How Analytics Can Help Us Decode Human Behavior
When people hear the term “analytics,” our minds might jump to the fields of math, computer science, data science, marketing, or even machine learning. But at its core, analytics is the ability to sort through large amounts of data that ultimately tell us something about the world. Today, analytics has many uses, but one key application is its ability to reveal something valuable about humans themselves. What can a set of data tell us about the human mind? Human behaviors? Or even predicting the future? In order to answer these questions, let’s take a step back in time and take a look at the original field whose goal was understanding what it means to be human—anthropology.
For many years, anthropologists have been trying to put all of the pieces together and understand the past, present, and future of our species. Anthropology as a field aims to understand humanity and break apart each of the different aspects that make us human. To do so, anthropologists have turned to artifacts such as cave paintings, pottery, manuscripts, and architecture to discern who we were many years ago. But what about the more current information we collect? What can modern data reveal about human behavior?
In the digital age, analytics has emerged as a powerful tool for decoding human behavior.
In today's world, we are surrounded by an abundance of complex fields of study. From machine learning to neuroscience, nanotechnology to quantum mechanics, the list seems endless. However, some scientists might argue that the most difficult subject of all is the study of humans themselves. And more specifically, the true nature of human behavior. When we make a decision—what are all the components that go into it? There’s our DNA, our evolutionary history, the culture we grew up in, the time period we lived through, the ways we were raised, the beliefs we subscribe to, and an infinite set of other variables. Gathering all this information together provides a satisfying richness; but in order to draw scientific conclusions, how do we go about isolating a single variable?
Much like artifacts, analytics offer a narrative of human culture and values, albeit in digital form. Where some anthropologists have relied on these physical traces to piece together stories of ancient civilizations, today’s digital footprints, captured by tools like Google Analytics, tell the story of how we live, work, and connect in an increasingly virtual world. What’s more, data analytics allows for precise dissection of individual variables. Quantitative observations open the door for statistical analysis. By analyzing patterns in web traffic, social media engagement, online purchasing trends, and more, analytics can tell us a story about how people behave online.
Google Analytics (GA) is a powerful tool designed to track and analyze online user behavior. By capturing user data, GA enables us to observe patterns and trends that reveal how people act in virtual spaces. In addition to answering our modern anthropological questions, this type of work has multiple practical benefits.
For instance, it can help us to improve online experiences for both website builders and website users. We can track key events (user actions that are important to you), and engaged sessions (that show your user is interested) to determine whether or not a user is having a positive experience on a web page. These metrics then send signals that improvements either are, or are not, necessary on the page. This results in better performing websites as well as more positive online experiences for users. This is just one of many ways GA can positively influence online ecosystems.
Is this really a brand new idea in anthropology? Hardly. Doing business has been a part of human history since the beginning. Among the artifacts collected by anthropologists are items that reveal the earliest forms of commerce. For instance, archaeologists have uncovered ancient tally-sticks—long pieces of bone, stone, wood, or ivory engraved with numbers and quantities—which provide some of the earliest evidence of counting and record keeping. They show us how even thousands of years ago, there were people keeping track of business transactions and negotiations. One day, Google Analytics reports might take their place alongside tally-sticks and cuneiform tablets in the museum of the future.
Ultimately, the more information and data we can gather about humanity, the more we will be able to understand ourselves moving forward. Both the physical and digital information we gather are significant, and offer different perspectives on humanity. After all, we spend much of our lives online. Just as ancient artifacts have provided anthropologists with insights into the values, cultures, and daily lives of our ancestors, GA serves as the modern equivalent, capturing the digital footprints of contemporary society.
About the Author
Alivia Brown
Associate
Alivia Brown graduated from UCLA in 2022 with a major in Anthropology and a minor in Evolutionary Medicine. During her time at UCLA, Alivia was involved in both psychological and anthropological research which ultimately led her to find a passion for education and cross-cultural knowledge.
Alivia has a passion for not only learning, but also sharing knowledge with the world. She is a video editor, educational researcher, and an online educator. You will rarely find someone who is as passionate about their major as Alivia is about anthropology. In addition to her academic achievement and experience in film, Alivia also has her own YouTube channel devoted to Anthropology. On this channel, Alivia hopes to make anthropology a more accessible topic for the global community and educate others on the importance of the field.