What types of data does SOMAR accept?

SOMAR accepts a wide variety of social media and related digital trace data, including but not limited to:
  • Social Media Content: Posts, comments, images, reactions, and metadata from platforms like Facebook, Instagram, X, Reddit, and more.
  • Public Data: Aggregated or anonymized social media data that can be made publicly available for research.
  • Restricted/Controlled Data: Sensitive or identifiable datasets and platform-provided research data that require secure access and special agreements.
  • Behavioral and Engagement Data: Interaction logs, clickstreams, shares, and likes.
  • Survey or Linked Data: Data linked to social media profiles with proper consent, or survey-based studies about digital behavior.
  • Machine Learning Outputs: Training data, prediction results, or annotated datasets related to social media analysis.
  • Other Digital Trace Data: Online forum posts, app usage, and similar digital footprints.
Data must adhere to appropriate privacy, ethical, and legal standards and must not violate platform terms or user consent agreements.If you have a dataset you’d like to deposit in SOMAR, you can reach out to somar-help@umich.edu for guidance on submission procedures and requirements.