Self-tracking technology can help users develop new knowledge about themselves, supporting their health and general wellbeing. Most of these devices inform users about their lives by autonomously generating data about highly constrained topics. Recent research has started to explore more flexible, manual self-tracking systems, which allow users to express themselves through their data and learn by engaging with their experiences in-the-moment. This paper describes a field trial using the Chromatize app, designed to explore the value of minimalism and flexibility – including in data histories – in personal tracking systems. Our data indicates that low-burden experience logging systems which focus on the creation of symbolically-rich, self-defined data can support self-awareness, reflection and regulation at opportune moments. The analysis also contributes a formulation of reflection in the context of self-tracking technologies that is more meaningful than the loose use of ‘reflection’ used in much of the literature.

自我跟踪技术可以帮助用户发展关于自己的新知识，支持他们的健康和整体福祉。大多数这些设备通过自动生成有关高度受限主题的数据来告知用户他们的生活。最近的研究已经开始探索更灵活的手动自我跟踪系统，该系统允许用户通过数据表达自己，并通过参与当前的经历来学习。本文描述了使用 Chromatize 应用程序的现场试验，旨在探索个人跟踪系统中极简主义和灵活性（包括数据历史记录）的价值。我们的数据表明，专注于创建符号丰富、自定义数据的低负担体验记录系统可以在适当的时候支持自我意识、反思和调节。该分析还提出了在自我跟踪技术背景下的反射表述，这比许多文献中使用的“反射”的松散使用更有意义。