Shared secrets: Web 2.0 and research in Social Sciences

Abstract

Web 2.0 represents a revolution in terms of the possibilities it offers for facilitating communication and collaboration between users – something that has become increasingly common in the world of research. A mere few years ago, the information produced by scientists and scholars remained in the hands of a very limited circle of institutions and publishers, as if it were a guarded secret. Today that secret is being shouted from the rooftops and shared with the rest of the scientific community in order to make it more accessible and to allow new advances. A clear example of this can be found in the social sciences, where there is a constant increase in the production of articles and materials that in turn serve for the pursuit of further research, thereby promoting the continuous development of scientific knowledge. This new situation is being fostered by the proliferation of tools and applications that make it possible, but also by a change in mentality towards a philosophy of exchange and open access.

In this article, we will examine this phenomenon using a methodological system based on the analysis of platforms for the exchange of scientific knowledge, and especially social networks (both general and specialising in the social sciences), in order to demonstrate their potential in a society that is becoming increasingly aware of the need to overcome physical or institutional boundaries and move forward together.