PhD

Front Matter

LOST IN TRACE-LATION

An Empirical Inquiry into the Role of Theoretical Interpretation, Granularity, and Scope of Digital Trace Data

Kyle Van Gaeveren

Examination Board

Chairman
Prof. Dr. Stijn Joye	Department of Communication Sciences, Ghent University
Supervisors
Prof. Dr. Mariek Vanden Abeele	Department of Communication Sciences, Ghent University
Prof. Dr. Lieven De Marez	Department of Communication Sciences, Ghent University
Reading Committee
Prof. Dr. Els Clays	Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Ghent University
Dr. Yannick Vander Zwalmen	Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University
Dr. Susanne Baumgartner	Amsterdam School of Communication Research, University of Amsterdam
Dr. Doug Parry	Department of Communication Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Dr. Aurelio Fernández	Instituto Cultura y Sociedad, Universidad de Navarra

Acknowledgements

I’ll start this dissertation with some words of thanks for those who helped me cross the finish line.

Lieven, thank you. Thank you for bringing me on board at mict, allowing me to take my time in getting to know digital trace data, letting me practice my skills and always responding with enthusiasm when I’d present you with some new plot, insight or dashboard. Thank you for greenlighting the shift to Mariek’s ERC and this PhD trajectory.

Mariek, thank you. Thank you for considering me as your data guy for the team and giving me the confidence to trust that all other aspects of this PhD would also work out in the end. Thank you for your infectious positivity and scientific curiosity. Thank you for your patience and understanding at times when I (felt I) was lagging behind. Thank you for making time when you’d clearly forgotten my submission deadline, frantically scanning your overflowing calendar, but a few days later telling me this work was ‘defendable’.

Stephen, thank you. Thank you for being a rational, critical and honest sounding board anytime I’d feel blocked or overwhelmed by an avalanche of potential features and models, or by dreaded blank pages.

David & Sara, thank you. Thank you for giving me a sense of belonging in a team. Thank you for being there, sharing so much of this journey together, and providing me with two of the best examples of how to do all of this.

To all my mict-colleagues and ex-colleagues, thank you. Thank you for being such a diverse group, with some of the nicest, smartest, funniest people in the entire… 4th floor of De Krook. Thank you for the shared meals – with or without Tupperware –, drinks, teambuilding, quizzes, and warm welcomes whenever I passed by with Remi.

To anyone whom I’ve ever kicked a ball around with, thank you. Thank you for providing me with some much needed disconnection and distraction. Thank you in particular to Stijn & Dries for putting their time and effort into keeping AC/RAK going, and to all Ploegmoats who I’ve stubbornly convinced to keep their Friday evenings free. Thanks.

To my friends, thank you. Thanks for asking how this PhD was going, and thank you for not asking how this PhD was going. Thanks for reaching out and checking in.

To my parents, all three sets of them.

Mama & Alain, bedankt om zo’n goede zorg te dragen voor Remi, Hannah en mezelf. De tijd die ik niet altijd bij hen kon zijn, hebben jullie in een veelvoud opgevangen. Bedankt voor al jullie steun, zeker in tijden waar mijn schouders niet breed genoeg waren, mijn hoofd te veel bij dit doctoraat was, en mijn twee handen te linkshandig waren. Zonder jullie hulp hadden we geen huis om “thuis” te noemen en was dit nooit gelukt.

Papa & Klara, bedankt voor al jullie liefde en steun. Bedankt om er telkens te zijn als ik terug thuis kwam in Oostende. Bedankt om jullie nieuwsgierigheid en kritische ingesteldheid te delen. Ook al is de afstand nu wat groter, ik ben heel dankbaar jullie (digitaal) dichtbij te hebben.

Katlijne en Leon, bedankt om steeds de hele familie voorop te plaatsen. Bedankt voor alle gedeelde maaltijden en momenten, en jullie zorg voor Remi, ook op momenten waarop jullie heel wat andere zorgen hebben.

To Hannah, thank you. Thank you for repeatedly pointing out that a PhD isn’t always the best idea for everyone, and that your experiences as a doctor had made that quite clear to you. Sorry, but, well I guess I was more stubborn. Nevertheless, thank you for giving me the belief that I could handle this. Thank you for threatening to call “Diene Lieven” or Mariek whenever I felt overworked. Thank you for being there as my wife, as Remi’s mom, as my love. Ik zie je graag.

To Remi, thank you. For your love, for making me laugh and smile every single day. Thank you for putting this all in perspective.