Editorial Overview: Big Data in the Behavioral Sciences

The progress in artificial intelligence (AI), fueled by big data, is transforming the economy, culture, society, and lives of individuals. It is also transforming behavioral science: We can ask new kinds of questions and answer old ones in new ways. This special issue aims to highlight some of the most exciting trends in behavioral science fueled by big data. We invited some of the most renowned behavioral scientists from a diverse set of fields and asked them to consider both the promises and the challenges lying ahead. Their excellent papers provide a comprehensive overview of the many ways in which big data is changing the field. They discuss new developments in methods, theory, and applications. They expose how bigdata-based studies challenge the established methods and ethical norms in the field. They show that not only do we need new skills, but we also need a new way of thinking.