Shaping Social Media: Is Twitter an Equitable tool for Professional Development?

Area of Science:

• Social Media Analysis
• Health Policy Research
• Digital Communication

Background:

• Twitter is a key platform for academic professional development.
• Existing research indicates racial and gender biases favoring white and male users in general online spaces.
• Understanding these dynamics within specific professional fields like healthcare is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the demographic characteristics of Twitter influencers in Canadian healthcare.
• To identify potential racial and gender disparities in influence within the healthcare sector on Twitter.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Right Relevance Insight API to identify and score healthcare, health research, and health policy influencers.
• Employed facial recognition software to determine the approximate race and sex of identified influencers.
• Normalized influencer scores based on user connections and engagement metrics.

Main Results:

• The majority of identified Canadian healthcare influencers were white (84%) and male (60%).
• Male influencers demonstrated significantly higher influence scores than females in the health policy domain (P < 0.05).
• No significant sex or race disparities were found among influencers in the general healthcare or healthcare research domains.

Conclusions:

• Male users exhibit greater influence in the health policy sphere on Twitter.
• Awareness of these potential user reach inequities is vital for institutional leaders and policymakers.
• Further research should explore additional factors influencing healthcare Twitter engagement, focusing on equity, diversity, and trustworthiness.