Nudging towards a healthier life? Conceptualising the role of health apps and wearables between empowerment and manipulation

Abstract

"What once has been thought, cannot be taken back." (Friedrich Dürrenmatt, The Physicists) In Dürrenmatts play, the physicist Möbius has discovered the world formula and is afraid of its destructive potential, which poses a threat to global security. In order to ensure that his dismal discovery will not become harmful, he checks into a lunatic asylum. Tragically, his plan fails and his discovery falls into the wrong hands, which leads him to resignation and to the above-quoted insight. The lesson to be drawn from this play is that technological innovations have a huge influence on individual and social behaviour and that we cannot stop new technology from being used. However, we have the possibility to establish forms of public governance, ensuring that innovation works for the individual and common good. Health apps and wearables may appear to be a comparatively minor innovation, but they have the potential to change our society significantly, and the widespread use of this technology reminds us that it is high-time to analyse its potential, ranging from empowerment to the manipulation of users.