Curtin University Cheng Mingming: Beyond Data Sources — Three Methodological Pathways for Social Media Research
Topic:Beyond Data Sources — Three Methodological Pathways for Social Media Research
Speaker:Professor Cheng Mingming, Department of Marketing, Curtin University, Australia
Moderator:Associate Professor Liu Xiaoyan, Institute of Economic and Management, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics
Time:October 22 (Thursday), 10:45-12:00, 2026
Venue:Room 1211, Gezhi Building, Liulin Campus, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics
Organizer:Institute of Economic and Management, Research Office
Speaker's Biography:
Professor Cheng Mingming is a Doctor of Management, doctoral supervisor, and Professor in the Department of Marketing at Curtin University, Australia. He also serves as the Director of the Curtin University Social Media Research Centre. His primary research areas include digital marketing (social media marketing), the sharing economy, sustainable tourism, and big data science. He has published over 90 high-quality academic articles and serves as an Associate Editor for *Annals of Tourism Research* and *Tourism Management Perspectives*, as well as a member of the editorial boards for Tourism Management and Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research.
Professor Cheng is dedicated to using social media and big data to provide solutions for real-world problems in marketing, tourism, sustainable development, public policy, and social welfare. He particularly focuses on vulnerable and marginalized groups, promoting more inclusive and socially responsible business practices and social change. He has received several prestigious awards, including the Australian National Outstanding Young Scientist Award, the Most Promising Young Scholar by The Australian, and the Spanish Torch Award for his contributions to industry through academic research. Additionally, Professor Cheng actively engages in mainstream media and public communication and was selected as one of the "TOP 5 (Humanities and Social Sciences)" by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), recognizing him as one of the most influential young scholars and thinkers in Australia.
Abstract:
Social media has become a crucial space for people to access information, express opinions, and engage in interactions. The continuous generation of text, images, videos, and interaction records on these platforms provides a rich source of data for analyzing consumer psychology and behavior. The authentic context of communication and interaction also offers opportunities for conducting field experiments and recruiting research participants. This lecture focuses on "how to utilize social media for research" and introduces three methodological pathways.
1. Social Media Data Analysis:This approach involves the comprehensive analysis of multimodal data (text, images, videos, and interaction records) on social media platforms to identify consumer attitudes, emotions, and behavioral characteristics.
2. Social Media Field Experiments:In this method, information content or presentation is manipulated within the real platform context. Through random assignment and comparison of experimental conditions, the impact of these manipulations on user behavior is tested.
3. Social Media Participant Recruitment:This pathway leverages social media platforms and online communities to identify and screen potential research participants, facilitating the acquisition of samples for interviews, surveys, and longitudinal studies.
The lecture aims to elucidate the multifaceted research functions of social media as a data source, experimental field, and recruitment channel, thereby broadening researchers' understanding of its methodological applications.
