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The 5th workshop on the Digitization of the Individual - “The digitized individual – from quantified-self to metaverse” - will be held in at Bella Center, Copenhagen, Denmark, in conjunction with ICIS 2022 and is scheduled for December 11 2022, 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM. To promote further impactful research on individuals, strong emphasis during the workshop will be given to paper development discussions, among others, facilitated by discussants providing direct feedback. Workshop participants will be charged a registration fee that will include snacks and coffee breaks (details will be announced as the conference program is finalized).

This year's workshop includes an expert panel on "Metaverse: a real change for individuals and society or just another research arena?" and offers a fast-track opportuntiy at Electronic Markets.

Workshop description

Wearables to track sleeping patterns or contact-tracing to contain pandemics are just two examples which illustrate today’s impact of powerful digital devices and services on individuals’ lives and social interactions. IS research only recently started to conceptualize the phenomenon of digitized individuals (Matt et al. 2019; Turel et al. 2020). First studies investigate the use of digital technologies (e.g., fitness technologies, wearables) and their outcomes on individual health and well-being (e.g., Benbunan-Fich 2019; James et al. 2022) including the dark side of the digitized individual (e.g., Kwon et al. 2016; Turel et al. 2019). However, less attention has been given to a data-based perspective on the individual often referred to as the “quantified-self” (Moya and Pallud 2020). This focus on the data generated by individual users opens new opportunities but also raises new ethical and social challenges. Moreover, the recent attention to virtual places (Saunders et al. 2011) and realities, such as the metaverse (Dincelli and Yayla 2022; Dwivedi et al. 2022), extend our physical world and further increase the need to address the manifold research questions which arise around this emerging phenomenon. This workshop seeks to gather the fragmented views on the digitized individual and bring together researchers interested in understanding the data-based individual observed as quantified-self and in virtual environments such as AR, VR, and the metaverse.

Research in this area is also beneficial for practitioners. First, understanding the implications, opportunities and threats of data-based individuals enables suppliers of digital technologies to form closer and stronger connections with their customers and to build services and devices that better match their expectations and improve their everyday lives. Second, this research can help to develop policies and practices that improve the usage of digital technologies and tackle arising challenges on a societal level. By encouraging a systematic focus on the data-based individual, this workshop strives for a common understanding of the role of the individual and the challenges and opportunities owing to novel digital technologies and emerging virtual worlds.

The 5th DOTI-workshop on “The digitized individual – from quantified-self to metaverse” will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in conjunction with ICIS 2022 and is scheduled for 11 December 2022, 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM. To promote further impactful research on individuals, strong emphasis during the workshop will be given to paper development discussions, among others, facilitated by discussants providing direct feedback. As part of the workshop, an expert panel on "Metaverse: a real change for individuals and society or just another research arena?" will provide thought-provoking discussions on important aspects and trends in this particular domain. Workshop participants will be charged a registration fee that will include snacks and coffee breaks (details will be announced as the conference program is finalized).

Possible topics of submissions include, but are not limited to:

  • Opportunities and consequences of virtual individuals in the metaverse, such as
    • User experiences and unique immersive experiences
    • Extended omnichannel commerce and new consumption patterns
    • Digital interaction and collaboration among virtual individuals
    • Digital twins in virtual worlds
  • Quantified-self as driver of and challenge to health and well-being, such as
    • Effects of usage of digital devices on physical, mental, and emotional performance
    • Gamification and connected sport and health
    • Techno-overload and self-optimization
    • Self-surveillance, data exploitation and data privacy as well as IT-security issues
  • Ethical and social challenges of quantified and virtual individuals, such as
    • Issues related to socially vulnerable populations, individual responsibility, gender, race and ethnicity
    • Information overload and intensification of experience
    • Isolation in virtual worlds and difficulties with reentry into the real world
    • Malpractices and unethical behavior by individuals, such as lying to themselves or others

References:

