Big Data and Their Social Impact: Preliminary Study

Abstract

Big data is the buzz-word of today, and yet their specific impact on individuals and societies remains assumed rather than fully understood. Clearly, big data and their use have already given rise to a number of questions, including those of how data can be collected and used in ethical and socially sensitive ways. Building on these points, the objective of this study was to explore how precisely big data and big data based services influence individuals and societies. This paper elaborates on individuals’ perceptions of data, especially on how they perceive the actual sharing of their data. In this way, this paper defines a value space for the social impact of big data relevant to three factors, namely the intention to share personal data, individual’s concerns, and social impact of big data.The main contribution of this study consists of the insights into the still nascent area of research that unfolds at the cross-section of social science and computer science. We expect that in the next years this area of research will gain prominence.