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Self-Improvement: Technologies of the Soul in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
We are obsessed with self-improvement; it’s a billion-dollar industry. But apps, workshops, speakers, retreats, and life hacks have not made us happier. Obsessed with the endless task of perfecting ourselves, we have become restless, anxious, and desperate. We are improving ourselves to death. The culture of self-improvement stems from philosophical classics, perfectionist religions, and a ruthless strain of capitalism—but today, new technologies shape what it means to improve the self. The old humanist culture has given way to artificial intelligence, social media, and big data: powerful tools that do not only inform us but also measure, compare, and perhaps change us forever.
This book shows how self-improvement culture became so toxic—and why we need both a new concept of the self and a mission of social change in order to escape it. Mark Coeckelbergh delves into the history of the ideas that shaped this culture, critically analyzes the role of technology, and explores surprising paths out of the self-improvement trap. Digital detox is no longer a viable option and advice based on ancient wisdom sounds like yet more self-help memes: The only way out is to transform our social and technological environment. Coeckelbergh advocates new “narrative technologies” that help us tell different and better stories about ourselves. However, he cautions, there is no shortcut that avoids the ancient philosophical quest to know yourself, or the obligation to cultivate the good life and the good society.
This book shows how self-improvement culture became so toxic—and why we need both a new concept of the self and a mission of social change in order to escape it. Mark Coeckelbergh delves into the history of the ideas that shaped this culture, critically analyzes the role of technology, and explores surprising paths out of the self-improvement trap. Digital detox is no longer a viable option and advice based on ancient wisdom sounds like yet more self-help memes: The only way out is to transform our social and technological environment. Coeckelbergh advocates new “narrative technologies” that help us tell different and better stories about ourselves. However, he cautions, there is no shortcut that avoids the ancient philosophical quest to know yourself, or the obligation to cultivate the good life and the good society.
152 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 19, 2022
2 people are currently reading
78 people want to read
About the author
Mark Coeckelbergh
37 books33 followersMark Coeckelbergh is Professor of Philosophy of Media and Technology at the University of Vienna. He is the author of New Romantic Cyborgs: Romanticism, Information Technology, and the End of the Machine, AI Ethics (both published by the MIT Press), Introduction to Philosophy of Technology, and other books.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 13, 2024
Coeckelbergh's main target is the "technoculture" that has led to the quantified self movement and the way in which we conceptualize self-improvement today. His main claim is that while AI and a societal drive for self-improvement are not inherently problematic, their intersection contributes to excessive individualism, overconsumption, and negative mental health outcomes. I'm somewhat sympathetic to this argument, but think it's more compelling as a warning of future developments than a description of the current situation.
The strongest chapters were the last two, in which he lays out an alternative path, where self-improvement is defined relationally and as a retroactive narrative, technology is used as a tool for self-empowerment, and where we can strive to also improve the culture around us rather than putting all of our self-improvement on our own shoulders. If we can only improve ourselves in relation to others and the wider environment, then it's worthwhile to collectively create an environment where we can all improve ourselves, even if that requires discarding the narrative that we are solely in control of our own self-improvement. While AI is more compatible with certain narrative technologies than others, Coeckelbergh is still pretty optimistic that it can be part of these new narrative technologies.
I like the writing style overall - the book is very tightly written and concise (only ~140 pages), and his arguments flow pretty naturally.
The strongest chapters were the last two, in which he lays out an alternative path, where self-improvement is defined relationally and as a retroactive narrative, technology is used as a tool for self-empowerment, and where we can strive to also improve the culture around us rather than putting all of our self-improvement on our own shoulders. If we can only improve ourselves in relation to others and the wider environment, then it's worthwhile to collectively create an environment where we can all improve ourselves, even if that requires discarding the narrative that we are solely in control of our own self-improvement. While AI is more compatible with certain narrative technologies than others, Coeckelbergh is still pretty optimistic that it can be part of these new narrative technologies.
I like the writing style overall - the book is very tightly written and concise (only ~140 pages), and his arguments flow pretty naturally.
January 23, 2022
It's nice to read a concise, informed and contextualized criticism of our contemporary self-improvement culture. Mark Coeckelbergh provides a (very, very abridged) history of the idea of self-improvement, starting in the Ancient world, going through the Enlightenment, and coming up to our contemporary world. It's a useful bird's eye view: the trend towards wanting to improve oneself is neither entirely new, nor all that similar to its former incarnations, and the differences are worth considering.
Aside from this, he posits that capitalism has taken over this domain, exploiting those who want self-improvement in three ways: through directly selling them products meant to enhance said self-improvement; through shifting the responsibility for one's wellbeing entirely on the individual; and through exploiting the free labor of those who use apps and tech to track their progress and who thus donate their information.
The idea that our wellbeing is entirely in our own hands, he says, curbs the desire to revolt against injustice and to change the system.
(As an aside, it's nice to see a Marxist approach in the wild, with quotes from Marx, as opposed to hearing people cry "marxism" and seeing something that, maybe, could possibly, if you squint, and try really hard, might potentially be sort of marxist. It's become such an overused accusation.)
"Self-Improvement" becomes, then, not just an analysis, but also a call to action, to redesign our world to work in our favor, not in our detriment. Mark Coeckelbergh has a few suggestions regarding how this could be achieved, and while I don't always agree with the tone or the conclusions, his points are well made and worthy of consideration.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Columbia University Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Aside from this, he posits that capitalism has taken over this domain, exploiting those who want self-improvement in three ways: through directly selling them products meant to enhance said self-improvement; through shifting the responsibility for one's wellbeing entirely on the individual; and through exploiting the free labor of those who use apps and tech to track their progress and who thus donate their information.
