The Track to Happinness

!!!!!!Master!in!New!Media!and!Digital!Culture!

!!!!!Media!Studies!Department!|!Faculty!of!Humanities!

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The!Track!to!Happiness!

Data!Strategies!and!Created!Privacy!Breaches

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A!Study!of!Happiness!Self2Tracking!Apps:!Headspace,!Happify,!and!Happier!

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Savannah!Fernandez!Cejas!!

10096787!!

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Thesis!Supervisor:!Melis!Baş!

Second!Reader:!Davide!Beraldo!!

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Master!Thesis!

University!of!Amsterdam!!

28th!of!June!2019!!

22.478!words!

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Abstract!!

In!recent!years,!the!number!of!techniques!available!for!tracking!oneself!digitally!has!grown.!A!simple! approach!to!measuring!daily!activities,!such!as!sleep!or!performance!at!work,!is!through!the!use!of! smartphone!applications,!or!‘apps’!(Ajana!1).!Self[tracking!apps!focused!on!self[care!are!becoming! increasingly!popular!(Silva).!The!emergence!of!digital!technologies!to!track!behaviour!has!also!led!to! generating!self[tracked!data,!which!is!continuously!being!gathered!by!companies!(Lupton!3).!This! thesis! investigates! the! possible! privacy! breaches! that! occur! within! happiness! self[tracking! apps.! Building! on! previous! research! on! self[tracking! apps,! it! asks! What! possible! privacy! breaches! are! created!in!happiness!self2tracking!apps!to!generate!data?!Using!the!walkthrough!method,!nudging! processes!to!generate!data!in!the!apps!Headspace,!Happify,!and!Happier!are!highlighted!in!relation! to!the!apps’!privacy!policies.!The!results!indicate!that!the!apps!have!a!similar!approach!in!the!structure! of!their!privacy!policies.!The!privacy!breaches!created!within!these!apps!relate!to!an!imbalance!of! power!in!the!control!users!have!regarding!their!data,!particularly!in!relation!to!their!ability!to!choose! what!data!they!want!to!provide!and!how!this!is!shared.!Furthermore,!the!apps!decide!if!the!data!can! be!deleted!and!in!what!timespan.!

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Table!of!Contents! Chapter!1:!Introduction! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !4! ! 1.1!Background!Information! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !8! ! 1.2!Overview!Thesis! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 10! Chapter!2:!Privacy,!Policies!&!Scandals! ! ! ! ! ! ! 12! ! 2.1!Definition!of!Privacy!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 13! ! ! 2.1.1!Privacy,!Data!and!Ownership! ! ! ! ! ! 14! ! 2.2!Privacy!Policies!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 15! ! 2.3!Data!Privacy!Scandals!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 16! Chapter!3:!Big!Data!in!Relation!to!Happiness!Self[Tracking!Applications! ! ! 18! ! 3.1!The!Emergence!of!Big!Data!and!the!Data[Driven!Life! ! ! ! 19! ! 3.2!Nudging!and!Analytical!Surveillance! ! ! ! ! ! 21! ! 3.3!The!Normalisation!of!Sharing!Online! ! ! ! ! ! 23! Chapter!4:!The!Methodological!Framework!!! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!25! ! 4.1!Research!Question! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 25! 4.2!Method!of!Choice:!The!Walkthrough!Method! ! ! ! ! 25! ! 4.3!The!Stages!of!the!Walkthrough!Method!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!27! 4.3.1!The!Environment!of!the!Expected!Use!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!27! 4.3.2!Technical!Walkthrough!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 30! 4.4!Limitations!of!Research! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!31! Chapter!5:!Results!&!Discussion!! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 33! 5.1!Nudging!Process!of!Happiness!Self[Tracking!Apps! ! ! ! 33! 5.1.1!Walkthrough!Headspace! ! ! ! ! ! 33! 5.1.2!Walkthrough!Happify! ! ! ! ! ! ! 43! 5.1.3!Walkthrough!Happier! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!47! 5.1.4!Data!strategies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!49! 5.2!Privacy!Policies!of!Happiness!Self[Tracking!Apps! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!50! ! 5.2.1!Privacy!Policy!Headspace! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!50! ! 5.2.2!Privacy!Policy!Happify! ! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!53! ! 5.2.3!Privacy!Policy!Happier!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!55! 5.2.4!The!Three!Privacy!Policies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!56! 5.3!Discussion!of!Happiness!Self[Tracking!Apps! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!57! Chapter!6:!Conclusions! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!60! List!of!References! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!62! List!of!Figures!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!68! Appendix!A:!Standard!Clauses!Headspace!! ! ! ! ! ! 70! Appendix!B:!Standard!Clauses!Happify! ! ! ! ! ! ! 71!

Appendix!C:!Standard!Clauses!Happier! ! ! ! ! ! ! 72! Appendix!D:!Comparison!Privacy!Policies!! ! ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!! 73!

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Chapter!1.!Introduction

! For!centuries,!people!have!monitored,!measured,!and!self[tracked!their!behaviour!to!improve!their! quality!of!life!(Ajana!3).!This!practice!of!repeatedly!recording!information!about!the!self!to!optimise! one's!life!relates!to!the!concept!of!self[tracking!(Figueiredo!et!al.!706).!In!recent!years,!society!has! witnessed!a!considerable!number!of!techniques!for!tracking!oneself!digitally.!A!simplified!approach! to!measuring!daily!activities,!such!as!sleep!or!performance!at!work,!is!through!the!use!of!smartphone! applications,!or!‘apps’!(Ajana!1).!With!self[tracking!apps,!users!can!reflect!on!their!behaviour!based! on!the!collected!data.!This!data!helps!users!to!acquire!knowledge!about!themselves!or!achieve!their! goals,! such! as! improving! behaviour! or! increasing! happiness! (Figueiredo! et! al.! 706f! Etkin! 2).! This! notion!is!also!what!makes!quantifying!alluring:!a!better!understanding!of!oneself!(Etkin!2).!However,! people’s!reliance!on!algorithms!and!data!to!manage!specific!activities!has!arguably!increased!due!to! the! proliferation! of! technologies! that! form! a! network! and! digital! portable! devices! (Ajana! 1).! The! emergence!of!digital!technologies!to!track!behaviour!has!also!led!to!self[tracked!data!and!has!led!to! the! data! that! is! continuously! gathered! and! interpreted! (Lupton! 3).! ! In! particular,! questions! exist! regarding!what!could!happen!to!the!user!data!and!the!possible!privacy!breaches!that!are!created.!In! this!thesis,!the!focus!is!on!self[tracking!apps!that!aim!at!improving!one's!happiness!and!the!possible! privacy!breaches!these!apps!produce.!!

In! this! thesis,! happiness! is! defined! as! what! is! most! desirable! and! worthwhile! in! one's! life! (Walker! and! Kavedzija! 1).! Furthermore,! privacy! signifies! the! personal! control! people! have! over! information! about! themselves! and! how! and! with! whom! this! information! is! shared! (Beardsley! 65).! However,! there! is! not! one! clear! definition! of! privacy,! and! the! interpretation! depends! on! the! circumstances.!!

At! the! moment,! self[tracking! apps! are! particularly! popular! among! millennials,! those! born! between!1980!and!the!early!2000s!(Perezf!Cummings).!The!popularity!of!self[tracking!apps!may!be! due! to! a! growing! interest! in! self[care! and! mindfulness! among! millennials,! who! are! known! as! the! 'generation!of!emotional!intelligence'!(Silva).!Additionally,!according!to!previous!studies!with!college! students,!self[tracking!apps!have!an!essential!role!in!promoting!mental!wellness!(Kelley,!Lee,!and! Wilcox! 629).! Research! has! also! shown! that! mindfulness! and! self[care! can! work! as! strategies! to! prevent! burnout! (Dorian! and! Killebrew! 155).! The! aim! of! mindfulness! is! 'to! maintain! awareness! moments,! disengaging! oneself! from! strong! attachments! to! beliefs,! thoughts! or! emotions,! thereby! developing! a! greater! sense! of! emotional! balance! and! well[being'! (Ludwig! and! Kabat[Zinn! 1351).! Thus,!by!focusing!on!their!mental!well[being,!users!can!increase!their!level!of!happiness.!

App!developers!have!responded!to!this!interest!by!offering!digital!wellness!apps.!The!category!of!self[ care!and!wellness!apps!has!shown!notable!growth!in!the!Google!Play!Store!and!the!iOS!App!Store! in!recent!years!(Perez).!The!popularity!of!self[care!self[tracking!apps!is!reflected!in!their!combined! generated! global! revenue! of! $27! million! in! 2018! (Perez).! One! definition! of! self2care! is! stimulating!

