Emerging Trends and Challenges in Social Science Data Analytics
The Department of Education, Virtual University of Pakistan, successfully hosted a webinar titled “Emerging Trends and Challenges in Social Science Data Analytics” on Tuesday, 20 January 2026, via Zoom, from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM. The event was organized under the leadership of Dr. Sumbal Tahir (Chief Organizer), with Dr. Hina serving as the Coordinator and Dr. Nabeela contributing as the Resource Person. The webinar was smoothly moderated by Ms. Ayesha Kiran and witnessed enthusiastic participation from 78–90 attendees, reflecting strong academic and professional interest in social science data analytics.
The session featured two distinguished speakers. Prof. Dr. Maiga Chang, Full Professor at the School of Computing and Information Systems, Athabasca University, Canada, and Honorary Chair Professor at National Dong Hwa University, Taiwan, shared global perspectives on emerging trends and innovations in data analytics. Dr. Nauman Ahmad, Data Analyst at the Ministry of Commerce, Government of Pakistan, and PhD in Econometrics from PIDE, Islamabad, presented practical insights through real-world case studies. The speakers highlighted how the rapid growth of digital data from surveys, social media, administrative records, and digital platforms has transformed social science research, while also addressing critical challenges related to ethics, methodology, data privacy, and responsible data interpretation.
The webinar aimed to introduce recent trends in social science data analytics, explore ethical and methodological challenges, share best practices, and promote data literacy and research capacity among social scientists. An interactive question-and-answer (Q&A) session further enriched the discussion, enabling participants to engage directly with the speakers. Overall, the webinar served as a valuable scholarly platform, fostering meaningful dialogue and strengthening research-oriented competencies in social science research.