Use of self-tracking technology in everyday life
Bachelor thesis in sociology about how Danish citizens use self-tracking technology to optimize their lives, and how they perceive the data risks associated with their own voluntary data collection
The bachelor thesis was written together with Lea Julie Becker Iversen.
The practice of self-tracking has rapidly increased in recent years with the emergence of digital tracking apps and devices. In addition to being an individual practice, where individuals voluntarily collect data about their bodies and life, the data collection extends far beyond the individual herself. Data generated by self-tracking technologies have earned increasing value as a commodity in the digital data economy. From this perspective, users of self-tracking technologies become both consumers and producers of data at the same time. Former research has primarily been conducted in other countries. This study draws attention to the phenomenon of self-tracking in everyday life in a Danish context and makes a distinct empirical contribution to the field of research by also providing insights into the user's perceptions of risks in relation to privacy and the sharing of data.
The aim of the study is to examine what motivates the use of self-tracking technologies and how the users perceive and relate to the risks in relation to privacy and the sharing of data. We employ an hermeneutic sociological approach in order to understand the manifold personal experiences associated with self-tracking practices. The study is based on nine semi-structured interviews with Danish self-trackers. The research theme is examined through the theoretical framework of Hartmut Rosa, Anthony Giddens and Ulrich Beck which contributes to the understanding of users motives as well as risk-assessments, and how it is part of a broader tendency in late-modernity.
The analysis reveals three main motivations for taking up self-tracking practices: seeking self-knowledge, self-improvement and the self-tracking technologies as effective and timesaving. Further, the analysis shows the attitudes towards risks in relation to privacy generally seems to be dominated by a lack of serious concern. This is roughly explained by the characterization of the data generated by self-tracking technologies as insignificant knowledge, an attitude of resignation in relation to what is regarded as an encompassing digital infrastructure as well as feelings of trust towards companies and how they manage data. Following the conceptual framework of Giddens, three adaptive reactions to risks are revealed: pragmatic acceptance, sustained optimism, and radical engagement.