behaviour! that! has! a! positive! effect! on! health! and! well[being! (Christopher! et! al.! 495).! However,! according!to!facilitator!and!self[care!coach!Gracy!Obuchowicz,!self[care!alone!is!not!enough.!To!be! truly!successful!at!self[care,!one!also!needs!awareness!of!the!self!(Silva).!To!gain!more!knowledge! about!the!self,!one!can!use!self[tracking!apps.!In!particular,!happiness!self[tracking!apps!promote! self[care!and!self[awareness.! Self[tracking!is!related!to!the!concept!of!the!quantified!self,!which!was!introduced!by!Gary! Wolf!and!Kevin!Kelley!in!2007.!Their!purpose!is!reflected!in!the!'slogan'!of!the!quantified!self:!'self[ knowledge!through!numbers'!(Ajana!1).!The!primary!purpose!behind!the!movement!is!to!gain!more! information!about!the!self!using!technological!information!in!the!form!of!digital!inputs,!such!as!numeric! data! or! text! entries! (Ajana! 1f! Bermingham[McDonogh! 18f! Moore! and! Robinson! 2780).! Thus,! by! quantifying! their! activities,! people! can! map! their! behaviour,! analyse! this! information,! and! use! the! results!as!motivation!to!improve!their!behaviour!as!needed.! According!to!Wolf,!self[tracking!is!crucial!for!the!quantified!self!to!prevent!human!errors,!such!as!faults! in!judgement!or!facts.!In!his!article!the!'The!Data[Driven!Life',!Wolf!has!stated!that! ! We!have!blind!spots!in!our!field!of!vision!and!gaps!in!our!stream!of!attention.![….]!These! weaknesses!put!us!at!a!disadvantage.!We!make!decisions!with!partial!information.!We!are!forced!to! steer!by!guesswork.!We!go!with!our!gut.!! ! This!digital!penetration!of!our!daily!activities!and!the!data!thus!generated!also!allow!people!to!obtain! more!profound!insight!into!their!health!management!and!to!be!more!involved!in!the!process.!One! benefit!is!an!increased!sense!of!health!awareness!in!the!West!(Sharon!93f!Ajana!1[13).!!In!relation! to!happiness,!people!get!more!insight!about!their!state!of!happiness.!! Additionally,!tracking!happiness!is!not!new,!as!psychologists!and!economists!have!relied!on! research!methods,!such!as!self[report!diaries!indicating!how!happy!an!individual!feel!during!various! times! of! day.! However,! this! method! also! has! flaws! in! the! sense! of! misremembered! experiences! (Davies!383).!As!Wolf!has!suggested,!data!can!help!to!eliminate!these!errors!(Wolf).!In!other!words,! guesswork!can!be!defeated!by!gaining!data!and!information!about!daily!activities!to!improve!oneself.! However,! self[tracking! happiness! and! the! collected! personal! data! also! raise! questions! about! how! companies!use!this!data.!!

According!to!political!and!sociological!theorist!William!Davies,!self[tracking!technologies!fall! into!the!category!of!surveillance!instruments!(386).!The!growing!use!of!self[tracking!apps!and!the! emergence! of! apps! focused! on! tracking! happiness! have! provided! companies! with! new! insights! obtained!from!the!user!data.!This!data!allows!companies!to!better!understand!the!human!brain!and! human!behaviour!(Davies!385).!One!reason!companies!could!be!interested!in!understanding!what! makes!people!happy!is!that!how!people!perceive!happiness!reveals!the!values!they!cherish!(Walker!

and!Kavedzija!1).!These!possible!revelations!about!users!raise!questions!about!companies'!intents! regarding!user!data!and!the!possible!privacy!breaches!created.!

Major!companies!such!as!Facebook!can!already!make!objective!claims!about!users!based!on! observations!and!analytical!tools!(Davies!397).!Companies!use!different!software!techniques,!such! as! data! mining,! which! relies! on! a! data! search! capability! algorithm! that! can! detect! patterns! and! interrelations! in! data! (Rygielski,! Wang,! and! Yen! 485).! Through! this! technology,! firms! can! extract! predictive!information!about!the!user!and!make!knowledge[driven!decisions!(Rygielski,!Wang,!and! Yen! 483).! This! knowledge! allows! them! to! effectively! target! services,! advertisements,! and! content! (Cheney[Lippold!168).!This!technological!development,!in!combination!with!the!measurement!and! analysis!of!data!on!people’s!psychological!states,!provides!insight!into!how!people!might!behave!in! various!circumstances!(Davies!397).!This!access!to!a!vast!amount!of!data!allows!companies!to!obtain! a!significant!amount!of!information.!This!capability!could!arguably!lead!to!control,!manipulation,!or! predictions! of! users’! feelings! (Davies! 386).! In! this! regard,! self[tracking! apps! raise! new! questions! about!what!happens!to!data!retrieved!from!users.! These!questions!are!vital!because!the!vulnerability!of!user!data!was!revealed!as!early!as!2013! by!whistle[blower!Edward!Snowden.!He!exposed!how!the!National!Security!Agency!(NSA)!employed! surveillance!routines!that!allowed!him,!a!Central!Intelligence!Agency!(CIA)!analyst,!and!the!NSA!to! intercept!metadata!on!billions!of!people's!phone!calls!and!interactions!recorded!by!Facebook,!Google,! and!other!technology!companies.!This!revelation!also!demonstrated!that!users'!personal!information! was!shared!by!these!social!networks,!either!willingly!or!unknowingly!(Van!Dijck,!datafication!197).!As! previously!mentioned,!the!popularity!of!self[tracking!apps!has!increased,!which!provides!companies! with!a!vast!amount!of!data!that!they!can!share!for!different!purposes.!! Five!years!after!Snowden's!revelations!about!the!NSA,!Observer!reporter!Carole!Cadwalladr! revealed!that!a!company!called!Cambridge!Analytica!had!obtained!data!on!Facebook!users!without! their!consent,!fuelling!the!digital!privacy!debate!(Cadwalladr!and!Graham[Harrison).!The!firm!acquired! information!related!to!the!users’!friends!who!engaged!with!a!psychological!quiz!app!(Senarath!and! Arachilage!1).!Facebook!received!significant!criticism!because!these!friends!had!not!consented!to! their! data! being! shared! (Senarath! and! Arachilage! 1).! ! With! this! information,! Cambridge! Analytica! wanted!to!display!politically!biased!reports!in!the!Facebook!feeds!of!active!users.!The!messaging!was! in!favour!of!then[presidential!candidate!Donald!Trump!(Lanting).!Some!of!the!Facebook!user!data! was! obtained! without! the! users'! consent,! which! raises! questions! about! the! privacy! of! users! when! connected!to!these!social!networks.! The!concept!of!privacy!has!a!long!history,!and!the!term!has!been!widely!discussed!(DeCew).! As!the!principal!concept!of!privacy!can!be!seen!as!common!law,!the!term's!meaning!must!be!revised! to!account!for!new!developments!(Warren!and!Brandeis!1).!Although!the!term!privacy!is!commonly! used!in!everyday!speech,!as!well!as!in!philosophical,!political,!and!legal!discussions,!a!clear,!single! definition!of!the!term!does!not!existf!definitions!span!a!wide!range,!from!control!to!intimacy!to!restricted!

access!(DeCew).!As!mentioned!previously,!in!this!thesis,!privacy!signifies!the!personal!control!people! have!over!information!about!themselves!and!how!and!with!whom!this!information!is!shared!(Beardsley! 65).!Given!the!increased!use!of!self[care!apps!and!new!revelations!about!the!vulnerability!of!users’! private!information,!this!thesis!asks!the!following!main!research!question:!What!privacy!breaches!are! created!through!happiness2tracking!apps!with!the!aim!to!generate!user!data?!Based!on!the!above! definition!of!privacy,!in!this!thesis,!a!privacy!breach!refers!to!users'!lack!of!control!over!their!collected! data!within!these!happiness!self[tracking!apps.!! To!fully!answer!this!question,!this!thesis!divides!the!main!research!question!into!the!following! sub[questions:!How!do!happiness!self2tracking!apps!nudge!the!user!to!generate!data?!What!do!these! self2tracking!apps!state!about!the!users’!data!according!to!their!privacy!policies?!Through!the!first! sub[question,!this!thesis!considers!how!app!users!are!guided!through!the!features!of!self[tracking! apps.!This!specifically!regards!how!users!can!track!their!happiness!or!progress!via!the!app!and!how! users!can!share!their!progress!online.!Through!the!second!sub[question,!the!thesis!examines!what! user!data!is!generated!and!how!third!parties!use!this!data.!The!research!questions!are!supported!by! three!case!studies!examining!self[tracking!apps!that!focus!on!happiness:!Headspace,!Happify,!and! Happier.!The!analysis!relies!on!the!walkthrough!method.!The!case!studies!are!briefly!explained!below:! !! Headspace:!Marketer!Richard!Pierson!and!Buddhist!Andy!Puddicombe!created!the!Headspace!app! in! 2012.! Today,! the! app! has! over! 400,000! paying! users,! and! it! has! already! logged! more! than! 30! million! downloads! in! 2019.! The! founders! seek! to! promote! compassion,! improve! health,! enhance! relationships,!and!increase!happiness!through!meditation!(Chaykowski).!Headspace!offers!different! types! of! meditations! for! various! situations! (e.g.,! work! productivity)! and! users! (e.g.,! students! and! children)!(www.headspace.com).!! ! Happify:!The!Happify!app!is!based!on!positive!psychologyf!it!uses!games!and!short!exercises!to! make!users!happier!(Houtekamer).!In!2015,!the!app!already!had!1.3!million!users!(Sternbenz).!Ofer! Leidner!and!Tomer!Ben[Kiki!developed!the!app!(www.happify.com).! !! Happier:!The!creators!of!Happier!built!this!award[winning!app!to!help!users!be!present!and!find!more! beauty!and!joy!in!everyday!moments.!This!mobile!app!encourages!people!to!practise!gratitude!skillsf! to!share!content!(i.e.!photographs!or!posts)!concering!their!gratitude.!its!success!is!reflected!in!the! fact!that!Happier!currently!has!over!1!million!users!(www.happier.com).! !!

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1.1!Background!Information!!

