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* Learning about the frequency or intensity of things (e.g. of symptoms like pain or allergies or changes in mood, weight or other phenomena)
* Learning about the frequency or intensity of things (e.g. of symptoms like pain or allergies or changes in mood, weight or other phenomena)
* Improving ones health or well-being, e.g. when having a chronic condition
* Improving ones health or well-being, e.g. when having a chronic condition
* Making progress in physical training or sports, trying to recover from an injury
* Making progress in physical training or sports, trying to recover from an injury
* Creatively expressing oneself through data and visualizations
* Creatively expressing oneself through data and visualizations
* Wanting to learn a new skill
* Wanting to learn a new skill
== Observing ==
== Observing ==
Once one has decided on what kind of questions one would like to pursue, it is time to think about how to answer it. Virtually all self-research projects require making deliberate observations. This requires selecting some parameters that one wants to pay special attention to to keep track of them. There are some things to consider when selecting what to observe.
Once one has decided on what kind of questions one would like to pursue, it is time to think about how to answer it. Virtually all self-research projects require making deliberate observations. This requires selecting some parameters that one wants to pay special attention to to keep track of them.
=== What to observe ===
There are some things to consider when selecting what to observe.
* '''Relevancy''': Does observing this offer insights into what I really care about?
* '''Relevancy''': Does observing this offer insights into what I really care about?
Another good rule of thumb for observations is that the events or phenomena that one plans to record should be '''noticeable''', '''variable''' and '''distinct''' as this will help facilitate recording the observations and reasoning about them later on. Having noticeable events helps recording the data, in particular when doing so manually by entering data by hand into a notebook, spreadsheet or mobile app (e.g. symptom recordings). Variability is important, as events that never change in frequency or intensity or any other dimension will not provide any insights (see relevancy above). Lastly, having distinct events is important to be able to correctly record observations as a lack of distinctiveness makes it hard to "correctly" count how often a thing happens.
Another good rule of thumb for observations is that the events or phenomena that one plans to record should be '''noticeable''', '''variable''' and '''distinct''' as this will help facilitate recording the observations and reasoning about them later on. Having noticeable events helps recording the data, in particular when doing so manually by entering data by hand into a notebook, spreadsheet or mobile app (e.g. symptom recordings). Variability is important, as events that never change in frequency or intensity or any other dimension will not provide any insights (see relevancy above). Lastly, having distinct events is important to be able to correctly record observations as a lack of distinctiveness makes it hard to "correctly" count how often a thing happens.
=== Using proxies ===
==== Collecting dates & times ====
For virtually all types of observation one wants to record, it is worth to note down '''when''' this observation was made. Depending on the type of data one might only want to record the date of the observation or also the specific time and date of the observation. Most data entry apps and wearables might take care of this automatically, one needs to do it manually when using a notebook or spreadsheet. Unfortunately, "correctly" recording dates & times is not trivial, in particular when one moves or travels across time zones, but also due to Daylight Savings Time. See [[Dates and Times|Dates & Times]] for more details.
==== Using proxies ====
Many things one might want to observe can be either hard to quantify (e.g. the abstract idea of "fitness") or hard to consistently observe because it would be too challenging to collect the "ideal" data over a period time. In such cases one can try to replace the direct observation through a proxy measurement that is closer to the ideal conditions outlined above. For example, instead of measuring "fitness" one could track physiological values such as [[HRV (Heart Rate Variability)|Heart Rate Variability]] or how fast one runs, how many weights lifted etc.
Many things one might want to observe can be either hard to quantify (e.g. the abstract idea of "fitness") or hard to consistently observe because it would be too challenging to collect the "ideal" data over a period time. In such cases one can try to replace the direct observation through a proxy measurement that is closer to the ideal conditions outlined above. For example, instead of measuring "fitness" one could track physiological values such as [[HRV (Heart Rate Variability)|Heart Rate Variability]] or how fast one runs, how many weights lifted etc.
=== How to observe and record ===
==== Using self-assessments ====
Depending on the phenomenon one wants to observe, the use of self-assessments ("Rating of how I slept tonight", "Rating of my mood", etc) can be a viable option. Selecting the right range for this scale can be important. We frequently encounter 5-point scales (as in Amazon reviews) or 10-point scales (as in IMDb movie ratings). While broadening such a scale to give more nuance might be tempting, it also leads to the problem of differentiating between these values: "Should this be a 4 or a 5?". This paradox of choice can make it harder to do the self-assessment, leading to confusion, a potential abandonment of doing the observations or questioning the trustworthiness of the self-assessed observations.
In ''[[Personal Science (book)|Personal Science]]'', a recommendation is to stick to only three levels on a scale, for example for low/medium/high or positive/neutral/negative, to avoid such problems.
=== How to observe and record observations ===
There is no fixed "best" way to record any type of observations. Methods for recording data can be as simple as using a notebook in which one can enter all observations by hand, over using spreadsheet software like [[Excel]] or [[Google Sheets]] to the automatic recording of observations through devices like [[Wearables]]. More complex ways of recording data are not necessarily better than simpler approaches. Indeed, if a data recording protocol is too complex, it is more likely that one will not be able to do it consistently (see convenience above). One can also use a tool like [[Google Form]] to create a bespoke survey that one can fill out in regular intervals.
If one decides to use a wearable device or a specific mobile application for recording observations, it is important to check whether one can export and access all observations. If all data is stuck within a device or the data store of a manufacturer it might be impossible to use this data for a personal science project.
=== When to record observations ===
Unless one is using an automated tool that continuously records observations, one will have to decide when do record observations. There are two useful approaches for when to record observations. One can either record data every time one encounters a '''trigger''' or in relation to a '''routine prompt'''.
==== Trigger ====
In this approach one can record an observation every time something specific happens that comes to ones awareness. Ideally, such triggers are related to the phenomenon you want to observe and collecting all triggering events become the actual observations. E.g. if a project is about allergies one could record every time one sneezes. Or if a project is about is about intrusive pain levels, one can record every time experiences such pain.
==== Routine observations ====
If the events one wants to observe can not easily be related to triggers or are not as intrusive, it can be hard to use trigger approach. Instead the use of routine observations can be a viable alternative. While many self-research projects have played with automated alarms, experience shows that they are not very effective in the long term. While automated alarms as reminders can work in the short-term to provide reminders to record observations, their effectiveness quickly wears off due to alarm fatigue, resulting in not recording observations regularly.
== References ==
== References ==
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