Abstract
Microblogs and other social media platforms are increasingly used as sources of data for analyzing social issues and problems, and for determining appropriate public policy. Our research investigates the utility of an urban social listening approach in considering quality of life around public facilities in New York City, and the possibility of combining conventional public health data and microblogging data from Twitter to render an instructive sketch of urban neighborhoods. We demonstrate that this approach shows promise, with significant relationships between tweet scores, unemployment rates, and incidences of diabetes in the localized geographies we analyzed. While limitations exist, we provide a roadmap for future research as scholars seek to understand the health and well-being of urban populations.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge research assistance provided by the following: Alphonsus Adu-Bredu, Owen Searls, Stephanie Savir, Tatiana Marzan, Divya Gandhi, Rachel Lai, Judy Fung, Allison Curtis, Caroline Antonelli, Claudia Aliff, Rebekah Abioye, and John VanderHeide. Chris Gallegos and Noam Saragosti assisted with graphics and mapping. Special thanks go to Terri Matthews, James Russell, Margaret O’Donoghue Castillo, Frederic Bell, Ifeoma Ebo, and Allison Brown, all of the NYC DDC.
Funding
This study was funded by The New York City Department of Design and Construction (grant number 20167204516).
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Appendix 7 Missing citation for Appendix 7. Please provide.New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Community Health Survey. 2009; http://sasebiweb100. health.dohmh.nycnet/EpiQuery/CHS/index2009.html. Accessed April 1, 2018.
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Hollander, J.B., Renski, H., Foster-Karim, C. et al. Micro Quality of Life: Assessing Health and Well-Being in and around Public Facilities in New York City. Applied Research Quality Life 15, 791–812 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-019-9705-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-019-9705-9