It’s been a Cruel Summer of conference travel with a surprising number of work trips that have inadvertently taken place either just before or just after one Ms Taylor Swift visited the very same city. As Wembley Stadium gears up to once again welcome Tay-Tay and tens of thousands of Swifties (including Me!) to one of five shows before she says So Long, London and wraps the European leg of her Eras Tour (for now – fingers crossed for a safe and sparkly do-over, Vienna), I couldn’t help but wonder whether Taylor wasn’t secretly attending those very same conferences herself. It’s no secret that her career and its impact have inspired a lot of research – most recently, the rise of ‘Swiftonomics’ or the influence that Taylor Swift has had on the economy has been a hot topic of discussion. What if she has influenced more than we realise, and has been attending these conferences to increase the impact of the research she has inspired? This Is Me Trying to discover which other eras of research Taylor has influenced.

Welcome to the Research Eras Tour. Are you …ready for it?

Let’s start by searching for Taylor Swift in the Blank Space of the search bar in Dimensions and choosing Title and Abstract to reveal only the most relevant publications, patents, and other research outputs. Searching in full text gives over 5 thousand publications, but this would also include passing mentions of her, so I’m confining my search to mentions in the title and abstract only.

“It’s all just f*cking impossible”

Well, Dear Reader, I already know I’m going to love this little project, as the publication deemed to be “most relevant” has the Gorgeous title, ‘“It’s All Just F*cking Impossible:” The influence of Taylor Swift on fans’ body image, disordered eating, and rejection of diet culture’. The paper, which quotes Taylor Swift’s discussion about her own relationship with her body image in her Miss Americana documentary in its title, has an Altmetric score of 346 and counting, and the paper has been picked in 45 articles across 41 news outlets, as well as three blogs.

The article headings seem positive and suggest that Taylor Swift has indeed had a positive impact on how her fans perceive their own bodies in the face of society’s exhaustingly impossible and often unattainable expectations of how people should look, but it’s always best to read the source itself, so it’s Back to December – I mean, Dimensions – to learn more. The paper’s TL;DR summary as well as a quick read of the abstract both confirm that yes indeed, Taylor Swift and other celebrity role models can be positive influences on how people perceive themselves and the knock-on effect that can have on the related health issues people could be facing.

But back to the topic at hand. A quick glance at the top line of research outputs shows that, to date, 241 publications have “Taylor Swift” in the title or abstract, as well as 14 data sets, three grants, and one clinical trial. Not bad for someone whose debut album came out in 2006.

Long story short

So how has Taylor Swift impacted research? Let’s take a look, from 2006 until now. The graph below shows the total number of publications from 2006 to 2024. However no publications mentioned Taylor Swift at all until 2012, the year her Red album was released. There was a rise in interest in 2016, perhaps due to the lag of the impact generated after her much poppier 2014 album,1989, or in anticipation of 2017’s Reputation, arguably the best Taylor Swift album so far. I say arguably – I will argue that it is the best one because as eras go, that’s Mine.

Taking a look at the research themes and concepts, there seem to be five distinct clusters of language, lyrics, celebrity impact, and controversy, as well as one satellite group focusing on the works of Mark Twain, but what isn’t clear from this summary is how Everything Has Changed in terms of the volume of publications across different fields of research over time. To better understand Taylor Swift’s research eras, let’s take a look at the same information broken down by fields of research.

The graph below shows the five main fields of research of publications that mention Taylor Swift in either the title or abstract; Linguistics, Music, Communication and Media Studies, Creative Arts and Writing, and Language, Communication and Culture. As my teammate and friend Dr Hélène Draux pointed out, it is very nice to see other women artists featuring so prominently within these clusters. Although the overall trend is an increase in publication volume over time in almost all five fields, there are peaks and troughs that can be interrogated further. By isolating each field of research, we can discover more.