The idea that our wellbeing is entirely in our own hands, he says, curbs the desire to revolt against injustice and to change the system.
(As an aside, it's nice to see a Marxist approach in the wild, with quotes from Marx, as opposed to hearing people cry "marxism" and seeing something that, maybe, could possibly, if you squint, and try really hard, might potentially be sort of marxist. It's become such an overused accusation.)
"Self-Improvement" becomes, then, not just an analysis, but also a call to action, to redesign our world to work in our favor, not in our detriment. Mark Coeckelbergh has a few suggestions regarding how this could be achieved, and while I don't always agree with the tone or the conclusions, his points are well made and worthy of consideration.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Columbia University Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
January 3, 2023
ثقافة تحسين الذات
من المعروف أن ضغط الأداء يمكن أن يؤدي إلى الاكتئاب والانتحار. على سبيل المثال ، أدى الأداء الأكاديمي الضعيف أو الخوف من الأداء الأكاديمي الضعيف - والتي يُنظر إليها على أنها أشكال رئيسية لتحسين الذات ووسيلة للحراك الاجتماعي الصاعد - إلى الاكتئاب والانتحار بين المراهقين الصينيين. قد ينتظر الحلم الأمريكي مصيرًا مشابهًا. في مسرحية Death of Salesman عام 1949 ، يروي آرثر ميلر قصة بائع يطارد الحلم الأمريكي لكنه يفشل ويقتل نفسه. اليوم هذا لم يتغير. يلقي البعض باللوم لحدوث إطلاق النار الجماعي المعاصر في الولايات المتحدة على مزيج من الحلم الأمريكي وملكية السلاح. يتم تكوين الناس اجتماعيًا على افتراض أنهم سيحققون المستحيل، وعندما لا يحدث ذلك ، فإنهم يعانون.
يتم تأطير المشاكل الاجتماعية على أنها مشاكل فردية ؛ يبقى العمل الجماعي ودور الدولة والنظام الاجتماعي الاقتصادي بعيدًا عن الأنظار. لكن المشكلة لا تتعلق فقط بالإنجاز في مجال الدراسة والعمل ، ولا تتعلق فقط بالوضع الاجتماعي. بمساعدة علم النفس الإيجابي ، فإن العمل على نفسك (الخاصة) هو أيضًا "شعار الفردانية الأمريكية". يتم تعزيز ثقافة تحسين الذات هذه من خلال وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي وثقافة المشاهير. يتحدث غاستون فرانسن عن "الاحتفال بالرعاية الذاتية" الذي يعيد إنتاج أيديولوجية نيوليبرالية فردية. يُظهر المشاهير للمراهقين أنه يتعين عليهم العمل باستمرار على أنفسهم. عليك أن تحاول زيادة سعادتك وتحقيق الذات. عليك أن تتغلب على الأزمة وأن تعيد اكتشاف نفسك. وفكر بإيجابية! إذا كنت تشعر بالسوء ، فهذا خطأك. يجب أن تعمل على نفسك. واعمل بجد. كل شيء في يديك. يضع هذا عبئًا هائلاً على عاتق الناس ، عبئًا يمكن أن يسحقهم.
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Mark Coeckelbergh
Self-Improvement
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
من المعروف أن ضغط الأداء يمكن أن يؤدي إلى الاكتئاب والانتحار. على سبيل المثال ، أدى الأداء الأكاديمي الضعيف أو الخوف من الأداء الأكاديمي الضعيف - والتي يُنظر إليها على أنها أشكال رئيسية لتحسين الذات ووسيلة للحراك الاجتماعي الصاعد - إلى الاكتئاب والانتحار بين المراهقين الصينيين. قد ينتظر الحلم الأمريكي مصيرًا مشابهًا. في مسرحية Death of Salesman عام 1949 ، يروي آرثر ميلر قصة بائع يطارد الحلم الأمريكي لكنه يفشل ويقتل نفسه. اليوم هذا لم يتغير. يلقي البعض باللوم لحدوث إطلاق النار الجماعي المعاصر في الولايات المتحدة على مزيج من الحلم الأمريكي وملكية السلاح. يتم تكوين الناس اجتماعيًا على افتراض أنهم سيحققون المستحيل، وعندما لا يحدث ذلك ، فإنهم يعانون.
يتم تأطير المشاكل الاجتماعية على أنها مشاكل فردية ؛ يبقى العمل الجماعي ودور الدولة والنظام الاجتماعي الاقتصادي بعيدًا عن الأنظار. لكن المشكلة لا تتعلق فقط بالإنجاز في مجال الدراسة والعمل ، ولا تتعلق فقط بالوضع الاجتماعي. بمساعدة علم النفس الإيجابي ، فإن العمل على نفسك (الخاصة) هو أيضًا "شعار الفردانية الأمريكية". يتم تعزيز ثقافة تحسين الذات هذه من خلال وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي وثقافة المشاهير. يتحدث غاستون فرانسن عن "الاحتفال بالرعاية الذاتية" الذي يعيد إنتاج أيديولوجية نيوليبرالية فردية. يُظهر المشاهير للمراهقين أنه يتعين عليهم العمل باستمرار على أنفسهم. عليك أن تحاول زيادة سعادتك وتحقيق الذات. عليك أن تتغلب على الأزمة وأن تعيد اكتشاف نفسك. وفكر بإيجابية! إذا كنت تشعر بالسوء ، فهذا خطأك. يجب أن تعمل على نفسك. واعمل بجد. كل شيء في يديك. يضع هذا عبئًا هائلاً على عاتق الناس ، عبئًا يمكن أن يسحقهم.
.
Mark Coeckelbergh
Self-Improvement
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
August 11, 2023
hands down the best book I've read this year.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews