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Sleep Experiments: Knowledge Production through Self-Tracking
Schlaf-Experimente: Wissensproduktion im Self-Tracking
[journal article]
Abstract
Scientific knowledge is a central point of reference for almost all everyday activities – and at the same time, it is doubted more than ever. People who suffer from sleep problems, for example, thus often lack clear instructions because the scientific findings on the subject are fragile and contradi... view more
Scientific knowledge is a central point of reference for almost all everyday activities – and at the same time, it is doubted more than ever. People who suffer from sleep problems, for example, thus often lack clear instructions because the scientific findings on the subject are fragile and contradictory. Against this background, we treat the digital self-tracking of expertized laypersons as an experimental practice undertaken to reduce uncertainty. Our online ethnography suggests that self-tracking involves at least three prerequisites to reduce uncertainty in everyday life. First, such self-tracking requires, in its interplay of objectivity and subjectivity, a willingness to engage in tinkering and tuning. Second, corresponding arrangements involve a specific form of temporality, continuously linking the past to an open future. And third, through grafting, a continuous expansion of self-tracking arrangements takes place, ultimately leading to a form of knowledge-in-the-making that relates to science but works in everyday life.... view less
Keywords
sleep; experiment; knowledge production; data capture
Classification
Sociology of Science, Sociology of Technology, Research on Science and Technology
Sociology of Knowledge
Free Keywords
Self-tracking; uncertainty; experimental systems; Quantified Self; biohacking
Document language
English
Publication Year
2023
Page/Pages
p. 157-175
Journal
Historical Social Research, 48 (2023) 2
Issue topic
Sleep, Knowledge, Technology: Studies of the Sleep Lab, Sleep Tracking and Beyond
ISSN
0172-6404
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed