Platform enclosure of human behavior and its measurement: Using behavioral trace data against platform episteme
Platform enclosure of human behavior and its measurement: Using behavioral trace data against platform episteme
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人类行为的平台封闭及其测量：使用针对平台认知的行为跟踪数据
作者：
A. Wu;H. Taneja
来自大型平台的数字痕迹数据在人类行为研究中取得了进展。这一趋势伴随着关于代表性、隐私、访问和商业来源的争论。作为对现有讨论的补充，并将重点放在知识生产上，我们将注意力集中在被动捕获的行业行为日志中的不同测量制度上。从机构的角度将测量作为一种管理技术，我们将平台与第三方受众测量公司进行了比较。后者是为多边广告市场提供“货币”，而前者是出于自身的行政目的在内部采取措施(即通过设计规定行为)。我们展示了平台巨头对用户生态的双重包围，以及随后为用户关注而开放的市场。以平台踪迹数据作为学术研究的生命线，平台认识论向封闭知识生产延伸。最后，我们提出了学术数量社会科学可能抵制这些平台围栏的方法。
Digital trace data from giant platforms are gaining ground in the study of human behavior. This trend accompanies contestations regarding representativeness, privacy, access, and commercial origin. Complementing existing discussions and focusing on knowledge production, we draw attention to the different measurement regimes within passively captured behavioral logs from industries. Taking an institutional perspective on measurement as a management technology, we compare platforms with third-party audience measurement firms. Whereas the latter measure to provide “currency” for a multi-sided advertising market, the former measure internally for their own administrative purposes (i.e. prescribing behavior through design). We demonstrate the platform giants’ two-fold enclosure of first the user ecology and subsequently the previously open market for user attention. With platform trace data serving as a lifeline for scholarly research, platform episteme extends itself to enclose knowledge production. We conclude by suggesting ways in which academic quantitative social sciences may resist these platform enclosures.