I feel my wrist buzz. Smartbody and performative sensibility in Fitbit devices

Abstract

This article discusses the concepts of performative sensibility and smartbody. The central thesis is that performative sensibility highlights the instrumental nature of sensations in which objects act on the world. We show how the prescriptions of this new sensibility associated with wearables affect the body and perform a subjectivity that we propose to call a smartbody. They were analyzed one hundred testimonials from the oldest thread with the greatest number of comments in the Fitbit user community forum. Quantitative tools and Actor-network theory were used as a guide to assemble and analyze the corpus. The preliminary findings show that Fitbit users demonstrate particular changings in body care. Extreme behaviors, physical limits defined by system goals and quantification habits without carrying the device are some of the examples found. These findings appear to indicate that the performative sensibility of wearables mobilizes new bodies performatic patterns and practices oriented by data.