A vinyl record store. Image by Darya Sannikova under Pexels license.

How can you tell if a song is popular?

Two important measures of musical success in the US are Billboard magazine’s charts, which compare the current popularity of songs and albums, and the Recording Industry Association of America’s certification program, which aims to measure total sales. The RIAA awards the famous gold and platinum records.

Changes in technology often change these calculations. In a new article, Vincent Carter of Emory University showed how one change helped shape the development of R&B and hip-hop music.

Before the 1990s, Billboard magazine measured record sales by calling up record stores and asking for their sales numbers. This changed with SoundScan, which automatically recorded data using point-of-sale scanners. This is often praised for making charts more accurate. However, especially in the early days, not all stores had scanner technology. This was especially true of stores that served predominantly Black customers, the core audience for hip-hop and R&B music.

Carter argues that this technological disparity affected which R&B and hip-hop songs charted. To test this idea, he used data from two sources: Billboard’s charts, and the RIAA’s certification program. The Billboard charts are a relative measure of a song’s popularity at a specific time, either overall or in a specific category (in this case, R&B/Hip-Hop). The RIAA certification program is an absolute measure of how successful a song has been over time. Therefore, Carter used certification as a measure of a song’s success over time, while the charts are more short-term. In this study, Billboard’s Pop chart was used to measure a song’s mainstream popularity, while the R&B/Hip-Hop chart measured a song’s genre-specific popularity.

Before SoundScan, #1 songs that stayed for a longer time on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart and the more general “Pop” chart were more likely to be certified. After SoundScan, however, this relationship changed. Under the new system, songs that went to #1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart but stayed for a shorter period of time were more likely to be certified.but stayed for a shorter period of time were more likely to be certified. However, certified songs were still more likely to spend longer on the Pop chart.

With this change, stores that served Black African-American customers had less impact on the sales numbers, though they still drove genre-specific chart performance. The overall influence of Black consumers on the chart therefore declined thanks to SoundScan’s technological disparity. The R&B/Hip-Hop charts were still measuring a song’s performance on R&B and hip-hop radio, better capturing Black audiences’ taste. Over time, genre-specific chart performance became “decoupled” or split off from the sales numbers.

Carter argues that this disempowered Black audiences, affecting which artists became successful and which types of music were made.

A slogan on the side of a truck. A U.S. flag is superimposed over an outline of the United States, above a large red banner emblazoned with the words “Made in America. This image, titled “Made in America Product Showcase,” is attributed to The White House and is marked with Public Domain Mark 1.0.

Contemporary American politics is filled with division and conflict. In this polarized climate, attention to truth and lies remains a central focus of public conversation. Concerns about and accusations of “misinformation” and “fake news” circulate frequently, giving rise to important questions. How important are evidence and facts in determining people’s support of politicians’ statements? And are liberals or conservatives more committed to the truth?

A recent study helps to answer these questions. Minjae Kim and colleagues researched how American voters evaluated factually untrue statements given by prominent politicians from the Republican and Democratic parties. Through online surveys, the researchers found that Americans across political lines had a pronounced tendency to support statements by politicians from their own party even after being told that the statements had been proven false.Americans across political lines had a pronounced tendency to support statements by politicians from their own party even after being told that the statements had been proven false.

These respondents justified accepting false statements in moral terms, answering that it’s more important their favored politician “sent the right message about American priorities” – in other words, that the ends justify the means. However, when judging statements by politicians from the opposing party (e.g. when Democrats were judging false statements from Republicans), respondents instead emphasized the importance of objective evidence and accountability. Again, the researchers found these patterns held for both Republican and Democratic voters.

This study reveals that facts tend to carry less weight than a person’s community and political commitments and how these shape American beliefs regarding “deeper truths” about political issues.

A woman holding two phones, one with “1000 likes” and the other with none.” “Person Holding Smartphones” by Kaboompics.com is licensed under Pexels License.

