Sui W, Sui A, Rhodes RE. What to watch: Practical considerations and strategies for using YouTube for research.
Digit Health 2022;
8:20552076221123707. [PMID:
36105625 PMCID:
PMC9465614 DOI:
10.1177/20552076221123707]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
YouTube is the second-most visited webpage in the world and boasts over 2 billion
users and 500 h of videos uploaded every hour. Despite this popularity,
relatively few articles have discussed the practical use of searching and
YouTube as a research tool and source of data. The purpose of our paper is to
propose a step-by-step schematic for utilizing the YouTube platform. Our
discussions include (a) when/whether to use YouTube for research; (b) selecting
an appropriate research design; (c) how to search for YouTube data; (d) what
data can be pulled from YouTube; and (e) the contextual limitations for
interpreting YouTube data. Further, we provide practical strategies and
considerations when searching, collecting, or interpreting YouTube data. These
discussions are informed by our own work using the YouTube platform. Effective
methods used to search for YouTube data are likely to extend beyond simply
searching the platform itself; the search strategy and search results themselves
should also be documented. While not exhaustive, we feel these considerations
and strategies present themselves as a conceptual foothold for future research
using the YouTube platform.
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