Overview for finding information for social media
A quick guide to terminology!
'Data' refers to facts. A population count, a grade on a paper, a number on a scale, dollars in a bank account, whether people in a household are married or not.
'Information' is the story that collections of facts tell. For example, population changes over time, streams of income or patterns of spending, all the grades across a semester. Another way to think about this: information is the context that allows people to make analysis and decisions.
- A lot of information you may be seeking will be available thought searching in Google, Ecosia or other search engines, and it might be more effective to search on the internet rather than searching in GALILEO.
- Demographic information such as age, population, marital status, education, employment, etc. are widely available
- Once you find information, it can be useful to look in GALILEO to find academic resources that can help contextualize or frame the information that might be necessary, or to combine information in multiple ways.
- Demographic information such as age, population, marital status, education, employment, etc. are widely available
- On the other hand, a lot of specific information may not be available, for a few reasons.
- People who live together as unmarried partners are not always accurately documented, for example.
- Some combinations of information may not be available simply because it wasn't counted.
- If information has value to a company or competitive industry, the data may not be publicly available.
- Some data is not always counted regularly.
Link to multiple statistics sources
- Statistics SourcesFollow this link for a broad collection of statistics from multiple sources, including health, education, demographics and more.
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Sources for information
- Pew Research CenterPew Research Center conducts public polling and research on many current topics in the news.
- Statistical Abstract of the United StatesA comprehensive collection of statistics on the social, political, and economic conditions of the United States, it is a snapshot of America and its people.
Part of the Database Offerings in GALILEO, Georgia’s Virtual Library.
- United States Census Quick FactsQuickFacts provides statistics for all states and counties, and for cities and towns with a population of 5,000 or more.
- American Time Use SurveyFrom the Bureau of Labor Statistics: This survey "measures the amount of time people spend doing various activities, such as paid work, childcare, volunteering, and socializing."
- Fact Sheets from the US Census Bureau LibraryFact Sheets: Learn more about specific topics at-a-glance with Census Bureau Fact Sheets. To use, click Browse by Topic or enter a topic in the search bar.
- Nielsen Social Media ReportIn the U.S., social networks and blogs reach nearly 80 percent of active U.S.. Internet users and represent the majority of Americans' time online.
- CDC Data & StatisticsData source for many aspects of health and illness.
Research process & searching strategically
- Use search engines and chase citations. You may hit some dead ends.
- Look for primary sources and information published by organizations.
- Build profiles piece by piece--some combinations of information may not exist.
