Moffa Grazia, Di Gregorio Marco
Department of Political and Social Studies, University of Salerno, Salerno, Italy.
Department of Culture, Politics and Society, University of Turin, Turin, Italy.
Front Sociol. 2023 Feb 24;8:1144507. doi: 10.3389/fsoc.2023.1144507. eCollection 2023.
The widespread use of digital communication technologies has created new opportunities for social research. In this paper, we explore the limits and potentials of using messaging and social media apps as tools for qualitative research. Building upon our research on Italian migration to Shanghai, we discuss in detail the methodological choice of using WeChat for teamwork, remote sampling strategies, and conducting interviews. The paper highlights the benefits that researchers may have from employing the same technology that the studied community uses in their daily life as a research tool, and advocates for a flexible approach to research that adapts its tools and methods to the specific requirements and characteristics of the fieldwork. In our case, this strategy allowed us to emphasize that WeChat represents a digital migratory space which played a crucial role in understanding and making of the Italian in China.
数字通信技术的广泛应用为社会研究创造了新机遇。在本文中，我们探讨了将即时通讯和社交媒体应用用作定性研究工具的局限性与潜力。基于我们对意大利人移民至上海的研究，我们详细讨论了使用微信进行团队协作、远程抽样策略及开展访谈的方法选择。本文强调了研究人员将被研究群体在日常生活中使用的相同技术用作研究工具可能获得的益处，并主张采用一种灵活的研究方法，使其工具和方法适应实地调查的特定要求和特点。就我们的案例而言，这一策略使我们能够强调微信代表了一个数字迁移空间，它在理解和塑造在华意大利人方面发挥了关键作用。
