The shoemaker’s son always goes barefoot: Implementations of GPS and other tracking technologies for geographic research

A meta analysis of the implementation of GPS, smartphones and other tracking technologies for collecting high resolution space–time data found that only a small proportion of these papers were published in geography journals or involve geographers as collaborators.

Abstract

The past decade witnessed dramatic grow in the implementation of GPS, smartphones and other tracking
\ntechnologies for collecting high resolution space–time data. These highly accurate data can be analyzed
\nand displayed by various tools and techniques that bring forth new insights about the space–time movements
\nof people and objects such as private cars or taxis. Those analytical tools allow researchers to
\nundertake more accurate temporal and spatial research, resulting in hundreds of journal articles that
\nreport findings using tracking technologies and data. But as was found in a meta analysis we conducted,
\nonly a small proportion of these papers were published in geography journals or involve geographers as
\ncollaborators. We discuss several possible reasons for this trend and see this neglect of such highly useful
\ngeographical tools by geographers as a missed opportunity. We encourage geographers to pay more
\nattention to the new possibilities offered by these technologies in light of their immense potential for
\nthe advancement of geography in the future.