The Self of the Quantified Self

Abstract

This chapter argues that the practice of quantification exponentially increases the “managerializing” of the user. In this sense, the quantified-self (QS) can be thought of as something that helps people to organize their activities in the manner of the market. Individuals thus become self-entrepreneurs who, in keeping with the standard aims of neoliberalism, make use of their collected data in a fashion analogous to the way results are determined in a corporation’s Research & Development department. The self becomes an assortment of analyses by which measures of behaviors and habits are made, all in the name of producing an “objective report” on the user’s characteristics. The ultimate aim of all this is to improve certain parts of life so as to increase and optimize our productivity.

Citation

Maturo, A.F. and Moretti, V. (2018), "The Self of the Quantified Self", Digital Health and the Gamification of Life: How Apps Can Promote a Positive Medicalization, Emerald Publishing Limited, pp. 71-84. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78754-365-220181006

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