Digital platforms for regional economic research: a review and methodology proposal

Abstract

Relevance. This article addresses the need for a comprehensive approach to the analysis of socio-economic data on territorial units. The existing statistical observation system provides a vast amount of data on the socio-economic development of countries, macro-regions, sub-regions, and municipalities. Despite the wealth of data available, research efforts often remain narrowly focused on specific scientific tasks. In the field of regional economy, many research methods have been developed, but there are almost no approaches to the combined use of these methods. Digital research platforms can solve these problems by providing a mechanism for complex analysis of data. Research objective. This study aims is to examine the essence of platformization in scientific research and to present a detailed overview of the functionality of existing digital research platforms on regional and spatial development to substantiate the methodology of distributed regional research. The authors examine and systematize the features of 40 digital platforms worldwide that are related to regional research, using methods such as comparative analysis, extended case method, and cross-case analysis. Data and methods. The authors examine and systematize the features of 40 digital platforms worldwide that are related to regional research by using methods such as comparative analysis, extended case method, and cross-case analysis. Results. The proposed methodology includes a system of criteria and a typology that includes five main types of platforms for regional research: information and communication platforms, distributed work and data storage platforms, service platforms, computing platforms, and transaction platforms. These types are described and their advantages and disadvantages are highlighted. Conclusions. Digital platforms should become the key form of organizing scientific research in the field of regional economics, as they allow for a comprehensive analysis of socio-economic data and scenario experiments on the “digital twins” of regions. The study proposes a general methodology for conducting distributed regional studies. This methodology provided a foundation for RegScienceGRID platform. Overall, this study highlights the potential of digital research platforms in regional studies and provides a useful methodology for evaluating and utilizing these platforms.