To!answer!the!research!question,!this!thesis!only!analyses!happiness!self[tracking!apps.!Apps!play! a!crucial!role!in!the!ubiquity!of!smartphones,!as!everyday!practices,!such!as!bank!transactions!and! communication,!have!moved!online,!which!remediates!and!shapes!sociocultural!phenomena!(Light,! Burgess,!and!Duguay!5f!Goggin!148f!Davies!367).!Apps!also!bring!various!actors!together!into!an! interactive!space!that!consists!developers,!users,!and!advertisers,!and!this!development!has!changed! existing! power! relations! (Light,! Burgess,! and! Duguay! 20f! Goggin! 155).! These! apps! arguably! give! companies!an!apparatus!of!power!and!control!over!user!data!(Davies!366).!These!technological!and! cultural!developments!raise!questions!about!companies’!data!strategies!for!studying,!watching,!and! measuring!users,!with!or!without!their!permission.!Therefore,!to!examine!possible!privacy!breaches,! one!must!also!analyse!the!socio[cultural!and!power!relations.! Furthermore,!smartphone!apps!represent!closed!technical!systems.!This!means!that!when! the!user!is!logged!in,!the!app!keeps!running!and!collecting!data!in!the!background!because!of!the! built[in!GPS!on!smartphone!devices!(Light,!Burgess,!and!Duguay!1[9f!Halleck).!Thus,!once!these! apps!are!installed!on!portable!devices,!they!can!still!track!the!user!and!collect!data—even!when!the! individual!is!not!using!the!app!directly.!This!collected!data!can!be!used!for!various!purposes,!such!as! online!profiling!or!identifying!users’!behaviour!and!interests!(Van!Dam!and!Van!de!Velden!61).!This! possibility!is!especially!relevant!as!the!estimated!number!of!internet[connected!devices!increase!to! 25–50!billion!in!2020,!affecting!the!volume!of!data!published!(Mahdavinejad!161).!The!growth!of!these! devices! and! apps! tracking! real[time! data! raises! questions! about! the! possible! creation! of! privacy! breaches.!! ! By!examining!the!privacy!breaches!created!through!the!use!of!happiness!self[tracking!apps,! this!thesis!contributes!to!the!continuous!debate!on!privacy.!Because!of!the!growing!interest!in!the! human!brain!and!the!increasing!amount!of!knowledge!that!companies!can!obtain!through!accessing! the!data!generated!by!these!digital!technologies,!research!concerning!privacy!breaches!is!needed.! As!the!research!identifies!the!possible!privacy!breaches!created!using!happiness!self[tracking!apps,! it!extends!previous!research!on!privacy!debates,!such!as!the!Snowden!revelations!and!the!Facebook[ Cambridge!Analytica!scandal.!

The! above[mentioned! apps! all! involve! self[caref! self2care,! according! to! the! Oxford! English! Dictionary,!is!'the!practice!of!taking!action!to!preserve!or!improve!one's!own!health'!and!'the!practice! of!taking!an!active!role!in!protecting!one's!own!well[being!and!happiness,!in!particular!during!periods! of!stress'!('self[care',!def.!1!and!1.1).!Through!happiness!self[tracking,!people!can!allegedly!influence! their!behaviour!and,!therefore,!their!health.!A!by[product!of!quantifying!the!self!is!a!sense!of!self[ awareness,!or!knowledge!about!the!self!(Ajana!5f!Brown!and!Ryan!823).!As!previously!mentioned,! the!founders!of!the!quantified!self!movement!said!that!the!quantified!self!is!best!described!as!'self[ knowledge!through!numbers'!(Kelly).!Therefore,!to!increase!well[being!and!happiness,!one!arguably! needs!self[awareness.!Michel!Foucault!defined!self2awareness!as!‘the!technologies!of!the!self’.!He!

stated!that!self[techniques!can!allow!individuals!to!transform!themselves!by!performing!a!number!of! operations!on!their!‘bodies,!minds,!souls!and!lifestyle’!to!achieve!happiness!and!quality!of!life!(1).! Self[tracking!apps!that!focus!on!self[care!and!well[being!offer!their!users!insight!into!their!behaviourf! however,!they!also!indicate!how!to!improve!self[care!behaviour.!As!the!quantified!self!has!evolved! into!a!practice!of!tracking!the!self!using!digital!technologies,!obtaining!such!information!has!become! easier!than!ever.!! As!mentioned!before,!examining!digital!privacy!breaches!has!societal!importance.!Previous! research! has! explored! privacy! breaches! related! to! health! and! fitness! self[tracking! apps.! Joram! Binsbergen!wrote!his!2015!master’s!thesis!on!user!privacy!breaches!pertaining!to!the!quantified!self! and! self[tracking! apps.! This! study! focused! on! three! health! self[tracking! apps:! Nike+,! Moves,! and! Argus.!All!three!apps!track!a!person’s!fitness,!daily!steps,!movement,!and!running!time!(Binsbergen! 9[10).!Binsbergen!found!that!users!actively!engaged!and!voluntarily!provided!more!information!about! their!behaviour!and!body!(68).!Yet,!research!has!shown!that!most!users!neither!understand!nor!read! the!online!privacy!policies!they!must!accept!before!using!such!services!(McDonald!and!Cranor!565[ 566).!For!that!reason,!most!people!are!likely!unaware!of!the!potential!for!privacy!breaches.!

Binsbergen’s! conclusion! concerning! possible! privacy! issues! for! people! using! self[tracking! apps!is!that!the!apps!share!their!information!with!third!parties.!Users!who!accept!the!terms!of!service! (ToS)!agree!to!the!app!selling!and!sharing!their!personal!data!with!third!parties,!with!the!consequence! being! that! new! companies! can! access! their! personal! data.! Another! conclusion! is! that! completely! deleting!personal!information!is!difficult!(Binsbergen!68).!To!add!to!Binsbergen’s!conclusion,!other! research! concerning! privacy! policies! has! shown! that! most! users! do! not! read! the! privacy! policies! before!registering!(Binsbergen!68f!McDonald!&!Cranor!565[566).!Overall,!however,!most!user!data! shared!with!third!parties,!including!providers!and!researchers,!is!anonymised.!For!the!self[tracking! apps!that!Binsbergen!examined,!the!privacy!policies!of!the!three!companies!restricted!the!use!of!data! retrieved!through!self[tracking!apps,!which!means!that!companies!accessing!the!shared!data!could! only!use!it!for!marketing!and!promotional!purposes!(Binsbergen!65).!This!conclusion!suggests!that! these!apps!share!information!with!third!parties!for!commercial!purposes.!In!relation!to!data!retrieved! from!happiness!self[tracking!apps,!this!data!can!reveal!information!about!user!behaviour.! In!the!years!following!the!submission!of!Binsbergen’s!thesis,!happiness[tracking!apps!have! become! very! popular! and! expanded! possibilities! to! measure! the! mind.! At! the! same! time,! new! problems!related!to!privacy!on!Facebook!have!demonstrated!the!vulnerability!of!user!data!and!the! power!held!by!companies!that!store!this!data.!The!current!thesis!focuses!on!the!relationship!between! happiness[tracking!apps!and!privacy!breaches.!This!resulted!in!the!following!research!question:!What! privacy!breaches!are!created!through!happiness2tracking!apps!with!the!aim!to!generate!user!data?!

!To!answer!the!main!research!question,!this!thesis!first!explores!the!conditions!that!led!to!the! popularity! of! self[tracking! apps! and,! in! particular,! happiness! self[tracking! apps.! Three! main! developments! have! contributed! to! the! popularity! of! self[tracking:! the! emergence! of! big! data,! the!

technological! tools! developed! to! analyse! this! data,! and! a! cultural! shift! towards! sharing! (thoughts)! online.!!

!

1.2!Overview!of!the!Thesis!

Chapter!1!has!described!the!phenomenon!of!self[tracking.!In!this!part,!a!brief!history!of!self[tracking! in!general!has!been!provided,!along!with!a!summary!of!the!quantified!self!movement.!This! movement!focuses!on!digital!technologies!that!use!data!as!a!reflection!of!the!user’s!behaviour.! Additionally,!this!section!has!provided!a!short!description!of!the!concept!of!privacy,!which!is!further! described!in!Chapter!2,!'Privacy,!Policies,!and!Scandals'.! Chapter!3!contains!a!more!in[depth!literature!review!exploring!the!three!main!developments! that!have!contributed!to!the!rise!of!self[tracking!through!digital!technologies:!the!emergence!of!big! data,!analytical!surveillance,!and!the!normalisation!of!sharing!online.!In!the!first!section!of!Chapter! 3,!big!data!is!defined!in!the!context!of!society,!along!with!happiness!and!privacy.!The!chapter! provides!information!on!the!rise!of!big!data,!the!advantages!and!disadvantages!of!this! phenomenon,!and!the!implications!for!happiness!self[tracking!apps.!Second,!it!explains!the! analytical!tools!used!to!make!sense!of!the!generated!data.!Finally,!it!describes!the!normalisation!of! sharing!online!through!a!brief!history!of!the!rise!of!social!media!platforms.!! !! Chapter!4!describes!the!walkthrough!method,!which!this!study!used!to!answer!the!main! research!question.!This!approach!enables!scholars!to!systematically!review!apps!and!gain!insight! into!such!closed!technical!systems.!The!first!part!of!the!chapter!explains!the!choice!of!the! walkthrough!method,!with!the!different!stages!of!the!method!described.!These!various!stages!of!an! app!are!the!environment!of!the!expected!use!and!the!technical!walkthrough!that!highlight!the!data! strategies!(Light,!Burgess,!and!Duguay!1).!The!chapter!also!outlines!the!theory!of!affordances!and! the!limitations!of!research.!! Chapter!5!presents!the!findings!of!the!three!case!studies.!The!apps'!visions!and!business! strategies!are!incorporated!in!the!walkthrough!analysis.!!The!analysis!contains!the!possible!stages! and!app!features!that!guide!the!user.!The!second!part!of!the!analysis!presents!the!results!of!the! apps'!privacy!policies.!At!last!this!chapter!presents!the!discussion!of!the!results!of!the!analysis.!! In!Chapter!6!a!full!conclusion!of!all!chapters!of!the!thesis!is!provided.!In!addition,!it!answers!the! research!question!on!what!privacy!breaches!are!created!by!Headspace,!Happify!and!Happier!with! the!aim!to!generate!data!of!the!user.!Furthermore,!further!research!ideas!are!described.!!

!

!

!

!

Chapter!2.!Privacy,!Policies,!and!Scandals!