Women’s voices remain underrepresented in many types of online political participation,  even as digital platforms expand. But why do women participate less actively in these conversations than men? New research from Zhaodi Chen and Junghun Han investigates one potential factor: negative feedback mechanisms like “dislikes” and comment deletion.

Chen and Han conducted a survey experiment, in which research participants were presented with hypothetical scenarios. In these scenarios, participants were asked to imagine posting their opinions on COVID-19 social distancing anonymously in a public online forum. Depending on the scenario, the participant’s contribution faced either 1) negative feedback in the form of “dislikes” – such as downvotes on Reddit or dislikes on YouTube – or 2) complete deletion, such as on Wikipedia. The findings are revealing: for women, the possibility of their post being disliked did not deter them, but the risk of deletion significantly lowered their willingness to participatefor women, the possibility of their post being disliked did not deter them, but the risk of deletion significantly lowered their willingness to participate. For men, neither dislikes nor deletions significantly impacted their participation.

While past studies have shown that women face greater hostility in digital spaces, Chen and Han’s results suggest that the platforms’ engagement designs may also contribute to the gender gap online. Women’s reluctance to post when their contributions risk erasure shows how certain feedback mechanisms may unintentionally silence women and reinforce gender disparities in public discourse. Rethinking the use of these negative feedback mechanisms could be a step toward more inclusive online discussions.

An older man helping a young girl play pool. “Girl Playing Pool” by Rene Terp is licensed under is licensed under CC BY 2.0 under Pexels License.

Wealth distribution in the US has been a widely debated topic, often focusing on the differences between generations or between the richest and the poorest. Two generations that have appeared the most in these debates are Baby Boomers and Millennials, with Baby Boomers being considered wealthier than Millennials. But is this really true?

Rob Gruijters, Zachary Van Winkle, and Anette Eva Fasang found in their recent study that although less wealthy Baby Boomers fared better than Millennials when they were at the same period in life, the wealthiest Millennials are actually better off than Baby Boomers were. Using national longitudinal data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, they compared life trajectories for 6000 late Baby Boomers (born 1957-1964) with those of 6000 early Millennials (1980-84). Specifically, they looked at their young adult years, ages 18-35, and their changes in their work and wealth in these challenging years. 

One of the most common ways of assessing wealth is home ownership. The researchers found that 62% percent of Boomers owned homes at the age of 35, but only 49% of Millennials did. A potential reason why is the amount of debt (e.g., the rising costs of college) with 14% of Millennials having more debt than assets, as compared to 8.7% of Boomers. In addition to rising costs and larger debts, only 7.3% of Millennials entered high-status jobs (such as law and medicine) after college, as compared to 17% of Baby Boomers, instead entering other professional roles like social work and teaching or in service and retail sector jobs. Alongside different job trajectories, Baby Boomers also tended to marry at a younger age – all of which impact the ability to purchase a home.

As a result, when Millennials and Baby Boomers were hypothetically at the same age, the wealthiest Millennials, who ended up with middle-class life trajectories (college education, graduate level jobs, and started families later on) had more wealth than the wealthiest Baby Boomers. The poorest Millennials, who had working-class careers, had less wealth than the poorest Baby Boomers, and sometimes even had negative wealthThe poorest Millennials, who had working-class careers, had less wealth than the poorest Baby Boomers, and sometimes even had negative wealth, which was less common among Boomers. 

The circumstances that the Baby Boomers and Millennials grew up in have led to different life trajectories for people on the highest and lowest financial extremes. As costs of living grow increasingly higher, from daily needs like groceries to housing stability and ownership, the impacts of this wealth disparity will have further disproportionate consequences for people who are the most vulnerable. 

A crowd of protestors hold various signs, including “Black Lives Matter” and “Yellow Peril Supports Black Power.” “Racism is th Deadliest Virus” by Backbone Campaign is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Social media is an important tool for social movements. Instagram, one of the most popular social media apps, is frequently used by activists to document events, spread political messages, solicit donations, and more. The authors of a new study argue that Instagram resembles a digital “community bulletin board.”

