{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,11]],"date-time":"2026-06-11T23:01:35Z","timestamp":1781218895316,"version":"3.54.1"},"reference-count":64,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2018,1,1]],"date-time":"2018-01-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1514764800000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100000269","name":"Economic and Social Research Council","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["1088315"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["1088315"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100000269","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Big Data &amp; Society"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2018,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Although the rapid growth of digital data and computationally advanced methods in the social sciences has in many ways exacerbated tensions between the so-called \u2018quantitative\u2019 and \u2018qualitative\u2019 approaches, it has also been provocatively argued that the ubiquity of digital data, particularly online data, finally allows for the reconciliation of these two opposing research traditions. Indeed, a growing number of \u2018qualitatively\u2019 inclined researchers are beginning to use computational techniques in more critical, reflexive and hermeneutic ways. However, many of these claims for \u2018quali-quantitative\u2019 methods hinge on a single technique: the network graph. Networks are relational, allow for the questioning of rigid categories and zooming from individual cases to patterns at the aggregate. While not refuting the use of networks in these studies, this paper argues that there must be other ways of doing quali-quantitative methods. We first consider a phenomenon which falls between quantitative and qualitative traditions but remains elusive to network graphs: the spread of information on Twitter. Through a case study of debates about nuclear power on Twitter, we develop a novel data visualisation called the modulation sequencer which depicts the spread of URLs over time and retains many of the key features of networks identified above. Finally, we reflect on the role of such tools for the project of quali-quantitative methods.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1177\/2053951718772137","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2018,6,19]],"date-time":"2018-06-19T05:54:08Z","timestamp":1529387648000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":17,"title":["Quali-quantitative methods beyond networks: Studying information diffusion on Twitter with the Modulation Sequencer"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"5","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9622-9915","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"David","family":"Moats","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"TEMA, Link\u00f6ping University, Link\u00f6ping, Sweden"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2677-3864","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Erik","family":"Borra","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Journalism and New Media, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2018,6,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"bibr1-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.7208\/chicago\/9780226222738.001.0001"},{"key":"bibr2-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/204500"},{"key":"bibr3-2053951718772137","volume":"36","author":"Abildgaard MS","year":"2017","journal-title":"EASST Review"},{"key":"bibr4-2053951718772137","first-page":"177","volume-title":"The Social After Gabriel Tarde: Debates and Assessments","author":"Barry A","year":"2010"},{"key":"bibr5-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/CBO9781139198752"},{"key":"bibr6-2053951718772137","volume-title":"The Meme Machine","author":"Blackmore S","year":"2000"},{"key":"bibr7-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/2053951714543908"},{"key":"bibr8-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/2053951717736337"},{"key":"bibr9-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1108\/AJIM-09-2013-0094"},{"key":"bibr10-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/1369118X.2012.678878"},{"key":"bibr11-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"boyd d, Golder S and Lotan G (2010) Tweet, tweet, retweet: Conversational aspects of retweeting on Twitter. 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Positioning Big Data within the ethnographic space.\n                      Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference\n                      2013(1): 62\u201373.","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1559-8918.2013.00006.x"},{"key":"bibr15-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1057\/9780230371934_13"},{"key":"bibr16-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4135\/9781446212165.n33"},{"key":"bibr17-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/2095325"},{"key":"bibr18-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/1461444809342738"},{"key":"bibr19-2053951718772137","unstructured":"Gillespie T (2012) Can an algorithm be wrong?\n                      Limn\n                      2. 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AAAI.","DOI":"10.1609\/icwsm.v4i1.14021"},{"key":"bibr30-2053951718772137","unstructured":"Levenshtein VI (1966) Binary codes capable of correcting deletions, insertions, and reversals.\n                      Doklady Physics: A Journal of the Russian Academy of Sciences\n                      10(8): 707\u2013710."},{"key":"bibr31-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1467-954X.2012.02121.x"},{"key":"bibr32-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/1467-954X.12314"},{"issue":"1","key":"bibr33-2053951718772137","first-page":"1","volume":"1","author":"Marres N","year":"2015","journal-title":"Social Media + Society"},{"key":"bibr34-2053951718772137","first-page":"922","volume-title":"Making Things Public: Atmospheres of Democracy","author":"Marres N","year":"2005"},{"key":"bibr35-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/17530350.2013.772070"},{"key":"bibr36-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/1940161212474472"},{"key":"bibr37-2053951718772137","volume-title":"Distant Reading","author":"Moretti F","year":"2013"},{"key":"bibr38-2053951718772137","unstructured":"Moats D (2015)\n                      Decentring Devices: Developing Quali-Quantitative Techniques for Studying Controversies with Online Platforms\n                      . Phd Thesis, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK."},{"issue":"2","key":"bibr39-2053951718772137","first-page":"31","volume":"44","author":"Munk AK","year":"2015","journal-title":"Ethnologia Europaea"},{"key":"bibr40-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0163443711404744"},{"key":"bibr41-2053951718772137","volume-title":"Twitter: Social Communication in the Twitter Age","author":"Murthy D","year":"2013"},{"key":"bibr42-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/1369118X.2012.696123"},{"key":"bibr43-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1089\/big.2016.0050"},{"key":"bibr44-2053951718772137","volume-title":"Weapons of math destruction: How Big Data increases inequality and threatens democracy","author":"O\u2019Neil C","year":"2016"},{"key":"bibr45-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/13645579.2013.774172"},{"key":"bibr46-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.5210\/fm.v17i11.4199"},{"key":"bibr47-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/2053951715614980"},{"key":"bibr48-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.7551\/mitpress\/8718.001.0001"},{"key":"bibr49-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1088\/0963-6625\/9\/2\/304"},{"key":"bibr50-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Romero DM, Meeder B and Kleinberg J (2011) Differences in the mechanics of information diffusion across topics: Idioms, political hashtags, and complex contagion on twitter. In:\n                      Proceedings of the 20th international conference on World Wide Web\n                      , Hyderabad, India, 28 March\u20131 April, pp. 695\u2013704. New York: ACM.","DOI":"10.1145\/1963405.1963503"},{"key":"bibr51-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.5749\/minnesota\/9780816670048.001.0001"},{"key":"bibr52-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0263276413486160"},{"key":"bibr53-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4135\/9780857020093"},{"key":"bibr54-2053951718772137","volume-title":"Data, Now Bigger and Better!","author":"Seaver N","year":"2015"},{"key":"bibr55-2053951718772137","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Taylor EB and Horst HA (2013) From street to satellite: Mixing methods to understand mobile money users. In:\n                      Ethnographic praxis in industry conference proceedings\n                      , EPIC, London September 2013, pp. 88\u2013102. 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