Measuring commitment to self-tracking: development of the C2ST scale

Abstract

Self-tracking technologies bring a new set of experiences into our lives. Through sensors and ubiquitous measurements of bodily performance, a new form of automation experience shapes our understanding of our body and our behavior. While for many individuals self-tracking has an important role in their daily lives, a theoretical understanding of the level and behavioral manifestations of commitment to self-tracking is still missing. This paper introduces the concept of commitment to self-tracking and presents the development and first validation of a new 12-item behavior-based scale for its measurement, the Commitment to Self-Tracking (C2ST) scale. Using online survey data from individuals wearing self-tracking technology (N = 300), we explore the underlying factor structure of the scale and determine its reliability and validity. An analysis of the survey data indicates that commitment to self-tracking positively correlates with autonomous motivation for tracking and negatively correlates with controlled motivation. The C2ST scale brings insights on how self-tracking technology, as a novel automation experience, is affecting users’ everyday behaviors. Overall, by emphasizing the feasibility of defining commitment behaviorally, the paper concludes with implications for theory and practice and suggests directions for future research.