ADM+S scholars share insights on data donation methods in European research visits
Author
Date 14 July 2025
Lauren Hayden, a student member of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society (ADM+S) and The University of Queensland PhD candidate, along with Professor Nicholas Carah, ADM+S Associate Investigator, have returned from a research visit in Europe to exchange ideas and insights on data donation research methods.
Data donation is an emerging research method where participants work with researchers to collect data from the digital platforms they use via screenshots, computational tools or data downloads provided by the platforms themselves (e.g., advertising targeting information or web browsing histories).
In Europe, data donation methods are flourishing because the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) entitles users to be able to access a copy of data that digital platforms collect about them. Researchers across the EU have developed novel tools, frameworks and applications for investigating data generated through data donation.
Lauren and Professor Carah engaged with international leaders in data donation at the following institutions:
Utrecht University
Visit to Utrecht University (UU), they met with Assistant Professor Laura Boeschoten and researcher Thijs Carrière for a discussion about best practice for data donation methods. Here, they presented the Australian Ad Observatory, an ADM+S-funded data donation project, to UU’s Data Quality Group, sharing insights on its methodology and findings.
University of Amsterdam
While in the Netherlands, they connected with Assistant Professor Felicia Loecherbach at the University of Amsterdam, who recently edited a special issue of Computational Communication Research about the potential of participant-centred behavioural traces.
University of Edinburgh
Through the Australian Ad Observatory, data donation has proved to be a valuable method for studying how digital platforms transform the cultural formation of advertising from static to personalised and ephemeral. Lauren and Nic presented these findings in a talk titled “Tuning, sequences, loops: Understanding the algorithmic flow of advertising on digital platforms” at an event at the University of Edinburgh. Hosted by Professor Donald Mackenzie and Dr Addie McGowan, the event shared findings from their recent project on AdTech. The presentations and discussion from the event highlighted key interrelations between the algorithmic ad models developed by digital platforms and the practices of marketing professionals managing digital advertising.
University of Naples Frederico II
Observability of digital platforms also remained a key theme in two workshops held at the University of Naples Frederico II, where Lauren and Nic were hosted by Professor Adam Arvidsson. Over four days, scholars shared perspectives on the incorporation of branding into everyday life throughout history, from domestic life in the Soviet Union, cultures of repair and innovation in Cuba, consumer activism in Italy to the broader global culture of consumption sustained by exploited labor. Lauren’s presentation, “Stuck in a loop: how platform logics construct brand cultures”, highlighted how participatory methods are useful approaches to examining the algorithmic functions of social media platforms. After the workshop, Lauren and Nic discussed the potential of data donation methods for critical research about brands and platforms with Associate Professor Massimo Airoldi who presented early findings from a donation study on brands and YouTube.
“These research visits to key institutions provided unparalleled opportunities to learn from scholars leading the way in data donation, discuss challenges, and bring new ideas for the application of data donation to the Australian context”, said Lauren
“In-person discussion opens more room for dialogue and connection than online meetings and emails. As digital platforms remain opaque to users and researchers, data donation opens possibilities for understanding the influence of algorithmic systems and the power to hold them to account.”
Lauren’s research visits were supported by ADM+S and The University of Queensland School of Communication and Arts.
