Weird Studies That I Wish I Could Get Paid For #1 Google and Thanksgiving

 

First, When I write this article I am not bashing our field or saying these are unnecessary. I am just jealous that I did not think about them and secure the grant money to get paid to do these things. Our first entry into the file at least on this blog will be in honor of American Thanksgiving.

Ah, Thanksgiving that time of year in a normal year that people gather around with family and just trying not to fling mashed potatoes across the table at your drunk uncle who more than likely said something culturally insensitive, or at least that is what it was like for my family growing up. I as a sociologist and behavior analysis take this time to observe what is happens around me even more astutely. A team of sociologists from the University of Washington's main campus in Seattle took this one step further and with the backing from the internet provider, Century Link used Google Analytics to observe trends of what people were thinking about in the run-up to Thanksgiving. 

I could write five thousand words just by writing simple 100-word capsules about each answer but that brings back to many mixed emotions of my high school journalism experience. Instead, I am just going to write about what I found to be the most interesting and can give us a bit of an insight into what it is like to live in a certain state or region of the country. 

Again, every time I read one of these in ASA or somewhere else I wonder when will I get to a point in my life and career where I can do this shit but here we go.

Let's begin with the state that I find the most interesting and disturbing, this is Michigan home of the American auto industry. 

Apparently, Michiganders are worried about two things and they are both food-related the is Peacan Pie recipes. This is tame Louisana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma are also googling recipes for this decadent autumn treat, the only take away for me is that Michigan is the only one of those states that is above the Mason Dixon line. The second question Michiganders were googling was " How likely am I to get food poisoning from undercooked turkey," This is startling how many of the 9.987 million Michiganders were going to gatherings where there are terrible cooks that undercook turkeys? Secondly, I googled this for us so I can save you the time and effort. I googled all of these questions just to raise Kansas' numbers. The CIA agent that is attached to my account probably is confused but I think it will just make their job more interesting. Thirdly, If you are going to Michigan and someone offers you homemade food stay vigilant my friends. 

Before I move on I want to want to speak to the methodology the data that was collected and analyzed starts on the second Sunday of November and ends the Sunday following Thanksgiving. Data was first collected back in 2017 and the study has been updated every subsequent November. (Yes, this is an ongoing Longitudinal study.) 

Our journey around the internet habits of our country takes us to the beautiful Mount Rushmore State of South Dakota and its residents want to know " What to be Thankful for," Okay, when we google this it takes us to an article written by a psychologist and author Amy Morin who wrote the book 113 things mentally strong people never do. I read the list and it wasn't anything groundbreaking but still gave great ideas. Now, let's jump into what this means for the people of South Dakota. I want to stay positive and hope these people what to be a little more creative than just saying they are thankful for the family in the room with them and the food on the table. If it is not that then South Dakotans are miserable and don't want to live with those people or live in South Dakota that is gorgeous until the calendar turns to October and it starts to snow. Maybe that is it they hate the snow and have to remind themselves it isn't all bad. 

Sorry, That turned into a stream of consciousness for a moment but we are now back on track. Let's now move to the Sunflower State Kansas the state in which I currently reside. Asked the most common question and that is "What is Thanksgiving" This could tell us a few things maybe it.is just general curiosity or it can be a direct commentary on the educational system here in this country. But again, I want to have faith in the general curiosity of the American people because that is the American spirit. What is Thanksgiving? If you google it you get taken to the encyclopedia Brittanica and it gives this definition "Thanksgiving Day, the annual national holiday in the United States and Canada celebrating the harvest and other blessings of the past year. Americans generally believe that their Thanksgiving is modeled on a 1621 harvest feast shared by the English colonists (Pilgrims) of Plymouth and the Wampanoag people. The American holiday is particularly rich in legend and symbolism, and the traditional fare of the Thanksgiving" That's a good definition but I do not think that it truly answers the question it gives you the facts but sometimes Thanksgiving is about the feeling. I love the fact it talks about symbolism. 

The last state I want to mention before I conclude is Missouri my boyhood home. The number one Thanksgiving topic googled in Missouri is two different things "Does Canada celebrate Thanksgiving" and my personal favorite " Thanksgiving dad jokes" and I am going to share a few of my favorites with you 

"Why was Thanksgiving so expensive?" It had 24 carrots 

Stop Drop and... Pass the Rolls 

and my personal favorite 

My family told me to stop telling Thanksgiving Jokes I told them I couldn't quit cold turkey 

As Always, Stay Safe, and God Bless 

Happy Thanksgiving!