Moscow State University of Civil Engineering
Moscow, Moscow, Russian Federation
The article examines the essential characteristics of Big Data, which open up opportunities for building predictive models of mass behavior, which makes them a sought-after tool for researching society and political processes. Currently, Big Data is not just an analytical tool, but also a resource of political influence that requires detailed study. The purpose of the study is to identify the possibilities of using big data in the political space, as well as the risks that may accompany its introduction into political processes. The article uses a set of theoretical and empirical research methods. To analyze the specifics of big data, the "5V" model was used, which allows us to comprehensively consider this technology using a systematic approach. To study the problem, an author's questionnaire was developed for an online sociological survey, which was attended by 172 respondents, students of Moscow universities. More than half of the respondents positively assess the potential of Big Data for analyzing voter preferences and optimizing public administration. At the same time, a significant proportion of neutral responses emphasize the heterogeneity of perception and the need to improve digital literacy. Among the risks, the respondents identified as the most serious: violation of the right to privacy, increased political polarization and manipulation of public opinion. Personal and systemic threats are assessed as equally dangerous. It is noteworthy that manipulation is perceived as a more obvious danger than indirect restriction of freedom of choice through personalization of content, which may indicate gaps in understanding the algorithmic mechanisms of influence. The authors identify the key problems of using Big Data in political research: inconsistency of online user behavior with real offline actions (R. Lapierre's paradox), distortions and errors at the stages of data collection and processing, as well as limitations of sources and methods of analysis. Despite the huge amount of information in big data sets, they often lack the necessary control and randomness, which makes it difficult to make correct statistical conclusions. The theoretical significance of the article consists in summarizing the works on the use of Big Data in the political sphere, in identifying the main areas of application of this technology in the political space of our country. The practical significance of the article lies in the study of the opinion of the young electorate about the possibilities and risks of using Big Data in the field of political management, as well as survey-based recommendations to government agencies in the field of personal data protection of users of public services. The article concludes that Big Data has huge opportunities to apply this technology in politics, and public awareness, in turn, generates a request for regulation of personal data protection and promotes the development of critical perception of political content, reducing vulnerability to manipulation. At the same time, the identified gaps in understanding the mechanisms of algorithmic personalization highlight the need to develop digital literacy and transparency in the use of big data for political purposes.
Big Data, political management, political processes, digitalization of politics, digital literacy, electoral processes and technologies
1. Bazhanov V.A. Iskusstvennyi intellekt, tekhnologii big data (bol'shikh dannykh) i osobennosti sovremennogo politicheskogo protsessa [Artificial intelligence, big data technologies and features of the modern political process]. Filosofiya. Zhurnal Vysshei shkoly ehkonomiki [Philosophy. Journal of the Higher School of Economics]. 2023, V. 7, I. 3, pp. 193-210.
2. Volodenkov S.V. Tehnologii Big Data v sovremennyh politicheskih processah: cifrovye vyzovy i ugrozy [Big Data technologies in modern political processes: digital challenges and threats]. Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Filosofija. Sociologija. Politologija [Bulletin of Tomsk State University. Philosophy. Sociology. Political science]. 2018, I. 44, pp. 205-212.
3. Volodenkov S.V. Total Data kak fenomen formirovanija politicheskoj postreal'nosti [Total Data as a phenomenon of political postreality formation]. Vestnik Omskogo universiteta. Serija Istoricheskie nauki [Bulletin of Omsk University. The series Historical sciences]. 2017, I. 3, pp. 409-415.
4. Kochedykov I.E. Ob opyte primenenija bol'shih dannyh v politicheskoj nauke [About the experience of using big data in political science]. Politicheskaja naukai [Political Science]. 2023, I. 4, pp. 226-251.