As!mentioned!in!the!introduction,!there!is!no!single!definition!of!the!term!‘privacy’.!In!this!thesis,! privacy!is!defined!as!having!control!over!information!about!oneself!(Beardsley!65).!This!definition! fits!within!the!framework!of!this!thesis,!which!addresses!what!happens!to!the!information!of!users!of! happiness!self[tracking!apps!and!what!privacy!breaches!may!be!created!by!the!data!strategies!of! the!companies!behind!these!apps.!! !! The!debate!around!privacy!has!existed!since!1890,!when!new!inventions!became!accessible! to!the!general!public!and!challenged!the!concept!of!privacy!(Warren!and!Brandeis!195).!According! to!Warren!and!Brandeis,!the!basic!principles!of!protection!of!the!individual!and!property!are!part!of! the!common!law.!However,!these!authors!claim!that!the!exact!nature!of!these!principles!must! occasionally!be!renewed.!In!their!article,!they!state!that!due!to!new!inventions!and!business! practices,!actions!must!be!taken!to!protect!and!secure!people!of!their!‘right!to!be!let!alone’!(Warren! and!Brandeis!195).!Access!to!photographic!equipment!and!the!rise!of!(sensationalist)!news! businesses!led!to!a!re[evaluation!of!the!intrusion!of!people’s!privacy,!as!these!inventions!could! damage!people!who!were!unwillingly!featured!in!newspapers!(Warren!and!Brandeis!195).!Warren! and!Brandeis!describe!privacy!as!'the!right!to!be!let!alone',!by!which!they!mean!that!people!should! be!free!from!any!intrusion!(195[211).!The!increase!in!new!inventions!thus!led!to!a! reconceptualisation!of!privacy.!!! The!concept!of!privacy!is!once!again!being!challenged!by!the!increase!of!digital!technologies! that!gather!and!analyse!data.!Shifts!in!the!interpretation!of!the!concept!of!privacy!may!also!be!due! to!societal!changes.!For!instance,!the!concept!of!sharing!has!changed!due!to!the!emergence!of! social!networking!sites.!Facebook!introduced!the!features!of!sharing,!liking,!and!friending,!which! enable!the!user!to!share!online!content!and!stay!connected!online!(Van!Dijck,!Culture!of! Connectivity!19).!Thus,!these!social!media!platforms!offer!new!opportunities!to!the!user,!such!as! 'sharing'!and!'publishing',!through!which!they!can!openly!distribute!personal!information!(Trottier!and! Lyon!101).!The!public!nature!of!the!space!in!which!the!user!can!share!and!publish!content!makes! them!vulnerable!concering!their!gathered!data.!While!users!can!decide!whether!to!share!information! or!content,!they!have!no!say!regarding!the!distribution!of!the!data!generated!after!they!have!posted! or!shared!online.! !! The!last!two!decades!have!seen!the!development!of!technologies!that!can!store!and!collect! vast!amounts!of!data!and!that!use!algorithmic!tools!to!extract,!analyse,!and!make!sense!of!this! data.!Marketers!can!use!these!algorithmic!tools!to!better!target!their!users!with!their!services,! advertisements,!and!content!(Waldo,!Lin,!and!Millett!2f!Cheney[Lippold!168).!Furthermore,!the! places!where!this!data!is!stored!have!become!available!to!individuals,!governments,!and!companies! (Waldo,!Lin,!and!Millett!2).!In!particular,!social!network!sites!have!provided!people!with!opportunities! to!share!information!online!(Ellison!and!Boyd!154).!For!example,!Facebook!provides!its!users!with!a!

platform!that!explicitly!asks!them!to!share!what!is!on!their!mind!(Davies!369).!While!using!these! online!platforms,!users!are!identifiable!to!companies!analysing!their!data!(Trottier!and!Lyon!101f! Cheney[Lippold!167).!These!online!platforms!therefore!arguably!provide!the!user!with!a!place! where!they!can!share

!

information,!but!also!provide!companies!with!new!sources!of!data!with!which! to!identify!their!users.! Recently,!the!debate!around!privacy!in!relation!to!control!over!information!sharing!has!come! to!the!fore!again!due!to!further!developments!in!information!technology!and!surveillance!techniques! (Nissenbaum!101f!Lyon!1f!Ooijen!and!Vrabec!91).!During!these!rapid!digital!changes,!no!strict!laws! governed!the!right!to!share!personal!information.!Only!after!the!Snowden!revelations!did!President! Obama!suggest!new!rules!concerning!the!NSA’s!data!collection!(Lyon!5).!As!a!consequence!of!the! Snowden! revelations,! the! public! debate! about! privacy! in! relation! to! these! new! technologies! was! sparked! again.! The! NSA! and! Facebook–Cambridge! Analytica! scandals! indicated! that! a! new! perspective!on!privacy!is!needed!beyond!common!law!and!other!protections.!Both!scandals!exposed! individuals'!lack!of!control!over!data!storage!and!the!distribution!of!this!data.!The!lack!of!instruments! to!address!these!issues!of!data!control!and!privacy!illuminates!new!challenges!in!this!era!of!big!data! and!information!technologies!(Prins!226).!The!challenges!regarding!legal!control!over!personal!data! have!also!become!an!important!subject!in!European!privacy!law.!! In!2018,!the!General!Data!Protection!Regulation!(GDPR)!was!introduced!to!address!the!need! for!more!individual!control!over!personal!data!(Ooijen!and!Vrabec!91).!The!GDPR!is!a!new!security! and! data! privacy! law! in! Europe! that! compels! organisations! around! the! world! to! abide! by! certain! obligations! concerning! data! collection! and! targeting.! The! GDPR! describes! the! penalties! an! organisation! will! face! if! it! does! not! obey! these! rulesf! fines! can! reach! €20! million! or! 4%! of! global! revenue1_{.!In!addition,!data!subjects!have!the!right!to!request!compensation!for!damages}2_.!In!2011,! Google!was!sued!for!scanning!the!emails!of!their!users,!underscoring!the!need!for!such!a!law.3!! Due!to!the!development!of!digital!technologies,!their!possibilities,!and!possible!privacy!breaches,!the! EU!declared!that!a!suitable!law!was!needed.!The!next!section!elaborates!further!on!the!European! view!on!privacy.! The!recent!emergence!and!growing!popularity!of!happiness!self[tracking!apps!represents!a! new!form!of!datafication.!This!new!form!of!trying!to!quantify!moods,!emotions,!and!happiness!entails! possible! privacy! issues.! For! this! reason,! this! thesis! examines! the! possible! privacy! breaches! in! happiness!self[tracking!apps.!This!notion!is!especially!important!in!light!of!data!scandals!that!have! revealed! the! vulnerability! of! users’! private! data.! Due! to! the! rapid! technological! developments! and! related! data! storage! issues,! the! European! GDPR! law! responded! to! the! need! for! data! protection!

1

_!

https://gdpr.eu/what[is[gdpr/!accessed!at!25th_{!of!May!2019.!}

!

2

_!

Ibid.

!

3

_!

ibid.

!

(Ooijen! and! Vrabec! 91).! Thus,! to! investigate! what! possible! privacy! breaches! are! created! by! happiness! self[tracking! apps,! the! next! section! provides! various! definitions! of! privacy! in! relation! to! digital!developments.!

!

2.1!The!Definition!of!Privacy!

It! is! notoriously! difficult! to! formulate! an! absolute! definition! of! privacy.! However,! the! term! must! be! defined!(Koops!et!al.!487).!Although!the!definition!of!privacy!has!been!discussed!throughout!the!years,! privacy! faces! new! challenges! in! the! digital! era! (Lukás! 261).! Hence,! many! scholars,! lawyers,! and! philosophers!have!tried!to!define!the!concept.!Warren!and!Brandeis’!‘The!Right!to!Privacy’!fuelled!the! debate! on! privacy! (Hoven! et! al).! After! new! technologies! entered! society,! Warren! and! Brandeis! believed!that!the!nature!of!the!term!‘privacy’!should!also!change,!and!they!defined!it!as!control!over! information!about!the!self!(Warren!and!Brandeis!215).!Since,!their!publishing!the!concept!of!privacy! has!been!discussed!and!reconceptualised.!

Another! definition! of! privacy! is! that! of! Altman,! who! identified! privacy! with! ‘selective! control! over!access!to!oneself!or!one’s!group’!(18).!This!definition!is!more!in!line!with!the!notion!of!the!privacy! that!individuals!possess!in!relation!to!their!information.!Solove!has!stated!that!companies!that!store! users’!data!should!not!be!allowed!to!use!this!data!as!they!desire!(35).!Solove!has!indicated!further! that!the!rise!of!big!data!has!added!a!new!dimension!to!the!definition!of!privacy!(35).!By!using!an!app! and!signing!the!user!agreement,!users!make!a!choice!regarding!with!whom!to!share!their!information.! However,!this!is!only!the!case!if!the!user!has!read!the!full!privacy!policy.! The!European!Convention!on!Human!Rights!offered!another!definition!of!privacy!in!1950:! ‘Everyone!has!the!right!to!respect!for!his!private!and!family!life,!his!home!and!his!correspondence’.4_! The!General!Data!Protection!Regulation!(GDPR)!elaborates!on!this!definition!given!the!increase!of! data!and!the!technologies!that!analyse!this!data.!This!regulation!uses!an!array!of!legal!terms! concerning!digital!technologies:!‘personal!data’,!‘data!processing’,!‘data!subject’,!‘data!controller’,! and!‘data!processor’5_{.!Personal!data!relates!to!information!that!can!lead!to!the!indirect!or!direct!} identification!of!a!user.!The!person!whose!data!is!retrieved,!such!as!a!customer!or!site!visitor,!is!a! data!subject.!The!data!controller!is!the!person!who!decides!how!and!why!personal!data!is! processedf!the!data!controller!can!be!an!owner!or!employee!who!handles!data.!The!actions! performed!on!data!are!data!processing.6_!! The!emergence!of!big!data!has!led!to!a!vast!amount!of!information!that!can!be!collected!and! analysed.!During!this!process,!the!concept!of!privacy!must!be!considered!through!a!different!lens,! as!this!phenomenon!and!the!new!technologies!that!can!analyse!this!data!add!a!new!dimension!to!

