Facebook User Data from 2020 Election Deactivation Study

Platform data from Facebook participants in the 2020 U.S. election deactivation experiment. The dataset contains aggregated log data for each participant's user account over specific time periods. It was produced by Meta Platforms, Inc. in partnership with academic researchers for the U.S. 2020 Facebook and Instagram Election Study.

Use Cases

• Analyze aggregated log data patterns to study changes in participant platform engagement during the experiment.
• Correlate platform data with political attitudes and behaviors measured in the broader US 2020 FIES study.
• Model the impact of Facebook deactivation on user-level metrics derived from account log data.

Strengths

• Data originates from Meta Platforms, Inc., the primary source for Facebook user log data.
• Part of a structured academic partnership for the U.S. 2020 Facebook and Instagram Election Study.
• Focuses on a specific experimental intervention (deactivation) during a major political event.

Limitations

• Specific data schema, column names, and row count are unknown, limiting immediate analytical utility.
• Lack of sample data or file format details prevents assessment of data structure and preprocessing needs.

Provenance

Source

Meta Platforms, Inc.

Collection Method

Aggregated log data from Facebook user accounts of participants in a deactivation experiment.

Time Range

Centered on the period of the U.S. 2020 election.

Freshness

Metadata was last updated on 2026-02-23.

Geography

United States.