Benbunan-Fich, R. 2019. “An affordance lens for wearable information systems,” European Journal of Information Systems (28:3), pp. 256–271.
Dincelli, E., and Yayla, A. 2022. “Immersive virtual reality in the age of the Metaverse: A hybrid-narrative review based on the technology affordance perspective,” The Journal of Strategic Information Systems (31:2), p. 101717.
Dwivedi, Y. K., Hughes, L., Baabdullah, A. M., Ribeiro-Navarrete, S., Giannakis, M., Al-Debei, M. M., et al. 2022. “Metaverse beyond the hype: Multidisciplinary perspectives on emerging challenges, opportunities, and agenda for research, practice and policy,” International Journal of Information Management (66), p. 102542.
James, T., Bélanger, F., and Lowry, P. B. 2022. “The Mediating Role of Fitness Technology Enablement of Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration on the Relationship between Goals for Fitness Technology Use and Use Outcomes,” Journal of the Association for Information Systems (23:4), pp. 913–965.
Kwon, H. E., So, H., Han, S. P., and Oh, W. 2016. “Excessive Dependence on Mobile Social Apps: A Rational Addiction Perspective,” Information Systems Research (27:4), pp. 919–939.
Matt, C., Trenz, M., Cheung, C. M. K., and Turel, O. 2019. “The digitization of the individual: conceptual foundations and opportunities for research,” Electronic Markets (29:3), pp. 315–322.
Moya, J.-F. D., and Pallud, J. 2020. “From panopticon to heautopticon: A new form of surveillance introduced by quantified-self practices,” Information Systems Journal (30:6), pp. 940–976.
Saunders, C., Rutkowski, A. F., van Genuchten, M., Vogel, D., and Orrego, J. M. 2011. “Virtual Space and Place: Theory and Test,” MIS Quarterly (35:4), pp. 1079–1098.
Turel, O., Matt, C., Trenz, M., and Cheung, C. M. K. 2020. “An intertwined perspective on technology and digitised individuals: Linkages, needs and outcomes,” Information Systems Journal (30:6), pp. 929–939.
Turel, O., Matt, C., Trenz, M., Cheung, C. M. K., D’Arcy*, J., Qahri-Saremi*, H., et al. 2019. “Panel report: the dark side of the digitization of the individual,” Internet Research (29:2), pp. 274–288.


Submission, review and acceptance process

Manuscripts should be submitted as email attachments to the workshop co-chairs at (doti@is-research.com) with the subject heading "DOTI workshop submission".

The deadline for submission is 16 September 2022. Authors will be notified of acceptance/rejection decisions by 30 September 2022. As a paper development workshop there will be no formal proceedings; accepted papers will be made available to other attendees for the period of the workshop and a printed abstract will be included as part of the workshop materials.

Additionally, we are delighted to offer a fast-track opportunity at Electronic Markets (EM) – The International Journal on Networked Business.


Submission format

There are two types of submissions: full papers and research-in-progress papers. The length of full papers and research-in-progress papers is limited to 7,000 words and 4,500 words respectively (excluding references). The format of the submission is a Word or PDF document that includes a title, author names and affiliations, and 3-5 keywords. The submission should follow the ICIS formatting guidelines.

All submissions to DOTI must represent original work that has not already been published in a journal or conference proceedings. If the work has been presented at another conference or is currently under consideration for publication or presentation elsewhere, the authors must disclose this fact. At least one author for every accepted paper must register for the workshop and be prepared to present their ideas in person (both full and RIP papers will be presented). Due to the strong emphasis of the workshop on paper development, the workshop schedule ensure room for detailed discussions and each presentation will be accompanied by a discussant providing direct feedback to the individual work.


Workshop chairs

We look forward to welcoming you in Copenhagen,

Manuel Trenz

Manuel Trenz

University of Göttingen, Germany

Christian Matt

Christian Matt

University of Bern, Switzerland

Christy Cheung

Christy Cheung

Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong

Ofir Turel

Ofir Turel

University of Melbourne, Australia

 

Adeline Frenzel-Piasentin

University of Augsburg, Germany