Turning back to 2020 and 2021, racial justice movements faced multiple crises. The murder of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota, triggered a worldwide upswell of racial justice protests. At the same time, political leaders and others in the U.S. associated the COVID-19 pandemic with Asian Americans, leading to a rise in hate crimes.

Focusing on this pivotal time, Rachel Kuo and Sarah Jackson examined how Black and Asian activists in two regions of the United States used Instagram to invoke memories of past struggles in order to articulate their visions for the future in their recent article. They collected social media posts by Black and Asian activist groups in the midwestern and southeastern United States and found that the activists emphasized historical memories of cross-racial solidarity in order to fight back against perceptions of Black-Asian conflict.

Despite its popularity, the authors say that relatively little research has been done on Instagram. In part, this is because Instagram’s image-based format makes it harder to analyze data in comparison to text-based social media. In addition, the authors say, Instagram is often stereotyped as being less “serious” than other platforms. The researchers argue that Instagram’s goal of helping people collect their personal memories to build a shared memory within social movements provides a unique opportunity for research. 

As Black and Asian racial justice activists were confronted with multiple crises in 2020-21, they drew on memories of past moments of cross-racial solidarity among activists. For example, one post reinterpreted a slogan first developed in the 1960s: “Yellow Peril Supports Black Power.” Other posts highlighted the history of solidarity between Black and Asian activists, including meetings between activists and historic textshighlighted the history of solidarity between Black and Asian activists, including meetings between activists and historic texts. Another talked about the friendship between Asian-American activist Yuri Kochiyama and Malcolm X, and still another promoted a reading list of texts about Black and Asian-American feminism.

According to the authors, social media enabled activists to share information about the history of cross-racial solidarity outside of the traditional media. This independence empowered activists to emphasize solidarity against oppression over racial conflict. The researchers argue that, while lots of organizing still takes place in the real world, digital messaging enables activists to create and share new ways of understanding the world that aren’t dependent upon traditional media platforms.

Two parents sitting watching their child play in a box. Image by cottonbrostudio under Pexels license.

There never seems to be enough time to sleep nowadays, even more so for parents – and especially for mothers. This is one of the findings of new research by sociologists that examines how paid work and parenting impact health and physical activity among married or cohabitating adults. 

Patrick Krueger and his colleagues’ study analyzes patterns of sleep duration and physical activity from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), a huge and ongoing project that has data on a wide variety of health-related topics for a vast cross-section of America. They were especially interested in how women’s and men’s ability to sleep and exercise is impacted by their work and family lives.

The research revealed two main findings. The first relates to work. The researchers found that when parents worked over 40 hours, their sleep duration expectedly decreased but their physical activity stayed steady or even increased. The researchers suggest that the reason for this may be that as men and women worked full time, they made more intentional efforts to make time for physical activity to try and offset the health risks of long working and parenting. 

The second finding is that parenting children at any age group tends to decrease sleep duration, with those with children aged 2 and younger having the greatest sleep losses. However, having children doesn’t mean parents get less exercise. Parents sometimes simply shift their exercise routines to do physical activities that work well with their kids, like walking or playing with little ones, or playing sports and biking with older kids.

Among other things, this project emphasizes the importance of improving policy efforts to support parents by improving workplace parental leave policies and improving spending on and access to services that support parents caring for dependent children.

Barbed and razor wire, chain link fence, and a security camera in a somber gray. Image by Pixabay under Pexels license.

Youth (10-17 year-olds) today who commit crimes in the United States are typically processed through the juvenile justice system because of the Juvenile Justice Reform Act. Initially passed in 1974, the law set some common standards for separating youth and adults in the justice system  In many states, however, minors can still be processed and incarcerated as adults due to the severity of their crimes – leading to potentially serious negative physical, financial, and emotional effects for these youth. 

