Challenges in Creating a Data Set by Using Online Information: Analyzing Online Dating Personal Ads
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-20-2024
Department 1
Sociology
Abstract
This project’s goal was to examine whether people placing online personal ads in Singapore explicitly stated that they wanted children. With the Singapore government’s concern about the country’s low fertility rate in recent years, we wanted to find out whether these advertisers emphasized their desire for children in a relationship. As part of a statistics course assignment, we created a data set from SingaporeCupid.com. With this approach, there was no in-person interactions between advertisers and their audience or with researchers. As such, advertisers’ willingness to share their preferences was not affected by potential in-person awkwardness, judgment, or rejection. In this case study, I discuss major considerations and choices that we had to make as we extracted the information from the website. This case study is intended for researchers with basic computing skills. I paid special attention to the selection of websites and best practices to ensure that information from the website could address the research question and meet ethical standards.
Copyright Note
© 2024 SAGE Publications Ltd
DOI
10.4135/9781529684117
ISBN/ISSN
9781529684117
Recommended Citation
Phua, V., (2024). Challenges in creating a data set by using online information: analyzing online dating personal ads. In Sage Research Methods: Doing Research Online. SAGE Publications, Ltd., https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529684117