This is Technology Ethics

5BEHAVIOR CHANGE TECHNOLOGIES, GAMIFICATION, PERSONAL AUTONOMY, AND THE VALUE OF CONTROL

5.1 A Better You?

5.1 In a 2018 video commercial for a smartwatch called “the Apple Watch,” the first thing the viewer sees is a very laid‐back man sitting on a couch, drinking coffee. The man then gets a surprised look on his face. He glances over and sees another version of himself, who is looking down at a smartwatch. The next frame zooms in on the watch. The watch displays the message “time to stand!” Both versions of the man then immediately stand up. Next, we see them walking down the street. Several other versions of this same man are now seen using the smartwatch in all sorts of ways: to make calls, to keep track of their exercising (one jogging version of the man looks down at a message that reads “behind target!”), and so on.

5.2 Toward the end of the clip, we see the by far sportiest version of the man. The other versions of him are wearing a casual t‐shirt and some sweatpants. But this highly athletic version of the man is sporting swimming trunks and swimming goggles. He enthusiastically runs down to the ocean, jumps in, and starts swimming, looking very much like a man of action. This is a big contrast to the couch‐potato version of this man we saw at the beginning of the clip. The commercial then draws to a close. A text appears on the screen that reads as follows: “there's a better you in you.”¹ The intended message is clear: if you start using this smartwatch, you will ...