The Collapse of Distance and the Ambiguity of Quantifying Selves

• In Event: 508 - Section on Body and Embodiment Paper Session. Embodiment, Science, and Technology

Abstract

As self-tracking becomes increasingly popular, individuals are occupying a unique role as both researcher and subject. In the sociology of knowledge, previous research has suggested that low experiential distance between the researcher and the subject can both lead to more nuanced interpretations and at the same time blind the researcher to his or her underlying assumptions. However, these prior studies of experiential distance fail to explore what happens when the boundary between researcher and subject collapses in “N of one” studies. In this paper, I borrow from art and literary theories of grotesquerie—another instance of the collapse of boundaries—to examine the collapse of boundaries in self-tracking. Based on experiences from the Quantified Self community of self-trackers, I find that ambiguity and multiplicity are integral facets of these data practices. I discuss the implications of these findings for the sociological study of researcher distance, and also the practical implications for the neoliberal turn in personal data.

Author

• Margaret Willis