The SAGE Handbook of Digital Society

William Housley PhD, DSc.Econ. FAcSS is Professor of Sociology at Cardiff University. He is an internationally recognised expert in qualitative and social research methods, sociological theory, the study of practical reason, science and technology studies, ethnomethodology, membership categorization analysis, social interaction and digital sociology. His contribution to Sociology was confirmed through the award of a DSc Econ. by Cardiff University in 2012 for his internationally recognized work in the field of interaction, communication and social organization. He has served as an editor of Qualitative Research (SAGE) and the editorial board of Big Data and Society (SAGE). Professor Housley was awarded the prestigious Vincent Wright Chair, at Sciences Po, Paris, for 2017. He has published numerous papers and books, including Society in the Digital Age: An Interactionist Perspective (2021, SAGE).Adam Edwards is Reader in Politics and Criminology at Cardiff University School of Social Sciences. He is interested in collaborative and inter-disciplinary research including work with lawyers, political scientists, computer scientists and sociologists interested in the impact of emergent technologies, such as social media and machine learning, on issues of law, governance and regulation in relation to problems of crime, security and justice. He also has a track record of research into the politics of security in European city-regions, the organisation of serious crimes and a methodological interest in deliberative forecasting.Roser Beneito-Montagut is Senior Lecturer in Sociology in the School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University (UK).  She is a sociologist working at the crossroads of media, communication and technology studies. Her research interests include the study of digital technologies, particularly in relation to the topics of social connectedness, later life and care infrastructures in the networked society. She has written extensively about the socio-cultural and material dimensions of ‘being’ and interacting online; emotions and affects; methodological innovations in relation to the availability of digital data; and about later life and about later life and ageing. Richard Fitzgerald is Professor of Communication at the University of Macau, China (SAR). Before joining the University of Macau in 2014 he has held posts at Cardiff University and the University of Queensland. He has researched and written extensively on broadcast and digital media and methods of qualitative Discourse Analysis. His recent major publications include Advances in Membership Categorization Analysis (2015, Sage) co-edited with William Housley, and On Sacks. Methodology, Materials and Inspirations (2021, Routledge) co-edited with Robin Smith and William Housley. He is a former Editor in Chief of Discourse, Context and Media where he remains an Honorary Member of the Editorial Board and is currently a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Macau.

Digital technologies not only catalyse processes of social change, they also call forth new ways of understanding social phenomena. Resisting the temptation to focus on digital social research methods in isolation, this timely and highly original collection demonstrates how digital societies offer a unique opportunity to remaster classic sociological questions and to reorientate the study of social life. The individual contributions cover an impressive range of topics that cross disciplinary silos, scales of analysis, methodological approaches, and theoretical traditions. Together they make for essential reading on the dynamics of social problems and the contours of contemporary society.  Professor David M. Evans, ESRC Centre for Sociodigital Futures, University of Bristol UK

• PART 1: Theorising Digital SocietiesChapter 1: The Emerging Contours of Digital Society: Remastering, Reconsideration, Reorientation and New Socio-Digital Domains - William Housley, Adam Edwards, Roser Benito-Montagut and Richard FitzgeraldChapter 2: Digital stratification: Class, status group, and party in the age of the Internet - Massimo Ragnedda and Glenn W. MuschertChapter 3: Crime, Control, and the Ambiguous Gifts of Digital Technology - Michael R. McGuireChapter 4: Digital Mobilities and Digital Society - Robin SmithChapter 5: Disconnection and Digital Society: Perspectives on how Citizens Deal with Media Technology - Maria José Brites and Rita Figueiras PART 2: Researching Digital SocietiesChapter 6: Developing Tools and Interdisciplinary Collaboration for Digital Social Research - Rob ProcterChapter 7: Quantitative Research Methods Teaching in a Digital Age - Malcolm Williams, Charlotte Brookfield, Luke SloanChapter 8: The Research Stack: A Framework for Data-Driven Humanities and Social Science - Dennis Leeftink and Daniel AngusChapter 9: Ethnography and Digital Society - Alexia MaddoxChapter 10: Understanding Identity and Platform Cultures - Harry T Dyer and Crystal AbidinChapter 11: Instagram Aesthetics for Social Change: A Narrative Approach to Visual Activism on Instagram - Gemma San CornelioChapter 12: Researching Digital Discourse and Interaction - Joanne MeredithChapter 13: Researching Algorithms and Artificial Intelligence - Phillip Brooker and Michael MairPART 3: Sociotechnical Systems and Disruptive Technologies in ActionChapter 14: Social Media Analytics: Boom and Bust? - Axel BrunsChapter 15: Games and Mediated Playful Practices - Larissa Hjorth and Ingrid Richardson Chapter 16: Algorithmic Configurations of Sexuality: Theoretical Foundations and Methodological Approaches - Shuaishuai WangChapter 17: Drones as Disruptive Sociotechnical Systems: A Case Study of Drone Crime and Control - Mike ColiandrisChapter 18: The Internet of Things and New Frontiers of Datafication - Andrés Domínguez HernándezPART 4: Digital Society and New Social DilemmasChapter 19: Digital Racism - Pamela M. Hong and Fabio G. RojasChapter 20: Social Media, Gender and Online Discrimination - Charlotte NauChapter 21: Online Safeguarding of Adults with an Intellectual Disability: How do we Ensure that Participation and Protection Rights are Adequately Met in Digital Society? - Emma BondChapter 22: Clickbait in the Commodification of Sympathy: Disability, Inspiration Porn and the Possibilities for New Narratives - Gwyneth Peaty, Jordan Alice and Katie EllisChapter 23: Political Communication in the Digital Age - Sharon MerazPART 5: Governance and RegulationChapter 24: Algorithmic Governance: Technology, Knowledge, and Power - Rik Peeters and Marc SchuilenburgChapter 25: Digital (Dis)information Operations and Misinformation Campaigns - Martin Innes, David Rogers, Nora Jansen and Viorica BuduChapter 26: Frauds in Digital Society - Michael LeviChapter 27: The Responsible Innovation of Disruptive Technologies - Philip Inglesant, Helena Webb, Carolyn Ten Holter, Menisha Patel, Marina JirotkaChapter 28: Governing through Infrastructural Control: Artificial Intelligence and Cloud Computing in the Data-Intensive State - Ben WilliamsonChapter 29: Freedom of Speech and Online Harm in Liberal Democracies: a Triadic Concept - Adam Edwards, William Housley, Roser Beneito-Montagut and Richard FitzgeraldPART 6: Digital FuturesChapter 30: Digital Transformation and the Future of Work - Phillip Brown, Manuel Souto-Otero and Sahara SadikChapter 31: Conversational AI: Respecifying Participation as Regulation - Stuart Reeves and Martin PorcheronChapter 32: Critical Data Futures - Neil SelwynChapter 33: Mediating the Message in Digital Society - Steve Fuller