4

_!

https://gdpr.eu/what[is[gdpr/!accessed!at!25th_{!of!May!2019.!!} 5

_!

Ibid.

!

6 !ibid.

!

the!notion!of!privacy.!In!addition,!they!add!a!new!dimension!to!users'!ownership!of!their!data.!In! relation!to!happiness!self[tracking!apps,!companies!have!access!to!a!vast!amount!of!data! concerning!users’!emotions!and!moods.!In!these!apps,!users!share!this!information!in!order!to! develop!self[knowledge!and!improve!their!happiness.!Since!users!often!overlook!privacy!policies! and!companies!have!access!to!users'!data,!this!can!create!privacy!breaches.!

In! the! following! sections,! privacy! is! considered! in! the! context! of! the! development! of! digital! technologies.!In!the!next!section,!privacy!and!big!data!are!discussed!in!relation!to!data!ownership.!A! section!on!privacy!policies!follows.!!

!

2.1.1!Privacy,!Big!Data,!and!Ownership! Today,!data!is!one!of!the!most!valuable!assets!in!the!economy,!as!more!businesses!see!data!as!a! way!to!retrieve!information!about!individuals!(Davies!367).!Since!its!launch,!Facebook!has!collected! over! 300! petabytes! of! personal! data! (Zyskind,! Nathan,! and! Pentland! 180).! According! to! previous! research,!this!is!100!times!more!personal!data!than!has!been!collected!by!Washington’s!Library!of! Congress!in!more!than!200!years!(Zyskind,!Nathan,!and!Pentland!180).!These!figures!indicate!the! increasing!rate!of!data!collection.!As!mentioned!before,!this!data!is!used!for!multiple!purposes,!such! as!in!users’!decision[making!processes!and!to!predict!future!trends!or!human!behaviour!(Zyskind,! Nathan,!and!Pentland!180f!Yeung!4).!However,!users!have!little!to!no!control!over!their!collected!and! stored!data!(Zyskind,!Nathan,!and!Pentland!180).!The!pace!of!data!collection!has!increased!over!the! years!and!led!to!new!opportunities!to!use!this!data.!! Companies!that!collect!and!store!data!arguably!have!a!certain!responsibility!to!notify!users! about!how!their!data!is!used!(Solove!35).!Most!firms!disclose!this!information!within!their!services'! privacy!policies!(Earp!et!al.!227).!However,!Solove!has!argued!that!users!should!also!have!a!say!in! how!their!retrieved!data!is!used!(35).!Thus,!he!has!stated!that!privacy!is!more!than!solely!keeping! users’!information!private!or!anonymised.!Solove!has!claimed!that!privacy!in!the!era!of!data!needs!to! ensure!the!responsible!use!of!user!data.!In!addition,!he!has!noted!that!privacy!should!entail!users! being!able!to!exercise!control!over!their!information!(Solove!35).!In!relation!to!happiness!self[tracking! apps,! these! companies! have! a! greater! responsibility! to! respect! user! information,! as! it! consists! of! information! about! users’! feelings! and! behaviour.! This! can! make! the! user! more! vulnerable! and! increase!the!imbalance!of!power!regarding!control!over!users’!personal!data.!!

To! use! an! app,! users! must! accept! its! privacy! policies.! It! is! possible! to! read! these! policies! before!accepting!them.!!However,!if!the!user!were!to!do!so,!it!would!take!40!minutes!to!review!the! average!privacy!policy!(McDonald!and!Cranor!565[566).!In!addition,!these!policies!only!provide!the! user!with!information!on!what!data!is!collected!about!them,!how!their!data!is!used,!and!with!whom!it! is!shared.!They!do!not!provide!users!with!concrete!information!on!how!to!control!the!distribution!of! their!data.!The!relationships!between!data,!companies,!and!users!is!described!in!companies’!privacy!

policies! (Earp! et! al.! 227).! The! following! section! briefly! explains! privacy! policies! in! relation! to! the! consumer!and!companies.!!

!

2.2!Privacy!Policies!

In!management,!information!privacy!is!an!important!topic,!particularly!due!to!the!continuous!growth! in! the! value! of! information! (Earp! et! al.! 227).! Privacy! policies! should! provide! information! about! a! company’s!practices!and!are!often!the!only!source!of!information!for!the!user!(Jensen!and!Potts!472).! Solove! has! stated! that! the! user! should! be! informed! about! how! their! data! is! used! (35).! Isaak! and! Hanna!have!supported!this!statement,!claiming!that!privacy!policies!should!cover!the!following!core! principles:!public!transparency,!disclosure!for!users,!control,!and!notification!(58).!First,!transparency! means! providing! the! user! with! information! on! the! types! of! information! collected,! including! the! mechanisms! used! (Isaak! and! Hanna! 58).! Second,! users! should! be! able! to! acquire! exhaustive! information!on!the!data!that!is!collected,!including!data!collected!by!third!parties!(Isaak!and!Hanna! 58).!Furthermore,!users!should!have!control!over!their!dataf!for!example,!companies!should!respect! 'do!not!track'!requests,!allow!users!to!opt!in!to!each!data!component!individually,!and!make!it!easier! to!delete!all!collected!information!(Isaak!and!Hanna!58).!In!addition,!users'!consent!to!companies'! collecting!information!about!them!should!not!be!extended!to!the!collection!of!information!about!their! ‘friends’! or! ‘contacts’! (Isaak! and! Hanna! 58).! Finally,! if! a! company! misuses! user! data,! they! should! notify! users! directly! (Isaak! and! Hanna! 58).! However,! other! scholars! have! argued! that! such! a! reassurance! of! confidentiality! is! hardly! guaranteed! in! typical! privacy! policies! (Fernback! and! Papacharissi!717).!Companies!also!use!their!privacy!policies!to!absolve!themselves!of!responsibility! in!the!case!of!user!complaints!(Fernback!and!Papacharissi!716).!In!conclusion,!privacy!policies!are! for!both!the!consumer!and!the!company!and!outline!how!and!with!whom!users'!information!is!shared.! ! Privacy!policies!are!an!organisation’s!description!of!its!practices!in!data!collection,!use,!and! disclosure.!Through!these!policies,!the!organisation!aims!to!signal!their!commitment!to!integrity!to! their!users.!Furthermore,!such!policies!constitute!a!form!of!protection!for!the!firm!(Earp!et!al.!227).! Another!reason!companies!provide!the!user!with!privacy!policies!is!to!acquire!their!trust!and!thereby! encourage!them!to!use!their!services.!Therefore,!these!policies!should!make!it!clear!that!user!data!is! treated!fairly!and!responsibly!(Pollach!103).!Research!by!Earp!et!al.!(227)!has!confirmed!that!clear! and!explicit!privacy!polices!generate!trust.!Another!way!to!earn!the!trust!of!users!is!to!offer!users!a! sense!of!control!over!their!data!by!allowing!them!to!opt!in!or!out!of!certain!elements!of!the!service! (Pollach!104).!However,!users!generally!have!to!provide!their!data!to!make!use!of!the!full!range!of!a! platform’s!free!services!(Van!Dijck,!Datafication!197).!In!addition,!research!has!proven!that!most!users! do!not!read!privacy!policies!before!they!accept!the!Terms!of!Service!(ToS)!(McDonald!&!Cranor!565[ 566).!These!findings!indicate!the!extent!of!the!effort!users!need!to!make!before!registering!for!apps! or!websites!they!wish!to!use.!To!highlight!users’!vulnerability!in!relation!to!their!collected!data,!section!

2.3!provides!background!information!on!recent!data!scandals,!including!the!Snowden!leaks!and!the! Facebook–!Cambridge!Analytica!scandal.!!

!

2.3!Data!Privacy!Scandals

! Before!Snowden’s!whistle[blowing,!people!were!not!aware!that!social!network!sites!could!share!their! data!with!intelligence!agencies!(Van!Dijck,!Datafication!197).!The!debate!around!privacy!scandals! and! data! regulation! continues.! The! topic! first! received! significant! attention! after! Snowden! leaked! hundreds!of!NSA!files!in!2013!(Van!Dijck,!Datafication!197).!As!a!former!CIA!analyst,!he!could!no! longer! cope! with! the! extensive! invasion! of! privacy! (Van! Dijck,! Datafication! 197).! In! 2013,! The! Guardian!revealed!that!the!NSA!had!secretly!been!collecting!domestic!metadata!such!as!people's! telecommunications!(Landau!54).!Metadata!can!be!more!revelatory!than!the!actual!content,!as!it!can! reveal!exactly!where!someone!has!been!(Landau!57).

!!

The!revelations!continued!with!the!exposure! of!the!NSA's!PRISM!programme,!which!targeted!internet!communications!and!stored!data!of!persons! outside! the! United! States! (Landau! 54).! These! revelations! are! crucial! because! it! shows! the! vulnerability!of!the!data!of!users!and!the!lack!of!control!users!have!about!their!data.!

