The contrasting agendas of two separate research fields are here brought into a productive relation. On the one hand, during the past 30 years, many economists have voiced concern that inflation is being "mismeasured". According to their claim, established methods for calculating the Consumer Price Index (CPI) fail to fully capture the positive sides of the digital economy: increased quality of existing products as well as access to new online services, often at a zero price. On the other hand, a much more critical view on the digital economy has emerged within a range of social sciences. This critique points to the "hidden price" paid by users as their attention is harvested for the benefit of advertisers, by digital platforms designed to foster compulsive consumption.
This project will investigate how the digital economy has been accounted for in the CPI over the past 30 years, asking to what extent inflation data would change if "the dark side of the digital" was taken into account. Furthermore, it will examine what kind of consuming subject that constitutes the point of reference as quality changes are accounted for by statistical agencies responsible for the CPI. Theoretical contributions will be made to current debates, both regarding the measurement of inflation and contemporary consumer culture. The project picks up from a previous one, which developed a theoretical and methodological framework for critical analysis of inflation measurement practices.