The Metric Society

In today’s world, numbers are in the ascendancy. Societies dominated by star ratings, scores, likes and lists are rapidly emerging, as data are collected on virtually every aspect of our lives. From annual university rankings, ratings agencies and fitness tracking technologies to our credit score and health status, everything and everybody is measured and evaluated.

In this imp...

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In today’s world, numbers are in the ascendancy. Societies dominated by star ratings, scores, likes and lists are rapidly emerging, as data are collected on virtually every aspect of our lives. From annual university rankings, ratings agencies and fitness tracking technologies to our credit score and health status, everything and everybody is measured and evaluated.

In this important new book, Steffen Mau offers a critical analysis of this increasingly pervasive phenomenon. While the original intention behind the drive to quantify may have been to build trust and transparency, Mau shows how metrics have in fact become a form of social conditioning. The ubiquitous language of ranking and scoring has changed profoundly our perception of value and status. What is more, through quantification, our capacity for competition and comparison has expanded significantly – we can now measure ourselves against others in practically every area. The rise of quantification has created and strengthened social hierarchies, transforming qualitative differences into quantitative inequalities that play a decisive role in shaping the life chances of individuals.

This timely analysis of the pernicious impact of quantification will appeal to students and scholars across the social sciences, as well as anyone concerned by the cult of numbers and its impact on our lives and societies today.

Introduction
1. The Measurement of Social Value
What Does Quantification Mean?
The Calculative Practices of the Market
The State as Data Manager
Engines of Quantification: Digitalization and Economization
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Introduction
1. The Measurement of Social Value
What Does Quantification Mean?
The Calculative Practices of the Market
The State as Data Manager
Engines of Quantification: Digitalization and Economization
2. Status Competition and the Power of Numbers
Dispositives of Comparison
Commensurability and Incommensurability
New Horizons of Comparison
Registers of Comparison and Investive Status Work
3. Hierarchization: Rankings and Ratings
Visibilization and the Creation of Difference
On Your Marks!
University Rankings
Here Today, Gone Tomorrow: The Market Power of Rating Agencies
4. Classification: Scoring and Screening
Credit Scoring
Quantified Health Status
Mobility Value
'Boost Your Score' Ð Academic Status Markers
Social Worth Investigations
5. The Evaluation Cult: Stars and Points
Satisfaction Surveys
Evaluation Portals as Selectors
Peer-to-Peer Ratings
Professions in the Evaluative Spotlight
Like-Based Reputations on Social Media
6. The Quantified Self: Charts and Graphs
Health, Exercise and Mood
The Collective Body
Motivation Techniques
7. The Power of Nomination
The Nomination Power of the State
Performance Measurement and the Framing of Competition
The Nomination Power of Experts
Algorithmic Authority
Critique of Nomination Power
8. Risks and Side Effects
Reactive Measurements
Loss of Professional Control
Loss of Time and Energy
Monoculture Versus Diversity
9. Transparency and Discipline
Normative and Political Pressure
The Power of Feedback
Technical Surveillance in the Workplace
The New Tariff Systems
The Interdependence of Self- and External Surveillance
The Regime of Averages, Benchmarks and Body Images
10. The Inequality Regime of Quantification
Establishment of Worth
Reputation Management
Collectives of Non-Equals
From Class Conflict to Individual Competition
Inescapability and Status Fluidity
Self-Reinforcing Effects
Bibliography
Index
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