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The!NSA's!authority!to!wiretap!international!communications!expanded!beyond!the!borders!of! the!United!States!during!the!presidency!of!George!W.!Bush!after!the!2001!attack!(Landau!56).!The! reason! the! surveillance! criteria! were! loosened! was! the! terrorist! attacks! of! 11! September! 2001! (Landau!56).!Although!these!steps!were!intended!to!protect!society,!Snowden!believed!that!the!NSA! had!collected!more!information!than!United!States!laws!justified!(Landau!54).!In!relation!to!data!in! particular,!trust!regarding!how!user!data!is!handled!is!important,!and!before!Snowden's!revelations,! most!people!had!faith!in!this!process!(Van!Dijck,!Datafication!198).!As!mentioned!in!section!1.1.2,! people’s!trust!in!digital!companies!increases!when!these!organisations!explicitly!inform!their!users! that!their!data!is!treated!fairly!and!responsibly!(Pollach!103).!However,!the!Snowden!leaks!showcased! that!the!NSA!had!obtained!more!data!than!it!had!led!society!to!believe!(Van!Dijck,!Datafication!197).! In!relation!to!happiness!self[tracking!apps—with!which!users!share!personal!information!about!their! state!of!mind—this!raises!questions!about!possible!privacy!breaches.!! In!addition,!in!2018,!the!media!revealed!that!Cambridge!Analytica!had!unauthorised!access! to! the! data! of! ‘more! than! 87! million! Facebook! users’! (Isaak! and! Hanna! 56).! The! exposure! of! the! Facebook[Cambridge! Analytica! scandal! is! especially! crucial! because! Cambridge! Analytica,! in! cooperation! with! Global! Science! Research,! created! a! personality! quiz! that! required! access! to! the! user's!Facebook!profile,!which!also!granted!them!access!to!data!on!the!user's!friends.!Through!this! access!and!the!OCEAN!analysis,!Cambridge!Analytica!was!able!to!'micro[target'!individual!users!with! content!to!influence!the!users’!behaviour!(Isaak!and!Hanna!57).!The!scandal!is!another!example!of! users'!vulnerability!concerning!the!distribution!of!their!data,!particularly!because!access!to!this!data! was!unauthorised.!In!relation!to!self[tracking!apps!that!focus!on!the!mood!or!happiness!of!users,!this!

vulnerability!can!increase,!as!these!companies!enjoy!access!to!core!behaviours.!Happiness!is!an! effective!indicator!of!what!is!important!to!the!individual,!as!Solove!highlighted!in!his!concerns!about! companies’! irresponsibility! regarding! users’! data.! Although! Facebook’s! policy! stated! that! without! users'!consent,!no!data!would!be!shared,!users!later!learned!that!this!data!had!been!shared.!With!the! rise!of!apps!focusing!on!obtaining!information!about!the!feelings!of!users,!these!companies!thus!have! an!increased!responsibility.!!

Furthermore,! Facebook! collected! extensive! data! that! provided! 'an! apparatus! of! power'! the! company!could!use!to!study!account!holders!(Davies!365).!This!power!is!also!visible!in!Cambridge! Analytica's!aim!of!influencing!the!voting!behaviour!of!Facebook!users!by!altering!the!content!they!saw! (Lanting).!In!addition,!an!examination!of!the!policies!of!these!apps!is!necessary,!especially!as!users! have!the!option!to!access!these!apps!via!Facebook.!

Recent! scandals! regarding! user! data,! such! as! the! Snowden! leak! and! the! Facebook[ Cambridge! Analytica! scandal,! show! the! vulnerability! of! user! data.! In! order! to! protect! residents! of! Europe,!the!GDPR!functions!as!a!new!security!and!data!privacy!law!explaining!the!rules!regarding! data! storage.7!The! following! chapter! discusses! big! data,! the! notion! of! the! data[driven! life,! and! background!information!on!how!society!has!become!reliant!on!data.!! ! ! ! ! ! !

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https://gdpr.eu/what[is[gdpr/!accessed!at!25th !of!May!2019.

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Chapter!3.!Big!Data!in!Relation!to!Happiness!SelfITracking!Applications!!

As!mentioned!in!the!introduction,!self[tracking!is!not!a!new!conceptf!professional!athletes!have!long! monitored!their!movement!and!nutrition!to!improve!their!performance!(Ajana!3).!Even!as!early!as!the! Renaissance,! there! was! an! interest! in! measuring! activities,! such! as! daily! steps.! For! instance,! Leonardo! da! Vinci! sketched! a! device! on! wheels,! the! pedometer,! to! measure! footsteps! (Ajana! 3).! However,!over!the!last!decade,!the!portable!smartphone!has!successfully!penetrated!into!society,! which! has! resulted! in! people! having! access! to! more! information! about! their! behaviour! than! ever! before.!Everyday!activities!such!as!energy!use!and!sleep!can!be!measured!and!monitored!through! digital! technologies! (Etkin! 1f! Lupton! 1f! Boulos! et! al.! 2).! According! to! Davies,! these! opportunities,! brought

!

by!the!rise!of!new!technological!tools!for!measurement!and!analysis,!have!led!to!the!‘refuelling! [of]! the! behaviourist! and! utilitarian! ambition! to! manage! society! purely! through! careful! scientific! observation! of! mind,! body,! and! brain’! (366).! Thus,! this! era! is! also! a! time! of! great! possibilities! concerning! data! collection! and! technologies! to! analyse! this! data.! Additionally,! the! behaviour,! thoughts,!moods,!and!emotions!of!individuals!can!be!tracked!and!their!interests!fulfilled.!

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As!mentioned!in!the!introduction,!tracking!the!self!is!related!to!the!quantified!self,!which!refers! to!gaining!more!information!about!oneself!through!data!using!digital!technologies!(Ajana!1).!Today,! mobile!phones!are!small!computers!with!more!than!mere!communication!capabilities.!Smartphones! give!a!sense!of!‘any!time,!any!place’,!as!they!provide!a!portal!into!the!entire!World!Wide!Web!(Boulos! et!al.!3).!As!a!result,!people!can!receive!feedback!through!digital!self[tracking!apps!at!any!moment!of! the!day.!Consequently,!the!development!of!digital!self[measurement!devices!has!made!it!easier!for! the!general!public!to!gain!self[knowledge!(Ajana!3).!People!receive!instant!feedback!that!they!can! apply!in!their!everyday!lives!to!improve!their!behaviour.!!

Due! to! the! proliferation! of! portable! technological! devices,! individuals! now! find! it! easier! to! perform!everyday!tasks!online,!stay!connected!to!friends,!and!track!themselves!(Van!Dijck!and!Poell! 2f!Davies!367).!In!addition,!people!are!also!becoming!more!reliant!on!data!and!algorithms!to!manage! daily!tasks!(Ajana!1).!Individuals!who!use!these!apps!receive!instant!feedback!in!the!form!of!objective! data,!which!helps!them!understand!their!behaviour!and!improve!certain!habits!(Moore!&!Robinson! 2783f!Davies!389).!Through!this!system,!individual!users!become!aware!of!when!they!do!well!and! when!they!make!mistakes!(Thaler,!Sunstein,!and!Baltz!9).!For!humans!to!receive!the!right!feedback! and!improve!their!performance,!the!system!must!be!well[designed.! The!emergence!of!technology!to!track!happiness!reevaluate!the!philosophical!importance!of! happiness! (Davies! 69).! Users! have! become! reliant! on! data! measuring! daily! activities! and,! now,! happiness!(Davies!69).!To!measure!daily!activities,!the!user!must!provide!these!self[tracking!apps! with!data.!Based!on!the!collected!and!analysed!data,!algorithms!can!predict!the!desires!of!the!user! (Gertz! 96).! Nolan! Gertz! has! expressed! concerns! regarding! the! blind! trust! people! have! in! these! algorithms!that!tailor!recommendations!to!them!(96).!He!has!argued!that!the!issue!is!not!that!these!

algorithms!know!users'!behaviour,!but!that!users!trust!these!algorithms.!What!is!more,!most!of!the! time,!the!user!is!not!aware!of!the!algorithms!behind!these!digital!technologies!(Gertz!96).!People!may! trust!the!outcome!of!an!algorithm!analysing!their!behaviour!more!than!their!own!perceptions!of!their! happiness.!This!situation!could!result!in!the!user!providing!more!information!to!obtain!better!feedback.! In!relation!to!privacy,!this!situation!could!create!more!breaches.!The!following!section!explains!how! the!emergence!of!big!data!has!contributed!to!a!data[driven!society.!!

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3.1!The!Emergence!of!Big!Data!and!the!DataIDriven!Life!

The!21st_{!century!is!the!century!of!digital!media!and!the!emergence!of!big!data!(Kumar!and!Dwivedi!} 72f!Davies!367).!Most!offline!activities!have!shifted!towards!online!practices!(Van!Dijck,!The!Culture! of!Connectivity!6).!One!category!of!technological!device!that!has!infiltrated!people's!lives!is!that!of!the! portable!device,!such!as!the!smartphone.!This!shift!has!affected!the!way!people!interact!with!each! other,! professional! routines,! and! institutional! structures! (Van! Dijck! and! Poell! 3).! Therefore,! this! datafication!of!aspects!of!everyday!life!has!led!to!the!production!of!a!vast!amount!of!data!(Charitsis! 8).! As! previously! mentioned,! gaining! information! about! people! began! with! surveys! companies! conducted!to!understand!users’!experience!with!their!products.!The!surveys!were!used!as!a!profiling! technique!so!that!companies!could!improve!their!user!targets!(Davies!360).!In!this!digital!era,!profiling! techniques!retrieve!valuable!user!data!(Davies!397).!Big!data!allows!companies!to!understand!the! needs!and!demands!of!the!customer,!which!can!result!in!business!growth!for!companies!(Kumar!and! Dwivedi!75).!Therefore,!data!can!provide!insight!into!the!future!behaviour!of!the!user.! The!term!data!derives!from!the!Latin!word!datum,!which!means!‘that!which!is!given’!(Davies! 364).!However,!previous!research!has!shown!that!data!is!never!simply!'given'!by!the!user!(Davies! 364).!The!user!must!provide!it!to!engage!in!certain!digital!activities,!such!as!use!of!social!media!sites! (Davies!364).!The!user!can!only!access!an!app!after!registering,!which!leads!to!the!first!generation! of!data.!In!this!case,!data!is!not!simply!given,!but!is!required!in!exchange!for!utilising!the!app!(Davies! 364).!One!could!argue!that!data!is!still!given,!as!the!user!accepts!the!terms!to!participate!in!these! social!activities.!However,!due!to!digitalisation!and!the!rise!of!new!technologies,!offline!activities!have! been!transformed!into!online!activities!on!a!vast!scale.!Sometimes,!people!no!longer!have!an!option! to!partake!in!certain!activities,!such!as!bank!transactions,!offline!(Morley).!Therefore,!people!are!more! dependent!on!these!online!activities.!! The!common!understanding!of!the!term!big!data!is!technology!that!rapidly!processes!‘vast! quantities! of! data’! (Yeung! 119).! The! procedure! involves! data! mining! to! discover! patterns,! which! companies!can!then!filter!using!predictive!analytics!(Yeung!119).!Another!term!used!to!describe!big! data!is!business!analytics!(Pence!154).!In!addition!to!swiftly!capturing!vast!amounts!of!data,!big!data! is!characterised!by!the!three!'big!V’s':!volume,!variety,!and!velocity!(Pence!161).!Big!data!involves!

large!volumes!of!stored!data,!which!continue!to!expand.!This!volume!of!data!features!a!great!variety! of!structured!and!unstructured!formats!(Pence!161).!The!velocity!of!data!is!the!pace!at!which!data!is! collected,! analysed,! and! retrieved! (Pence! 161).! Thus,! the! term! 'big! data'! denotes! not! only! vast! quantities!of!data!but!also!techniques!for!analysing!large!sets!of!data.!