The linguistics era – 2019

Although publication volume increased after 2020, the Linguistics field of research could be said to have had an earlier peak in 2019. Looking at the rise in publications from 2016, aside from Language, Communications and Culture it was the only field of research that was increasing in its publication volume. Popular papers include one focused on a linguistic breakdown of the lyrics to the song Red, the contents of which have given me major flashbacks to GCSE English and my utter inadequacy in being able to reflect on the symbolism of any metaphor used in any piece of writing. Sorry, Mrs Sharpe. The scarf just seemed ‘scarfy’ to me…

The communications and media studies era – 2020

This field of research was partially responsible for the initial visibility of Taylor Swift-related research in the data, with its first publication back in 2012. Though there was an early peak in 2016, there were no publications related to this ‘era’ in 2018 or 2021 at all. However, between these two years, the number of publications peaked at five in 2020, cementing this year as The Communication and Media Studies Era. Trips right off your tongue, doesn’t it? Popular papers of this era focused on Taylor Swift’s forays into political alignment with the Democratic Party and her standing up for groups with less of a voice, perhaps catalysed in part by her 2019 album Lover featuring the hit song You Need To Calm Down and its perfect music video poking fun at the haters that continue to hate (hate, hate, hate, hate, hate), and of course the punchy one-line reminder that “shade never made anybody less gay”.

The music era – 2021

The discourse around Taylor Swift’s impact and influence on political and cultural advocacy continued into 2021, but this time in the slightly broader context of the role that music and musicians can play in nudging cultural behaviours. With another earlier but smaller peak in publications in this field of research 2016, and despite publications in this area continuing to increase over time, 2021 can be considered the era of music research, coming second only in volume to Creative Arts and Writing which has its own more dominant peak in research volume later down the line. Classic papers of the Music Era continue to focus on the Lover album with themes of allyship and inclusion but with hints of 2017’s Reputation creeping in with themes of re-evaluation and re-imagining.

The creative arts and writing era – 2022

What did you do during the first COVID-19 lockdown of 2020? If you were anything like me, you hooked up your old SNES to your ‘big TV’, learned the art of cocktail making – or drinking in my case, and diligently attended your daily Yoga With Adriene sessions. If you were Taylor Swift, you casually wrote, recorded and released two albums. The impact of Folklore and Evermore is evident in 2022, as the Creative Arts and Writing Era took hold. Some of the big hitters of this era include papers on storytelling through songwriting, and how her folkier, stripped-back albums packed with nostalgia perfectly reflected the societal vibe of the early period of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The language, communication and culture era – 2023

Very much our current research era and the one that presently dominates is the language, communication and culture era. With an early peak in 2019, it is the field of research that now not only has the most publications within it over time, but the largest increase in publication rate since 2021. Hits from this era include a paper on the metaphoric meaning of the songs on the Reputation album (TL;DR – love who you love deeply and unashamedly – see, Mrs Sharpe, I got there in the end!), a similar deep dive into the lyrics of the Evermore album, Taylor Swift’s influence on inclusion and acceptance of all genders and sexualities, and a screaming celebration of Taylor Swift’s Woman of the Decade speech that also asks the question, now what?

The Swiftonomics of grant funding

The world of grant writing seems to have cottoned onto the impact of Swiftonomics and how an association with this public figure can garner attention. I was thrilled to see a mention of her in a Wellcome Trust grant for the amazing outreach and engagement initiative, “I’m A Scientist, Get Me Out Of Here”, which I took part in as a baby-researcher back when I was writing up my PhD thesis. Given its themes of breaking down barriers to inclusion and showcasing a range of human faces from the research community, I can’t think of a better-aligned name-drop. Well done, IAS Crew – I like your Style! Will this be the focus of a future research era or just the next generation of Swifties? Time will tell.

