Nudging into Subjectification

1
Nudging into Subjectification

• John Cromby
• Psychology, SSEHS

2
OVERVIEW

• Cromby, J. Willis, M.E.H. (in press) Nudging
  Into Subjectification governmentality and
  psychometrics. Critical Social Policy
• The Story
• Context
• Nudge and BIT
• Positive Psychology
• Character Psychometrics
• Signature Strengths
• Subjectification

3
The Story
4
Context

• Neoliberal government policies austerity
• Punitive changes to benefits system
• Media and ministerial attacks on claimants
• During periods of economic downturn worklessness
  is typically named as a problem of character
  (Clarke Newman 2012, p.311)

5
Nudge and BIT

• Behavioural economics
• Economics, neuroscience, psychology
• Human decisions neither simply rational nor
  simply irrational
• Choice architectures, imprinting
• Libertarian paternalism
• People can legitimately be nudged toward goals
  that have prior public consent
• Whitehead et al (2011)
• Policy implementations of behavioural economics
  frequently associate emotional decisions with
  particular groups
• Behavioural economics enables policy makers (and
  an emerging cartel of psychocrats) to foreclose
  discussion of what the values associated with
  good behaviour should be (Whitehead et al.,
  2011 p.2834, italics in original).

6
Positive Psychology

• Test based upon the Values in Action (VIA)
  Inventory of Character Strengths and Virtues -
  the scientific backbone of positive psychology
• Becker Marecek (2008) show that positive
  psychology
• Endorses the American Dream
• Takes a selective view of positive institutions
• Largely ignores power relations of e.g. SES,
  gender, ethnicity
• Held (2008) the double epistemic standard of
  positive psychology
• Positive psychology has influenced previous UK
  social policy
• Lord Layard and IAPT
• Measuring national wellbeing

7
Character Psychometrics

• 48 questions, 5 point Likert Scale
• Issues
• Reliablity and validity
• Reactivity/response bias
• Introspection
• Quantification
• Meaning

8
Character Psychometrics

• VALIDITY
• "They are using the non-validated version we
  had tested it a while back and it failed VIA,
  The Guardian, May 6th
• REACTIVITY AND RESPONSE BIAS
• social desirability responding the tendency of
  respondents to answer questions in a manner that
  (they imagine) will be viewed favourably by
  others
• More likely in relation to topics such as sexual
  behaviour, drug use, abilities and personality
  (Rust and Golombok, 1999)

9
Character Psychometrics

• INTROSPECTION
• the supposed ability to look inside the self
  and objectively report what we see
• behavioural economics presumes that we do not
  have this kind of rational insight
• QUANTIFICATION
• It has never been demonstrated that psychological
  attributes are discrete and quantifiable in
  character
• In the natural sciences it is axiomatic that
  measurement viability is demonstrated before
  measures are deployed
• Psychology sidesteps this requirement by using an
  ad hoc and anomolous operational definition of
  measurement the assignment of numerals to
  objects or events according to rule (Michell,
  2000 p. 650)

10
Character Psychometrics

• MEANING
• 5 point Likert scale very much like/unlike me
• Rosenbaum Valsiner (2011) participants
  completed the NEO-PI, for each question wrote
  down the meanings of the end points of the scale
• These meanings often varied between questions,
  and between participants
• it is a misplaced assumption that participants
  have direct access to their response and that
  this response is static and can be represented as
  a mark along a line .. rating scale data, despite
  being statistically manipulated, should not (and
  indeed cannot) be thought of as objective
  (Rosenbaum Valsiner 2011, p.61).

11
Character Psychometrics

• The VIA test
• may lack validity
• is not a neutral scientific process of
  quantification
• does not provide objective assessments of
  character
• The contribution of psychometric modelling is
  fundamentally a political one, as it permits the
  assimilation of the reality of phenomena that are
  described in a qualitative way and can at best be
  partially ordered to an intuitively totally
  ordered reality, where the social utility rests
  on the need for comparison of human beings.
  (Vautier et al., 2012 p. 818)

12
Signature Strengths
13
Signature Strengths

• The focus on character and signature strengths
• Ignores experience, skills, aptitude, knowledge
• Emphasises psychological attributes of the self
• How much can such an emphasis actually help
  people to find work?
• How much help can actually be derived from these
  very brief, decontextualised, non-specific
  descriptions?

14
Subjectification

• Foucault (2008), rather than govern by dictating
  rights and responsibilities, neoliberalism
  proceeds by
• harnessing desires for independence and
  creativity to the interests of business
• reconfiguring workers as entrepreneurs of their
  own skills and abilities
• reconfiguring the social relations of capitalism
  to emphasise competition, not between workers and
  capitalists, but between workers themselves
• Neoliberalism therefore demands a new
  governmentality, a changed mode of
  subjectification
• being subject to a power relation
• working to reflexively understand oneself as a
  particular kind of subject

15
Subjectification

• The VIA test as an instrument of
  subjectification (coerced) personal
  responsibilities to
• take the test
• email results to benefits advisor
• work on the self in light of the results
• aim to use each of your strengths in a new way
  everyday for at least a week
• The VIA test as an instrument of
  subjectification the nature of the test results

16
Subjectification
  Paragon Sociopath Neutral Like Me Unlike Me Random 1 Random 2 Random 3 Random 4 Random 5
Curiosity x x x x x   x   x x
Love of Learning x x x x x   x   x x
Critical Thinking x x x x x x   x   x
Social Intelligence x   x   x   x x x x
Originality x   x x x       x  
Carefulness   x                
Humour           x        
Kindness       x            
Fairness           x       x
Dedication           x   x    
Honesty             x x    
Loving               x    
Perspective             x   x  
Modesty   x                
Appreciation of Culture           x        
17
Subjectification

• Three profiles (paragon, neutral, very much
  unlike me) were identical
• 15 different signature strengths were generated
• 6 of these appeared only once
• 4 more appeared only twice
• Of the 5 strengths presented above
• 3 of these appeared on 8 different profiles
• another appeared on 7 profiles, the other on 5

18
Subjectification

• Rationality
• asks questions, carefully evaluates every
  situation, does not jump to conclusions,
  considers only solid evidence
• Flexibility
• enjoys exploration and discovery, takes
  opportunities to learn, adapts to the feelings
  and positions of others, able to change her or
  his mind
• Innovation
• seeks out new ideas, can take up new positions,
  is ready to defy convention in order to develop
  new ways of working

19
Subjectification

• Character Strengths and Virtues (2004) include
• BRAVERY not shrinking from threat, challenge,
  difficulty, or pain speaking up for what is
  right even if there is opposition acting on
  convictions even if unpopular includes physical
  bravery but is not limited to it
• FAIRNESS Treating all people the same according
  to notions of fairness and justice not letting
  personal feelings bias decisions about others
  giving everyone a fair chance
• VIA Test Fairness
• Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding
  principles. You do not let your personal feelings
  bias your decisions about other people. You give
  everyone a chance

20
Conclusion

• This procedure
• nudges benefit claimants toward the adoption and
  rehearsal of core aspects of neoliberal
  subjectivities
• responsibility, rationality, flexibility,
  innovativenss
• inflects the discursive networks within which
  subjectivities are formed with a particular
  constellation of qualities
• helps inculcate a collective self-image consonant
  with the demands of a precarious labour market
• is probably unethical (informed consent, right to
  withdraw, confidentiality, anonymity, integrity)
• trades in the allure of science, quantification
  and psychological expertise
• illustrates the potential dangers of libertarian
  paternalism