Affordances as a problem: One case of digitalized collective self-observation

Abstract

This article is concerned with affordances of smartphone applications for collecting data in anthropological research. The empirical base is a project dedicated to experiences of urban commuting in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia, which was carried out in summer 2014 with the help of timetracking mobile apps. Firstly, we consider the methodological benefts of partial automatization for the “boring parts” of ethnography, such as somewhat easier recruitment and data processing. These are counter-weighted by the dangers of unrefective use of digital interfaces. In particular, the software design tends to impose established frames of experience narration and standardized temporalities, as well as to “cut off” data that could be presented through a less structured interface.