Researchers Megan Kurlychek, Matthew Kijowski, and Alysha Gagnon analyzed a group of New York youth, aged 16 and 17, who were incarcerated as adults. These youth were tracked for 24 years after their initial arrest, with researchers monitoring their subsequent criminal histories. 

youths who were processed and incarcerated with adults “recidivate more often, more quickly, and commit more total offenses” They found that youths who were processed and incarcerated with adults “recidivate more often, more quickly, and commit more total offenses” compared to a matched sample of youth not incarcerated with adults. To help explain why, the authors referred to studies of adolescent brain development and socioemotional regulation. When housed with adults, they are less likely to form age-appropriate social connections and achieve early milestones. As a result, their odds of continuing illegal and antisocial behaviors into their young adult years increased. Additionally, the researchers found that the formal application of the “youthful offender status” label to their cases – rather than the adult-offender label –  reduced recidivism and removed the public stigma of an adult criminal record.

Overall, this research 1) supports the notion that treating youths as adults in the criminal justice process is harmful to them and 2) advocates for the use of age-appropriate alternatives to prevent further harm and benefit broader society.

A woman wearing a mask shopping at grocery store. Image by Anna Shvets under Pexels license.

Psychology research suggests that crisis and uncertainty lead humans to think in stark binaries, which fuel division and polarization. We saw this early in the COVID-19 shutdown, as public health requirements stoked cultural divisions over personal autonomy and governmental control. In popular discourse, concern for public health and, conversely, focus on private sector well-being, became proxies for partisan affiliation. However, a recent study of business owners by the sociologist Ioana Sendroiu reveals how moral concerns supersede seemingly cut and dry political divisions between public health and profit motives. Using interviews of small business owners conducted at the beginning of the spring 2020 lockdown, Sendroiu demonstrates how business owners negotiate uncharted moral minefields in surprising ways. 

As a global public anxiously adjusted to the new pandemic reality in the spring of 2020, Sendroiu conducted sixty remote interviews with small business owners in North America. Their businesses included gyms, spas, wholesale distributors, retail, and food service, all of which followed public health mandates.

One of the main findings of Sendroiu’s study is that, in contrast to popular conceptions of private sector “profit-first” approaches, small business owners viewed public health and organizational survival as inseparable issues.  Saying his business had a responsibility to the community, for example, one California small business owner closed before stay-at-home orders went into effect. Multiple respondents suggested that being a good business owner meant prioritizing their employees’ health. Businesspeople from Georgia to Manitoba shared examples of noncompliant customers who openly defied public health restrictions and quarantine measures. In the face of uncertainty and a public health emergency, closing up became the only option to prioritize employees’ wellbeing. In all of these examples, doing the right thing was just as important as making money.

Not all businesspeople cited altruistic reasons for closing. Many adopted pragmatic logics that recognized the changing business model of pandemic-era commerce. Having experienced a decline in business and revenue in the weeks leading up to the shutdown, some businesses reduced operations or shifted to entirely online operations. Even in these cases, however, small business owners often talked about the moral pressures and responsibilities that operated alongside financial pressures. As one California business owner who mentioned revenue loss as her primary motivation put it: “we don’t want to be a part of the problem.” 

Amidst the uncertainty, fear, and polarization of 2020, business leaders made unprecedented, moral decisions that would affect the health of others. And  their decisions as to whether or not to close their business played out in less partisan and polarized ways than the sensationalized coverage of politics would suggest. According to Sendroiu, crises, or “unsettled times marked by widespread uncertainty,” such as the Coronavirus pandemic reveal how uncertainty can produce multiple, competing interpretations of reality, and lead people to choices that are less self-interested (and more altruistic) than we might otherwise assume or expect.

A pharmacist wearing a white coat working at their lab station. Image by Polina Tankilevitch under Pexels license.

Over 500,000 Americans have died as a result of opioid overdose since 1999. Policymakers, police, and medical professionals are all trying to understand and prevent overdose. For example, pharmacists now use computer programs that track how often patients refill their prescriptions called ‘Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs’ (PDMPs). 

