Datafication
What is the impact of data collection and data surveillance on groups of people who have been disadvantaged or marginalised on the basis of their gender and sexuality?
There is an increased reliance on data driven decision-making (that uses algorithms) which impacts on people facing multiple forms of discrimination. This occurs in sectors dealing with welfare and access to government programmes and benefits, as well as in the context of social media, visibility of causes, movements and of people.
In relation to data, surveillance and the potential for biases embedded in algorithms, feminist research can surface the experiences of the non-normative body, where the norm is male, heterosexual and white, or made up of another dominant group, caste or race. A feminist approach resists data disembodiment and shows that the harm and benefits of datafication are embodied and have specific consquences for certain individuals and communities.