Call: PaCSS 2021

We are pleased to announce that the fourth annual Politics and Computational Social Science (PaCSS) conference will take place virtually, August 9-13. To accommodate the virtual format, the conference will consist of a series of modular, daily sessions taking place between 11 am - 3 pm EDT. Sessions will include a mix of panels, mentoring groups, and semi-structured networking. We especially encourage submissions around COVID-19 and the long term impacts of racial disparities; and will create opportunities for informal networking regarding these topics. 

In light of the many personal and professional impacts felt by members of our community, PaCSS 2021 will have an explicit focus on supporting the scholarly development of junior computational social scientists. We hope that you will join us to share your work and support the continued growth of our diverse, interdisciplinary community of people working in industry, academia, government and nonprofits.

To submit your work for consideration at PaCSS 2021, please complete this form by Friday, May 21 (link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScnu43pDHB6HPOAjhgsW8XHviJ_mowoedbazeF99lhHWECnSQ/viewform).  Submissions should include an abstract for a single proposed talk; the program committee will organize accepted submissions into panels. To get a sense for the breadth and diversity of content presented at PaCSS, you may wish to take a look at the PaCSS 2020 program.

If you are willing to serve as a mentor or in another role supporting the scholarly development of junior computational social scientists, please complete this form by Friday, May 21 (link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeyGNslFIgE0lzW5PycNYHtHRSTUBNmA20q9tvVMwk9HGTm_Q/viewform). These roles involve an approximately one hour time commitment and do not require attendance at the full conference.

Please email politics.css@gmail.com with any questions.

About PaCSS

The data and methodologies available to social scientists have exploded with the emergence of archives of digital data collection, large scale online experimentation, and innovative uses of simulation. The analysis of these data requires more complex methodological approaches and greater computational complexity than the approaches that have dominated the study of politics for the last 50 years.

The analysis of digital data offers the potential for rich insights into society at scale, but it also introduces new ethical and infrastructural challenges. In parallel, the information and communication technologies that have driven this data revolution are also driving changes in politics, around the world, that require study.

In order to understand the political world, it is increasingly important to gain access to the political communication and behavior occurring online. PaCSS, started in 2018 with about 150 attendees, offers a forum for computational social science research in this emerging space. Examples of relevant topics/approaches include: analysis of social media; text analysis; use of finely granular geographic data; and large scale online experimentation. Deeply committed to elevating the voices and work of populations which are underrepresented in computational spaces, PaCSS actively seek, welcome, and encourage people from all fields, industries, backgrounds, experiences, and identities to submit their work and attend. 

PaCSS 2021 is co-chaired by David Lazer and Sarah Shugars, and supported by an organizing committee of: Michael Bailey, Janet Box-Steffensmeier,  Ceren Budak, Deen Freelon, Margaret Foster, Fabrizio Gilardi, Sandra González-Bailón, Layla Hashemi, Helen Margetts, Ericka Menchen-Trevino, Juergen Pfeffer, Derek Ruths, Kelsey Shoub, Alyssa Smith, Zachary Steinert-Threlkeld, Talia Stroud, Rebekah Tromble, Joshua A. Tucker, Jennifer Victor and Nora Webb Williams.