Socioinformatics: A degree program that brings technology and society together

How does the visibility of party content on TikTok change through interaction? Benjamin Stopp is investigating this question in his bachelor's thesis in socioinformatics. A degree program with great relevance for society, politics and business - because in the digital age, it is becoming increasingly important to no longer view the technological and social perspectives in isolation from each other. This is what Benjamin Stopp told us in an interview.

How did you come to choose the Socioinformatics degree program?

I was already interested in social sciences at school, but also in technology. So I thought to myself: is there a way to combine the two? Then a friend of my mother's happened to read a newspaper article about Prof. Dr. Katharina Zweig, who helped develop the degree program here at RPTU. Apparently, the two of them talked about my interests and that I was about to choose a degree course. That's how I got the tip to take a look at the Bachelor's degree course in Socioinformatics.

At first, I couldn't quite imagine what the term socioinformatics meant. But what I read about the degree program and its content sounded very interesting to me. I then spoke to students on the degree program at the information day and that's when I knew: this is it.

Socioinformatics... What exactly is it?

Socioinformatics is about linking computer science with the social sciences. This is necessary because technology and software are increasingly deeply rooted in specific social contexts and processes. In addition to the development of software, it is also about how technology and society interact with each other. The main part of the socioinformatics course is made up of 60 percent computer science, although this is more applied computer science. The remaining 40 percent is made up of various content from Sociology, Psychology, Law and Business Studies and Economics.

This gives us a good overview of the respective sciences, which helps us to understand the impact of technologies on the different areas. Working with people from these fields is also an advantage for your future career, as you fundamentally understand their motivations for making decisions. Socioinformatics specialists are, so to speak, a link that brings many disciplines together.

At the time, I compared similar degree programs at other universities and colleges, but didn't actually find anything comparable.

The Socioinformatics degree program is therefore unique in its kind, which is why it could only be at RPTU in Kaiserslautern for you. How do you like it here?

I originally come from a small town in Baden-Württemberg and to be honest, like probably many others, I didn't have a particularly good image of Kaiserslautern. But that didn't stop me from studying the degree program and moving to Kaiserslautern for it. The city is surprising, I have come to love many things here and in the surrounding area. I think the Wine Festivals are great and that the Palatinate Forest is right on my doorstep because I like to go hiking in the countryside. The CampusPlus and Unisport offers are also very diverse and RPTU is simply very well positioned in the field of computer science.

Other cities offer different opportunities, but ultimately it's the friends you make and have around you during your studies that make the difference. It doesn't matter where you do what together: for me, the people are more important and I've definitely found my friends here. At RPTU, you can feel the cohesion and that we are a community. I really like that. So it was definitely the right decision.

Now you have almost completed your studies and are writing your Bachelor's thesis. It's essentially about the TikTok algorithm and the question of how interactions influence the visibility of political party content. What exactly does your research look like? And let's be honest: how often do you watch TikTok for fun when you should actually be working?

(Benjamin laughs) I actually downloaded TikTok again especially for my bachelor's thesis. I tend to use other social media platforms, which is why it's not so difficult for me to use TikTok exclusively for my bachelor's thesis. First, I take a look at how often TikTok shows me content from a party on the "For you" page. I then use computer programs to simulate various user interactions such as likes and watch time, i.e. how long a piece of content is viewed. These interactions represent different party preferences: The more interaction, the more favored the party seems to be. And then I always look at how the frequency of content displayed changes based on user interactions and what differences there are between the parties.

Why TikTok in particular?

Because there hasn't been as much research into this compared to Facebook or X (formerly Twitter). And because TikTok is one of the social media platforms with the widest reach, especially with regard to the influence and influenceability of young people. As some of them now only obtain news via social media, political parties have also recognized this, making TikTok increasingly relevant in election campaigns.

And what comes next: Do you already have plans for what to do after your bachelor's degree?

I definitely want to stay in the field of socioinformatics and specialize. I am particularly interested in the topic of fake news, botnet activities and the systematic manipulation of discourse through coordinated interaction between foreign troll factories on social media. I am interested in how political opinions are formed, how political content is provided and how we humans consume it. Especially through generative AI, for example text, image and video generation by artificial intelligence, it is becoming increasingly important to bring the technological and social sides together and no longer look at them individually in isolation. This no longer works. Because even if something is technically well made or robust, it can have a negative impact on society.

This is precisely why we have to increasingly think about the topics together and this is what we do on the course. The Bachelor's degree course in Socioinformatics at RPTU provides a good basis for assessing the impact of technological developments on society and for delving even deeper into this area in the future.

Who is this degree program suitable for? What skills should you have?

Logical thinking is helpful, as the computer science part of the course is the largest. But basically you should have a broad interest. You don't have to have been extremely good at math at school or have had very good grades in social studies. I also had no previous knowledge of programming and computer science was not offered as a subject at my school. But if you have a real interest, you can do it - I'm sure of that. There is also a math pre-course parallel to the freshman weeks, before the lectures start. This is very helpful for the math part of your studies, so you can start from scratch in Socioinformatics.

What other tips do you have for first-year students?

Right at the beginning, find people with whom you can work on exercises together, for example. One person is better at one subject, while you have your own strengths elsewhere. This way, you complement each other really well and can support each other. My other tip is to spend a semester abroad. I was in Oulu in Finland, the northernmost major city in Europe.

Why Oulu of all places?

I knew from the start that I wanted to go north to one of the Scandinavian countries. Another important criterion was that it should be a university that has student residences for international students, like here in Kaiserslautern, so that I didn't have to look for a private residence. That narrowed down my choice and then I looked at which of the courses and study content on offer appealed to me the most. In the end it was Oulu. The cost of living in Finland is somewhat more expensive than in Germany, for example for food and drink. But at 300 euros, I actually paid about the same for a room in a hall of residence there as I did here in Kaiserslautern. And Kaiserslautern is already very cheap as far as rental costs for students are concerned.

It was a great experience that I would recommend to anyone, regardless of their degree program and regardless of whether they want to go north or south like me. You develop your social skills during your semester abroad and get to know a different country and a different culture. It's simply fun to experience university in a new place with students from different countries - and also to get to know the party life there. That's simply part of the Erasmus experience! 😊