Cellf-care: the role of smartphones in decision-making and the formation of health and self

Abstract

Smartphone technology has transformed the process by which women understand themselves, manage their care decisions and access health information, while also creating a space for more integrated and individualized understandings of wellness. Using exploratory, semi-structured interviews (n = 27) and observation of phone use, this study examines how minority women in Boston engage with smartphones through health-related mobile applications and web searches. Drawing upon postphenomenology, I examine the way smartphones have become both a regulatory force and motivational tool in the formation of self. I argue that the integration of smartphones into user identity positions them as the primary entryway for health decision-making (Garro, 1986, 1998) and patient-clinician interactions.