Opportunities and risks of big data for the methods and culture of psychological science

Abstract

The use of big data, such as large-scale observational and/or archival data, can help psychology to overcome problems with generalizability and enable the study of real-world behaviours. At the same time, big data can be overused or misapplied, which risks reintroducing issues such as an over-reliance on correlations bereft of explanatory power. It is therefore essential that psychologists consider how to leverage big data in an informed and intentional manner. In this Perspective, we describe not only the methodological contributions and limitations of big data, but also the cultural opportunities and risks these approaches evoke; that is, how big data shapes the ways in which psychologists conceptualize and tackle research questions. Of particular concern is that an increased emphasis on big data in combination with academia’s publish-or-perish incentive structure could shift the field from ‘theories-guide-data’ to ‘data-guide-theories’. To address this concern and others, we discuss how big data might be harmonized with experimental approaches, which would enable scholars to harness the power of big data while avoiding its pitfalls. Big data can address problems with generalizability and enable the study of real-world behaviours. However, the overuse of big data could lead to over-reliance on correlations bereft of explanatory power. In this Perspective, Ibasco et al. describe the methodological and cultural opportunities and risks of big data for psychological science.