One! can! also! define! the! emergence! of! big! data! in! relation! to! the! interplay! of! cultural,! technological,!and!scholarly!circumstances!regarding!computational!power!and!algorithmic!accuracy! in!gathering,!analysing,!linking,!and!comparing!data!sets!(Boyd!and!Crawford!663).!Businesses!can! use!these!algorithmic!tools!for!data!mining!for!various!purposes,!such!as!to!predict!what!content!or! activities!the!user!might!desire!(Cheney[Lippold!168).!Happiness!self[tracking!apps!can!recommend! activities!that!improve!the!users’!happiness!based!on!their!retrieved!data.!These!possible!desired! recommandations!can!make!to!the!users’!more!prone!to!keep!engaging!with!the!app.!! As!previously!mentioned,!the!apps!have!this!ability!because!they!are!based!on!designs!that! can!influence!the!user’s!decisions!(Yeung!119).!This!power!of!big!data!is!therefore!troubling!due!to! not!only!its!effect!on!user!privacy!with!regard!to!shared!information!but!also!its!potential!to!shape!the! personal! decision[making! of! the! user.! Because! of! the! power! of! big! data,! in! 2006,! Clive! Humpy! described!data!as!‘the!new!oil’!(Arthurf!Bollen,!Mao!&!Zeng!2).!Unlike!oil,!data!is!unlimited!and!is! therefore!like!oil!is!a!powerful!commodity.!As!with!most!interactions!involving!power,!people!do!not! freely!provide!data!but!are!forced!to!do!so.!Frequently,!to!access!online!services,!users!first!have!to! register!and!provide!personal!data,!such!as!their!name!or!email!address!(Bridlef!Van!Dijck!Users!Like! You!47).!This!represents!a!data!strategy!employed!for!the!purposes!of!target!advertising.!However,! this!extraction!of!data!can!also!provide!these!companies!with!information!to!improve!their!services! according!to!users’!desires!(Cheney[Lippold!168).!In!relation!to!happiness!self[tracking!apps,!users! have! to! give! information! before! accessing! activities! that! may! help! improve! their! mood,! but! this! information!also!helps!the!company!to!tailor!activities!for!the!user.!One!must!take!into!account!that! data!is!only!valuable!if!it!is!refined!for!analysis.!As!Michael!Palmer,!a!member!of!the!Association!of! National!Advertisers,!has!stated,!‘data!is!like!crude.!It’s!valuable,!but!if!unrefined!it!cannot!really!be! used![…]!so!data!must!be!broken!down,!analysed!for!it!to!have!value’!(Arthur).!At!the!moment,!large! technology!companies!have!the!tools!to!extract,!filter,!and!analyse!data!and!to!make!observational! claims!about!the!user.!Because!of!the!broad!capacity!of!the!networked!Internet!infrastructure!to!track! users!on!different!platforms!and!servers,!web!analytics!firms!can!amass!a!vast!amount!of!information! and!fine[tune!it!with!analytical!tools!(Davies!397f!Cheney[Lippold!165).!This!information[processing! consists! of! data! mining! for! patterns,! extracting! these! patterns! through! predictive! analytics,! and! applying!the!analytics!to!new!data!(Yeung!119).!In!other!words,!based!on!the!gathered!data!of!users,! companies! gain! knowledge! about! their! users! and! what! they! might! appreciate.! Furthermore,! concerning!self[tracking!apps,!this!data!can!create!awareness!about!the!users’!habits.!!

Self[tracking!has!become!normalised!to!create!awareness!of!users'!daily!activities!and!how! these!activities!can!be!improved!(Gertz!92).!According!to!Van!Dijck,!the!normalisation!of!actions!can!

occur!through!different!levels!of!adjustment!of!technological!features,!terms!of!use,!and!the!‘gradual! transformations!of!user!habits!and!changing!levels!of!acceptance’!(The!Culture!of!Connectivity!19).! Thus,!societal!norms!have!gradually!changed!because!of!what!technologies!offer.!Gertz,!states!that! the!phenomenon!of!allowing!technologies!to!regulate!and!control!people's!daily!lives!is!a!data[driven! activity!(90).!Gertz!has!explained!this!regulation!as!users'!willingness!to!let!their!lives!be!regulated! and!controlled!by!technologies.!He!has!stated!that!for!every!activity,!there!is!an!app,!referring!to!the! statement!of!Apple!Inc.!(90).!Gertz!claims!that!society!builds!on!data[driven!predictions,!options,!and! demands!(90[91).!He!has!asserted!that!society!is!built!on!habits!and!routines!and!that!humans!try!to! avoid! making! decisions! (90).! In! relation! to! happiness! self[tracking! apps,! users! are! provided! with! information!about!their!state!of!mind!according!to!a!profile!based!on!their!data.!After!the!profile!is!built,! the!users!can!receive!recommendations!aimed!at!improving!their!sense!of!happiness.!! This!century!is!the!era!of!the!emergence!of!big!data.!Almost!every!aspect!of!life!has!been! datafied.!The!proliferation!of!portable!digital!devices!has!supported!this!development.!The!datafication! of!aspects!of!daily!activities!has!also!led!to!a!large!amount!of!data.!However,!the!term!big!data!does! not!solely!refer!to!the!volume!of!data.!The!value!of!data!lies!in!the!analytical!process.!In!addition,! people!today!live!in!a!data[driven!society!in!which!users!willingly!allow!their!behaviour!to!be!regulated.! Because!of!the!information!provided!by!users,!companies!have!gained!great!knowledge!and!can!tailor! this!to!the!desires!of!users!and!help!them!to!regulate!their!daily!activities.!The!next!section!provides! information!about!the!decision[making!process!that!shapes!the!users’!behaviour!and!the!analytical! tools!to!make!sense!out!of!the!retrieved!data.!! !!

3.2!Nudging!and!Analytical!Surveillance!

Since!the!emergence!of!big!data,!academics!have!paid!attention!to!the!design!of!the!decision[making! process!shaping!individuals’!behaviour!(Yeung!120).!The!environment!has!a!substantial!influence!on! this!decision[making!process!(Thaler,!Sunstein,!and!Balz!120).!It!is!the!environment!that!provides! individuals!with!features!that!either!noticeably!or!unnoticeably!shape!their!decisions.!The!person!who! creates!that!environment!is!the!choice!architect!(Thaler,!Sunstein,!and!Balz!120).!According!to!Karen! Yeung,! there! are! two! distinguishable! sub[processes! in! the! larger! big! data[driven! decision[making! process!that!demonstrate!how!big!data!analytic!techniques!use!nudging.!These!sub[processes!are! automated!decision[making!processes!and!digital!decision[guidance!processes!(121).!In!the!digital! decision2guidance!process,!the!individual!is!directed!by!technology!based!on!algorithmic!software.!In! other! words,! the! user! receives! recommendations! intended! to! prompt! the! user! to! make! decisions! (Yeung! 121).! The! automated! decision2making! process! does! not! require! human! interaction! and! is! more!applicable!to!transactions!of!financial!institutes!(Yeung!121).!The!concept!of!digital!decision[ making!is!more!relevant!for!this!thesis,!as!it!exposes!the!data!strategies!of!happiness!self[tracking! apps!and!the!possible!privacy!breaches!that!accompany!them.!

