributing to social norms, and what the public understand to be so. I feel I could really dive into this element of research in furthering my own dissertation. Dr. Swift followed, fascinatingly portraying how data gathered by Getty Images can impact the representation of various demographics, and also how the rising threat of artificial intelligence has already infiltrated the world of media consumption. The measures taken to control AI generated imagery were discussed as Swift exacerbated how no imagery on the editorial side of the business were allowed to be retouched, a refreshing reminder in these rapidly developing times. Swift discussed how trends in social norms and social qualms can be pinpointed through this data research by commenting on the trends shown by Olympic photography over the last few decades, elucidating it as a mirror on the contemporary passions of society.
Workshop speakers at St John's College (from left: Suzy Warnock, Dilan Başak, Dr Francesco Rampazzo, Dr Rebecca Swift, Flavio Nappi, and Sara Denby).
Not only was this experience a hugely valuable one in furthering the possibilities I can explore in my upcoming studies, I am genuinely interested in the overlap between academia, data and business, in considerations for my own career in the future. I would like to thank Francesco for inviting me to such a brilliant opportunity, and those who I spoke to throughout the day who welcomed my questions and encouraged my interests.