Because these prescription tracking programs were designed for law enforcement, some worry they might be subtly pressuring pharmacists to be more focused on policing than providing patients with care. Supporters of these PDMPs say they can eliminate biases by automating decisions about prescription eligibility and giving pharmacists a formal justification to turn patients away.

Elizabeth Chiarello interviewed 118 community-placed pharmacists to learn how the new PDMP databases affected their work routines and relationships with other professionals.  

Chiarello found that as pharmacists used the PDMPs, they reoriented their work around crime and the legal system, rather than health care logics. This shifted their treatment of prescription misuse from a rehabilitative one to a more punitive one. She therefore describes PDMPs as ‘Trojan Horse Technologies,’ based on the classic story of the soldiers hidden inside the giant horse that the Greeks gifted to the Trojans; 

“Whereas the Greeks leapt out of the horse to massacre their enemies,” Chiarello writes, “the criminal-legal logics embedded in the PDMP emerge slowly as pharmacists use PDMPs in daily practice,” which gradually transforms the pharmacy field.  

Pharmacists are now expected to act as an extension of law enforcement, reporting patients and restricting their ability to access medicine rather than helping them get the treatment they need. 

Through the adoption of PDMPs, law enforcement may have subtly deputized pharmacists to criminalize prescription misuse. Although pharmacists have historically resisted this role, PDMPs have become systematized and made pharmacists more comfortable policing their patients. Chiarello concludes that pharmacists would be less inclined to police patients, and more inclined to care for them, if they had access to different treatment tools, such as the ability to provide medications for substance use treatment under a physician’s supervision. 

A vinyl record store. Image by Darya Sannikova under Pexels license.

How can you tell if a song is popular?

Two important measures of musical success in the US are Billboard magazine’s charts, which compare the current popularity of songs and albums, and the Recording Industry Association of America’s certification program, which aims to measure total sales. The RIAA awards the famous gold and platinum records.

Changes in technology often change these calculations. In a new article, Vincent Carter of Emory University showed how one change helped shape the development of R&B and hip-hop music.

Before the 1990s, Billboard magazine measured record sales by calling up record stores and asking for their sales numbers. This changed with SoundScan, which automatically recorded data using point-of-sale scanners. This is often praised for making charts more accurate. However, especially in the early days, not all stores had scanner technology. This was especially true of stores that served predominantly Black customers, the core audience for hip-hop and R&B music.

Carter argues that this technological disparity affected which R&B and hip-hop songs charted. To test this idea, he used data from two sources: Billboard’s charts, and the RIAA’s certification program. The Billboard charts are a relative measure of a song’s popularity at a specific time, either overall or in a specific category (in this case, R&B/Hip-Hop). The RIAA certification program is an absolute measure of how successful a song has been over time. Therefore, Carter used certification as a measure of a song’s success over time, while the charts are more short-term. In this study, Billboard’s Pop chart was used to measure a song’s mainstream popularity, while the R&B/Hip-Hop chart measured a song’s genre-specific popularity.

Before SoundScan, #1 songs that stayed for a longer time on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart and the more general “Pop” chart were more likely to be certified. After SoundScan, however, this relationship changed. Under the new system, songs that went to #1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart but stayed for a shorter period of time were more likely to be certified.but stayed for a shorter period of time were more likely to be certified. However, certified songs were still more likely to spend longer on the Pop chart.

With this change, stores that served Black African-American customers had less impact on the sales numbers, though they still drove genre-specific chart performance. The overall influence of Black consumers on the chart therefore declined thanks to SoundScan’s technological disparity. The R&B/Hip-Hop charts were still measuring a song’s performance on R&B and hip-hop radio, better capturing Black audiences’ taste. Over time, genre-specific chart performance became “decoupled” or split off from the sales numbers.

Carter argues that this disempowered Black audiences, affecting which artists became successful and which types of music were made.