Paper short abstract:

This paper explores period-tracking apps in China, with a focus on the concept of the normative co-constructed by local medical practice, the design of the apps, and the consumption of the apps, to demonstrate how the female body is normalized, disciplined, and reimagined with the digital.

Paper long abstract:

This paper explores a popular form of self-tracking in contemporary China: period-tracking apps which are normally used to track menstruation, fertility, and gynecological health. Through the discussion of local medical concepts and practices, the production and design of the apps, and the consumption and daily usage of the apps by their users, this paper will specifically focus on the theoretical concept of normativity in anthropology, exploring how the female body is normalized, disciplined, and reimagined in the practice of digital period-tracking.

This paper will demonstrate two different types of normativity in period-tracking: the first is the normativity constructed by the medical discourse and medical practice as well as the period-tracking company, and the second is the sense of normativity judged and decided by individuals of various age groups, between which there is a potential gap. More specifically, I will discuss how the concept of normativity is respectively constructed in the clinical setting and medical practice, in the product design of the company using big data, algorithms, and quantification, as well as in the daily use of the app which demonstrates users' agency in understanding irregularity, normal menstruation, and their personalized menstruation data. Based on the aforementioned discussion, this paper will also point out the social consequence of self-tracking technologies in constructing a normative and disciplined female body.