The prophecy of clinical trials

The single clinical trial mentioning Taylor Swift focuses on a project hoping to determine whether there is any link between connecting with her music, and mental health. As anyone capable of repeatedly suffering through heartwrenching 10-minute vault versions knows All Too Well, Swift’s lyrics are deeply descriptive in their emotional analysis of everyday situations for people of all ages, not Only The Young. Could Taylor Swift’s song lyrics, and those of other musicians, help people (in Singapore in the case of this clinical trial) expand their emotional vocabulary and become more in tune with their thoughts and feelings, and know when to seek support? To speculate the outcomes of the trial would be Treacherous but the impact of Taylor Swift on research seems to be far from over just yet.

Paper rings that come back around

Let’s end on data sets, and specifically, Lizzy Pope’s data set on Figshare which actually takes us right back to a place where we can Begin Again, as this data informed the first paper mentioned in this article. “It’s All Just F*cking Impossible”, I hear you cry. Yes, and that’s also the title of the paper. It’s always great to see the data openly shared in the pre-publication stage, as the entire journey of that research can be followed from inception to impact, linked together by an Invisible String of metadata.

Epiphany

Never in my Wildest Dreams did I think that I’d be doing a Dimensions data dive about Taylor Swift, but who could miss such a great opportunity to celebrate a successful woman artist who has had an undeniable influence on research and popular culture? Don’t Blame Me for the terrible shoehorning of Taylor Swift song titles in this article. And a shout out to my teammates who threw down the gauntlet to see whether we could make this a thing – Look What You Made Me Do?! Perhaps this is the start of a brand-new series. Let us know your thoughts on this, and Speak Now if you’d like us to give your favourite thing the data nerdery treatment. With thanks to Taylor Swift for inspiring this article.

The post The Research Eras Tour – the scholarly side of Taylor Swift appeared first on Digital Science.

 In this week’s fourth Spotlight on the value of social science research, we assess the final ingredient to improve UK research and innovation: why social sciences are essential to international collaboration and tackling shared global challenges.

The focus of the Academy of Social Sciences (AcSS) report Reimagining the Recipe for Research & Innovation has understandably been parochial in nature, based as it is in the UK and tackling some of the unique challenges faced by researchers operating in the UK. However, the final piece in the AcSS jigsaw in its argument for using social sciences to support STEM research looks further afield, and analyzes how social science research in general can improve collaboration and societal problems on a global scale.

There are a couple of sound contextual reasons why this argument has a strong base. Firstly, as the UK is home to some of the most highly regarded research institutions, it is well placed to offer some guidance on this aspect of research. And perhaps most importantly, with the UK having benefited from some of the more progressive higher education policies in the shape of its Research Excellence Framework (REF) and early adoption of Open Access mandates, it can offer some leadership in making recommendations for future research strategy.

Covid insights

In the AcSS report, its authors – which include Dr Juergen Wastl and Kathryn Weber-Boer from Digital Science – identify the fourth and final ingredient specifically as the ability of social sciences to enable progress through international collaboration and meeting global challenges. No global challenge has been greater in recent times than the Covid-19 pandemic, and using this example, the authors show how insights from both STEM and social science research were necessary to successfully fight the spread and control of the disease. 

We see some specific examples of this in the case study below, but to further illustrate the important role social sciences have played, the report looks at how research in all areas has supported the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Looking at how both UK researchers and those internationally have focused on these global challenges, the authors used Dimensions to identify some interesting trends (see Figure 1). For example: 

• The volume of publications is greater – and the average number of citations lower – for ‘social’ SDGs when compared with the ‘economic’ and ‘environmental’ SDGs, across all of the datasets
• For UK-authored papers, about a quarter of SDG-related publications are in the social sciences – either uniquely or in collaboration with STEM colleagues – and some three-quarters are in the STEM area
• Within each of the three main subdivisions – STEM, social science and STEM/social science – UK-authored publications have much greater citation rates than the average globally
• The biggest increase in citation rates – compared with the global average – for UK-authored papers is around double in many cases
• Collaborative studies across social science and STEM account for a minority of publications however they are among the most cited research.

Impact of impact

Perhaps one of the more remarkable findings in the AcSS study is that, when analyzing the impact studies that form part of the UK’s REF program in 2021 – where universities present the wider impacts their research has had – the social sciences show a greater contribution in most of the eight categories they are broken down into. While STEM leads in Health and Technology as one might expect, social sciences lead in Societal and Economic impacts.

No global challenge has been greater in recent times than the Covid-19 pandemic… insights from both STEM and social science research were necessary to successfully fight the spread and control of the disease.

Case study

The case study used to illustrate the influence of the social sciences in the AcSS report concerns the Covid-19 pandemic and how social sciences – not on their own and in collaboration with STEM research – helped the government and health services navigate through one of the world’s most challenging episodes.

One article they cite, published in Nature Human Behaviour in April 2020, was an early attempt by a large group of scholars to share not only their collective insights in order to enable a more effective response to the pandemic, but the gaps that were evident and needed to be filled. This collaborative response to the pandemic included advice on influencing credible community sources of information and advice on how to frame public health messaging. 

The pioneering work on drug discovery obviously played a huge part in overcoming Covid-19, but much of that great work might have been wasted had social science research not played its part in how vaccines were deployed. When we look back on this and the other three ingredients – enabling whole systems thinking, critical for good policy development and underpinning smart and responsible innovation – the Covid example is emblematic of the value that social sciences can bring. Important on their own, but vital when plugged into STEM research, collaboration and solving some of the world’s most pressing problems.

It is this collaborative approach between the social sciences and STEM research that has been one of the key aspects of the Spotlight series. From the first Spotlight on seeing a more complete picture from whole systems thinking, through to effective policy making and responsible innovation, it has been notable not so much what value can be brought through collaboration between social sciences and STEM, but what can also be lost when they don’t work in harmony. Hopefully this series and the AcSS report it has highlighted can ensure fewer wasted opportunities to make a difference in the future.

Next time

We will continue our Spotlight series next month, so please watch out for more details on Digital Science’s LinkedIn and Twitter/X accounts – as well as right here on TL;DR.

The post In the Spotlight: Social sciences’ fourth key ingredient for research success appeared first on Digital Science.

Last week’s Spotlight on social science research looked at its potential contribution to UK policy making. This week we identify the third key ingredient to improve UK research and innovation: how social sciences can underpin smart and responsible innovation.

The third ingredient in our Spotlight series on social science contribution is arguably the most easily recognizable one: that social sciences are essential to research and innovation in the area of governance, and how it should be an enabler rather than an obstacle to technological progress. 

The report on which these Spotlight pieces have been based – Reimagining the Recipe for Research & Innovation by the Academy of Social Sciences (AcSS) – identifies that the social sciences occupy a strategically vital place in their ability to enhance our understanding of human behavior, public opinion, legal systems, markets and policy. Without this understanding, the underpinning of any research and innovation program becomes much less stable.

Three’s a charm

The authors of the AcSS report – which include Dr Juergen Wastl and Kathryn Weber-Boer from Digital Science – identify the third ingredient specifically as the ability of social sciences to take on board different perspectives. For example, historical, geographical/cultural and legal perspectives all lend themselves to a wider understanding of the import and impact of technological innovation. The authors use the case of biotechnology governance to illustrate their point – some countries will regulate keenly, while others will have a more laissez faire approach, depending on contextual factors relevant to each dominant culture or nation state.

Sometimes these factors can be encapsulated in a single paper – the authors identify such an article that looks at legal implications of EU law and AI, which can spread across different areas in a way that STEM papers would struggle to achieve, and in doing so build bridges between those areas.

Active ingredient

Perhaps more than any other ingredient in this four-part series, the role social sciences play in underpinning smart and responsible innovation is perhaps the most dynamic and visible.

The authors show this by using Dimensions data: according to Dimensions, most UK research in law relating to digital health had been funded through the UK’s engineering and physical sciences public funding body. Research that had been funded in this way related to specific areas such as governance of AI and smart home security – in other words, social science research influencing and informing innovation.

More than any other ingredient… the role social sciences play in underpinning smart and responsible innovation is perhaps the most dynamic and visible.

Case study

The specific case study drawn out by the AcSS report authors concerns the hot topic of AI and how it relates to the field of robotics. Where does social science fit in here? The authors identify a specific paper which they see as emblematic of the influence social sciences can have on research and innovation.

The article in question identified an apparent incompatibility between European notions of discrimination and existing work on algorithmic and automated fairness. The article made three key arguments: EU non-discrimination law doesn’t provide a ‘static’ framework aligned with testing for discrimination in AI systems; discrimination is essentially a human behavior, and as such is difficult to identify in AI systems; setting standards of evidence might help make processes consistent, but not necessarily where judicial decisions are involved related to AI. 

More broadly, interdisciplinary research at one university has been shown to influence understanding of the impact of AI technologies on human rights, in turn helping to define human rights standards. Such impacts, where knowledge and experience embedded in social science research can support innovation and its responsible adoption, are likely to be critical as AI and other new technologies emerge.

Next time

The fourth and final ingredient is… Social sciences are essential to international collaboration and tackling shared global challenges.

The post In the Spotlight: Social sciences’ third key ingredient for research success appeared first on Digital Science.

But is there more to the report than just a clever metaphor? Below and over the next three weeks, we take a quick look at the report’s findings and, perhaps more importantly, the methodology behind the study, which used Dimensions data to understand the research landscape. Because Dimensions is the world’s largest collection of linked research data with over 140 million publications, it is a rich source of information on the impact of social science research.

Enabling whole-systems thinking

The AcSS report aimed to better understand the UK’s research and innovation (R&I) position, which is currently in a state of transition. Overall, the report argues that investment in R&I in the UK lags behind its competitors, despite the regard its higher education sector enjoys. The authors – which include Dr Juergen Wastl and Dr Kathryn Weber-Boer from Digital Science – seek to identify the role social sciences can play to ensure the UK’s position is optimized when it comes to R&I investment.

The first ingredient in the mix is for the social sciences to enable ‘whole-systems thinking’. What does this mean? The focus here is on innovation and entrepreneurship, and how social science can enable a better understanding of system capabilities such as economies, institutions, skills or culture. These contexts shape how enterprises in the UK can develop; being able to read them and make the right investment decisions on the back of it is a key part of a successful and dynamic economy.

The authors feel this point needs emphasizing as too often the social sciences are seen as a handbrake by contributing to ‘ELSIfication’, ie. stressing ethical, legal or societal implications (ELSI) in a given situation. However, that perception is questioned by the report which points to some key advances made in STEM research – such as in artificial intelligence (AI) and trustworthy autonomous systems (TAS) – where the level of expertise in these and related areas in social sciences in the UK far outpaces that of STEM. There is a huge untapped, advanced resource for STEM that would benefit R&I development if the two areas collaborated.

“…not only can social sciences improve STEM research and technological innovation by understanding the contexts they exist within, but they can also offer significant ‘value add’ when it comes to taking scientific breakthroughs into the society we live in.”

Case study

An example of the type of collaboration envisaged by the authors is given with the story of Professor Lucie Cluver in South Africa (University of Oxford and University of Cape Town), whose work on the impacts of AIDS showed that offering welfare payments to young orphaned girls meant they were less likely to seek older boyfriends who might, in turn, infect them. Understanding the complex social, environmental and psychological impacts of the disease has therefore provided an effective way to reduce infections above and beyond any STEM research into AIDS itself.

What we can see here is that not only can social sciences improve STEM research and technological innovation by understanding the contexts they exist within, but they can also offer significant ‘value add’ when it comes to taking scientific breakthroughs into the society we live in – above and beyond the checks and balances of ensuring ethical and legal parameters are maintained. The report is also keen to stress the relative superiority UK research enjoys in the social sciences, and how this can benefit STEM research as a whole when it comes to its impact on society.

Next time

The next ingredient is… Social sciences are critical for good policy development.

The post In the spotlight: Social sciences’ first key ingredient for research success appeared first on Digital Science.