5. Lebedeva T.Ju., Minaeva L.V., Jurkovich F. Politicheskaja kommunikacija: ispytanie cifroj [Political communication: a Digital Test]. Vestnik Moskovskogo universiteta. Serija 10. Zhurnalistika [Bulletin of the Moscow University. Episode 10. Journalism]. 2022, I. 5, pp. 136-151.
6. Muhametov D.R. Tehnologii big data v politicheskih processah: vozmozhnosti i riski [Big data technologies in political processes: opportunities and risks]. Gumanitarnye nauki. Vestnik Finansovogo universiteta [Humanities. Bulletin of the Financial University]. 2019, V. 9, I. 6 (42), pp. 143-149.
7. Mjahanova, A.N., Jerhitueva T.I. Formirovanie social'nogo rejtinga: kitajskij opyt [Formation of a social rating: the Chinese experience]. Vestnik Burjatskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Gumanitarnye issledovanija Vnutrennej Azii [Bulletin of the Buryat State University. Humanitarian Studies of Inner Asia]. 2024, I. 3, pp. 38-43.
8. Okunev I.Ju. Jelektoral'naja geografija [Electoral Geography]. M., Aspekt Press Publ., 2023, 312 p.
9. Poljakov A.V., Uvarova G.G. Cifrovoj politicheskij marketing: ispol'zovanie social'nyh setej i big data dlja upravlenija politicheskimi predpochtenijami [Digital political marketing: using social networks and big data to manage political preferences]. Gosudarstvennoe i municipal'noe upravlenie. Uchenye zapiski [State and Municipal Administration. Scientific notes]. 2024, I. 3, pp. 177-183.
10. P'janov M.P. Cifrovaja adaptacija politicheskogo konsaltinga v Rossii: TikTok kak instrument transformacii kommunikacionnyh strategij (2020-2024) [Digital adaptation of political consulting in Russia: TikTok as a tool for the transformation of communication strategies (2020-2024)]. Voprosy nacional'nyh i federativnyh otnoshenij [Issues of national and federal relations]. 2025, V. 15, I. 9 (126), pp. 1897-1906.
11. Savel'ev A.I. Problemy primenenija zakonodatel'stva o personal'nyh dannyh v jepohu Bol'shih dannyh (Big Data) [Problems of the application of legislation on personal data in the era of Big Data]. Pravo. Zhurnal Vysshej shkoly jekonomiki [Law. Journal of the Higher School of Economics]. 2015, I. 1, pp. 43-66.
12. Sirotov P.A. Primenenie instrumentov mikrotargetinga v formirovanii politicheskih processov [The use of microtargeting tools in shaping political processes]. Social'no-gumanitarnye znanija [Socio-humanitarian knowledge]. 2022, I. 5, pp. 156-158.
13. Suhobokov A.A., Lahvich D.S. Vlijanie instrumentarija Big Data na razvitie nauchnyh disciplin, svjazannyh s modelirovaniem [The influence of Big Data tools on the development of scientific disciplines related to modeling]. Nauka i obrazovanie. Nauchnoe izdanie MGTU im. G.Je. Baumana [Science and Education. Scientific Edition of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University]. 2015, I. 3, pp. 207-240.
14. Turovskij R.F. Politicheskaja geografija: uchebnoe posobie [Political geography, a textbook]. M. – Smolensk, Izdatel'stvo SGU Publ., 1999, 381 p.
15. Han' Go. Kljuchevye mehanizmy funkcionirovanija sistemy social'nogo kredita v Kitae [Key mechanisms of functioning of the social credit system in China]. Sociologija [Sociology]. 2025, I. 5, pp. 51- 55.
16. Bakir V. Psychological Operations in Digital Political Campaigns: Assessing Cambridge Analytica's Psychographic Profiling and Targeting. 2020. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2020.00067.
17. Laney D. 3D data management: Controlling data volume, velocity, and variety. Application Delivery Strategies, 2001. Available at: 3D-Data-Management-Controlling-Data-Volume-Velocity-and-Variety.pdf. Jandeks Dokumenty
