Why Thick Data Stories Are Just as Important as Abstract Big Data We obsess over big data. Dashboards glow with metrics. AI crunches petabytes. Algorithms spit out predictions. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: numbers alone are half-blind. Enter thick data, the rich, human layer of stories, emotions, rituals, frustrations, and cultural context that big data can’t capture. Coined by researcher Tricia Wang, thick data is the qualitative counterpart to quantitative abstraction. It’s the interview transcripts, the late-night customer complaints, the way someone’s face lights up (or falls) when they talk about your product. Big data tells you what is happening.
Thick data tells you why it matters to actual humans. Think about it: -> A streaming service sees a 12% drop in watch time among 25–34-year-olds. Big data flags it. Thick data (sitting in living rooms, listening to real people) reveals they’re not “disengaged” they’re exhausted from doom-scrolling and crave shorter, feel-good comfort content they can watch with roommates. One insight reshapes an entire content strategy. -> An e-commerce site notices cart abandonment spiking in certain zip codes. Numbers don’t explain it. Thick data from follow-up calls shows local delivery drivers keep leaving packages in unsafe spots because the address instructions are unclear. Fix the copy, watch returns plummet. Abstract data scales. Thick data humanizes. One without the other leads to expensive blind spots: -> Companies launch “data-driven” features that flop because no one asked the humans living the data. -> Policymakers design solutions that look perfect on a spreadsheet but collapse in real neighborhoods. -> Teams optimize for KPIs that quietly destroy trust, culture, or joy. The most powerful decisions happen at the intersection: big data gives you the map, thick data gives you the terrain, the weather, and the stories of the people walking it. In a world drowning in abstract metrics, the organizations that win will be the ones that treat stories as first-class data , not a “nice-to-have” after the spreadsheets are done. So next time someone says “show me the data,” ask:
 Whose story is missing from these numbers? What’s a thick data moment that changed how you saw the numbers? Drop it in the comments, I’d love to hear the human side behind your metrics. VölvaX #ThickData #BigData #HumanCentered #Storytelling #ProductStrategy

Thanks @northwestcsp for a great #healthinequalities day ‘who is not accessing our service & how do we widen access and improve health outcomes’ - my nuggets from today #thickdata #whoisnotintheroom #healthstyleslifestage #FCP @BuryMSKPhysio @DeborahBActive @LucyKPhysio

@triciawang calls qualitative research #ThickData: "Thick Data can rescue Big Data from the context-loss that comes with the processes of making it usable" 🔗 Link for the article: medium.com/ethnography-matte…

#mktg2023, las #competencias del futuro, #social #science #tourism #management aplicadas a la #tecnología: #thickdata

©️⚽️📊 Hoy en el taller de “Análisis de fútbol” de la @UAI_CL 📝 Scouting “Big - Thick data enfocado en el fútbol” #scouting #bigdata #footballscout #dataanalytics #dataanalysis #uai #santiago #chile #thickdata #fútbol #matchanalysis #footballscouting #capitanandresgr

©️📊⚽️ Hoy con los crack’s del taller de análisis de fútbol de la @UAI_CL de Viña del Mar @UAI_VINA #uai #universidadadolfoibañez #tallerdae #taller #futbol #scouting #futboleros #bigdata #thickdata #matchanalysis #fútbol #chile #viñadelmar #viña #messi #capitanandresgr

"La data es necesaria para ubicarnos como estrategas" Nuestra tercera potencia en el #TrainingDayCanvas le corresponde a Oscar Martínez, quien nos habla de las herramientas de #BigData y #ThickData ¡Gracias!

I’m up for this #datafeminism challenge 🤖….let’s inject some complex systems #thickdata chatter into the mix 💃🏽👩🏽‍🎨🤗

"#ThickData: es la capacidad de analizar datos a profundidad para encontrar insights con un enfoque amplio desde las ciencias sociales para poder identificar valor a partir de los datos."

Engel y Claudio profundizan sobre #Thickdata, la cual consiste en el análisis de datos para obtener información cualitativa como ideas, preferencias, motivaciones y razones de comportamiento, la cual permite una mejor toma de decisiones de negocio dentro de las organizaciones.

En el nuevo episodio de #NeuronaDigital, el podcast de la transformación digital, @engelfonseca y @ClaudioFloresT hablan sobre #ThickData: la importancia de la diversidad para la inteligencia de negocios. Escúchalo en @SpotifyMexico: tinyurl.com/2v58ymva

#ThickData, la importancia de la diversidad para la inteligencia de negocios. Sobre este tema conversé con @engelfonseca en su podcast de #TransformaciónDigital #NeuronaDigital Escúchalo en @SpotifyMexico 👉open.spotify.com/episode/5fr…

#SparkResearchReplay ✨Can’t wait for the next #datafeminism #thickdata jam 🧶lots of threads to stitch together 🧵🧬 🌏 as we go! #digitalinclusion #digitalart 👩🏽‍🎨🪩🙋🏽‍♀️

Agreed! You already know I’m thinking of ways to weave this into our next data feminism link up 👩🏽‍💻🤖🙋🏽‍♀️ policy #thickdata chatter 🤩for the win!

#thickdata layers of tech-facilitated women's work

"Las menciones importan pero importa más la calidad" ¡Analicemos las impresiones que damos! Oscar Martínez nos habla de #ThickData ¡Gracias!

Lost in the #metaverse? How digital anthropology can help leaders navigate uncertain futures weforum.org/agenda/2023/03/d…. #thickdata #digital #tech #innovacion #ethics

“political language has become saturated with emotion” #thickdata Politics is in peril if it ignores how humans regulate the body | Aeon Essays aeon.co/essays/politics-is-i…

Tripathi et al. from @otago NZ's (2022) Retrospective Collaborative Autobiography (RCA) method really resonated with us tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.… It offers the #ThickData #RichData that complements our obsession with #BigData medium.com/ethnography-matte… #Decolonising #Methods #data

Great to hear & talk with people about creative ways to bring evidence into policy @evidence_house yesterday. Highlights included Simon Case on the importance of data visualisation & @CMO_England on the value of blending #bigdata with #thickdata to make better decisions.