Quantification: Keeping Score in a Metric Society

Health status, credit scores and business ratings: in today's world, numbers are in the ascendancy. Societies dominated by star ratings, scores, likes and lists are rapidly emerging, as data are collected on virtually every aspect of our lives. The Covid-19 pandemic just fueled this trend.

Steffen Mau offers a critical analysis of the growing importance of metrics, data and indicators in describing and managing society. He demonstrates how metrics, intended to build trust and transparency, changed our perception of value and status. Has data become a substitute for trust? Can data even undermine trust?

Jakub Samochowiec argues that as a society, we systematically underestimate the trustworthiness of others. We therefore feel the need for control by quantification. In many cases this might not only be unnecessary but could also undermine our own trustworthiness.