Nudging!is!an!aspect!of!choice!architecture!that!influences!the!thoughts!and!behaviour!of!the! individual!(Yeung!120).!In!some!situations,!avoiding!influencing!people’s!choices!is!not!possiblef! one!must!make!choices!that!affect!people’s!behaviour.!In!short,!there!is!no!way!to!avoid!nudging! and,!hence,!to!avoid!affecting!people’s!choices!(Thaler!and!Sunstein,!Improving!Decisions!10).!This! is!not!always!in!the!best!interest!of!humans.!The!designer!of!a!menu!could!have!an!interest!in! guiding!users!towards!profitable!items!(Thaler,!Sunstein,!and!Balz!3).!In!relation!to!happiness!self[ tracking!apps,!the!user!may!be!nudged!to!participate!in!certain!activities!to!generate!specific!data.!! Thaler!and!Sunstein!furthermore!state!that!the!individual!occasionally!makes!lesser!choices,! because!they!do!not!have!all!the!information,!lack!of!willpower,!and!unlimited!cognitive!abilities! (Thaler!&!Sunstein,!Libertarian!Paternalism!1162).!One!could!say!that!this!guidance!of!the!user!in! the!light!of!libertarian!paternalism!is!the!attempt!to!direct!their!choices!in!promoting!welfare!(Thaler! &!Sunstein,!Libertarian!Paternalism!is!not!an!oxymoron!1159).!With!happiness!self[tracking!apps! nudging!the!user!in!a!particular!direction!to!improve!their!happiness.!!However,!the!freedom!of! choice!cannot!be!affected!(Thaler!&!Sunstein,!Libertarian!Paternalism!1159).!!The!respected! freedom!of!choice!can!be!questionable!with!the!privacy!policies!of!these!apps.!! The!guidance!of!users!is!also!related!to!the!concept!of!‘the!grammars!of!action’,!introduced! by!Agre.!In!brief,!the!grammars!of!action!signify!how!the!activities!of!users!are!structured.!Agre!has! claimed!that!it!is!not!only!input!and!output!that!matter!but!also!how!human!activities!are!structured! (746).!The!grammars!of!action!aim!at!generating!and!collecting!all!kinds!of!data,!for!example,! starting!with!user!profiles,!circles!of!friends,!the!contacts!in!those!circles,!and!the!locations!of!users.! According!to!Van!Dijck,!the!aim!of!generating!user!data!is!linked!to!companies!stressing!their!first! aim,!for!instance,!human!connectednessf!she!has!stated!that!companies!stress!the!original! meaning!of!their!services!and!minimise!the!second!meaning,!such!as!collecting!data!(The!Culture!of! Connectivity!12).!According!to!Agre,!'Simply!put,!a!system!can!only!track!what!it!can!capture,!and!it! can!only!capture!information!that!can!be!expressed!within!the!grammar!of!action!that!has!been! imposed!upon!the!activity'!(750).!The!grammars!of!action!show!the!process!and!the!relation! between!data!capture!and!activity!capture.!Concerning!happiness!self[tracking!apps,!these!forms!of! data!collection!can!ask!users!to!provide!more!information!about!their!feelings.! Apps!thus!guide!users!to!take!certain!steps!during!their!utilisation!of!and!interaction!within! those!apps.!In!addition,!due!to!the!shift!from!offline!activities!to!online!activities,!the!idea!of!sharing! personal!information!online!has!gradually!changed!in!society!(Van!Dijck!and!Poell!2f!Van!Dijck,!The! Culture!of!Connectivity!19).!The!shift!form!offline!to!online!activities!has!contributed!to!interactions! among!these!online!activities!associated!with!nudging,!resulting!in!companies!gaining!access!to!a! vast!amount!of!data.!Background!information!about!the!societal!transition!normalising!sharing!and! how!people!are!compelled!to!use!these!online!services!is!essential.!The!following!section!describes! the!cultural!change!in!relation!to!big!data.!The!section!provides!background!information!on!how!the! sharing!of!information!has!gradually!become!normalised!in!society.!!

3.3!The!Normalisation!of!Sharing!Online

!

In!addition!to!technological!changes,!cultural!change!has!also!occurred.!Social!media!platforms!are! part!of!everyday!activities,!and!they!have!shifted!offline!interactions!between!people!online!(Van!Dijck! and!Poell!2).!According!to!Kaplan!and!Haenlein,!social!media!can!be!described!as!‘a!group!of!Internet[ based!applications!that!build!on!the!ideology!and!technology!of!Web!2.0,!and!that!allow!the!creation! and! exchange! of! user[generated! content’! (61).! According! to! Van! Dijck,! the! interactions! between! people! who! use! these! platforms! are! influenced! on! an! individual! level! and! a! broader! social! level! because!the!offline!and!online!worlds!are!interrelated!(Van!Dijck,!The!Culture!of!Connectivity!4).!One! could! argue! that! this! has! also! influenced! the! norm! of! ‘sharing’! private! information! to! gain! self[ knowledge!or!personalised!advertisements!(Van!Dijck,!The!Culture!of!Connectivity!19).!During!this! shift,! the! norms! concerning! privacy! in! sharing! information! has! gradually! widened! (Van! Dijck,! The! Culture! of! Connectivity! 19).! Davies! has! called! this! need! to! share! feelings! and! thoughts! on! social! networking!platforms!‘the!rise!of!narcissism’!(371).!As!social!networking!platforms!emerged,!people! became!accustomed!to!sharing!their!daily!activities!(Wolf).!This!change!in!the!practice!of!sharing!has! gradually!become!embedded!in!these!online!platforms!to!accustom!users!to!these!features!that!allow! them!to!share.! Users!of!these!platforms!are!guided!to!perform!certain!data[creating!activities,!such!as!sharing! their!feelings!(Stanfill!1060).!For!instance,!Facebook!asks!its!users,!‘What!are!you!doing!today?’!and! allows!users!to!employ!emojis!to!express!their!feelings!in!posts!(Davies!368).!According!to!Wolf,!self[ tracking!apps!respond!to!people’s!desire!to!share!their!activities.!To!act!on!this!desire,!people!need! information!to!sharef!self[tracking!apps!allow!them!to!display!their!achievements!in!numbers!(Wolf).! Additionally,!apps!can!respond!to!this!user!desire!by!offering!game!elements!to!track!users'!progress.! This! strategy! constitutes! gamification! (Alahäivälä! and! Oinas[Kukkonen! 62):! It! involves! the! use! of! ‘game! elements! in! non[game! contexts! or! the! use! of! game! experiences’! to! enhance! a! service! (Alahäivälä! and! Oinas[Kukkonen! 62).! Furthermore,! gamification! is! used! to! encourage! the! engagement!of!a!user!to!a!service!(Stepanovic!and!Mettler!1).!These!game!elements!of!happiness! self[tracking! apps! enhance! their! services,! making! it! more! enjoyable! for! users! to! share! and! gain! information!about!themselves.! The!main!aim!of!implementing!game!elements!in!a!non[video[game!environment!is!to!enhance! the!attachment!of!the!user!to!the!app,!thus!resulting!in!people!using!the!app!more!often.!In!addition,! gamification!inspires!users!to!complete!their!tasks!(Alahäivälä!and!Oinas[Kukkonen!62).!Gertz!has! stated!that!gamification!has!also!contributed!to!a!society!in!which!every!aspect!of!individuals'!lives!is! reduced!to!data!sets.!He!has!stated!that!this!strategy!is!alluring!as!regards!not!only!accomplishing! the!first!goal!of!the!app!(e.g.,!fitness),!but!also!gaining!points!(Gertz!94).!This!possibility!of!improving! their!behaviour!can!encourage!people!to!continue!using!an!app!and!to!create!more!data,!which!the! developers!can!then!analyse!to!improve!the!app's!features.!The!app!can!then!connect!to!people’s! desires! and! encourage! attachment! to! the! app,! which! in! turn! produces! more! understandable! data!

about!users!(Cheney[Lippold!168).!Thus,!the!use!of!these!platforms!or!apps!gives!companies!access! to!a!vast!amount!of!data,!partly!due!to!the!emergence!of!social!networking!platforms!on!which!people! share!their!feelings!and!activities.! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

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Chapter!4.!The!Methodological!Framework!

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4.1!The!Research!Questions!

As!previously!mentioned,!the!number!of!techniques!available!for!tracking!oneself!digitally!has! recently!grown!(Ajana!1).!However,!these!digitised!activities!increasingly!appear!to!have!additional! objectives!that!challenge!the!definition!of!a!person’s!privacy!in!terms!of!the!amount!of!data! companies!have!access!to!(Van!Dijck,!The!Culture!of!Connectivity!12f!Solove!35).!For!example,!in! the!digital!media!environment,!mobile!apps!are!ubiquitous!(Light,!Burgess,!and!Duguay!1).!In! addition,!apps!are!closed!technical!systems!that!can!keep!tracking!the!user!(e.g.,!the!user’s! location)!even!when!the!app!is!closed.!Such!information!gathering!prompted!this!study’s!aim!of! investigating!the!data!strategies!that!create!possible!privacy!breaches!in!happiness!self[tracking! apps.!The!case!studies!Headspace,!Happify!and!Happier!were!chosen!because!each!app!has!a! different!approach!to!track!happiness.!In!Headspace!the!users!are!able!to!track!their!happiness! through!meditationf!Happify!offers!their!users!to!track!happiness!through!games!based!on!their! social!skillsf!Happier!lets!its!users!track!their!progress!of!happiness!by!collecting!‘happy!moments’.!

To! study! these! data! strategies,! the! walkthrough! method! was! chosen! as! the! most! suitable! approach!because!it!is!a!method!tailored!specifically!to!the!study!of!mobile!apps!(Ford!9).!In!using! this!method,!the!study’s!research!question,!which!asks!what!possible!privacy!breaches!are!created! in! happiness! self[tracking! apps! with! the! aim! to! generate! data,! was! supported! by! the! following! questions:! How! do! happiness! self[tracking! apps! nudge! the! user! to! generate! data?! What! data! is! obtained!from!the!user!when!these!self[tracking!apps!are!in!use!according!to!their!privacy!policies?! The!results!of!the!study!were!accompanied!by!the!privacy!policies!of!the!happiness!self[tracking!apps.! Further!explanation!on!the!decision!to!apply!the!walkthrough!method!is!provided!in!section!4.2.!! ! 4.2!Method!of!Choice:!The!Walkthrough!Method! The!walkthrough!method!allowed!the!researcher!to!examine!the!stages!of!a!specific!app!in!an!orderly! way.!The!parts!of!the!walkthrough!were!the!registration!and!entry!part!and!the!everyday!use!part! (Light,! Burgess,! and! Duguay! 1).! The! walkthrough! method! has! two! stages:! the! environment! of! expected!use!stage!and!the!technical!walkthrough.!Regarding!the!environment!of!expected!use,!the! researcher!explored!the!vision,!operational!model!(or!business!strategy),!and!governance!of!the!apps! (Light,!Burgess,!and!Duguay!1).!This!first!stage!of!the!walkthrough!method!is!a!preparation!phase! before! the! actual! technical! walkthrough.! The! first! stage! of! the! method! identifies! certain! intentions! behind!the!functions!and!features!of!the!app!(Light,!Burgess,!and!Duguay!3).!In!this!research,!the! environment!of!expected!use!(vision,!operational!model,!and!governance)!was!incorporated!within! the!parts!of!the!technical!walkthrough:!registration!and!entry!and!everyday!use.!!