At this year's Davos conference, Duke University technology ethicist, Nita Farahany, discussed a future where managers can monitor the brainwaves of their employees to determine their focus levels through wearable technology.
The proposed productivity software would use brainwaves to detect daydreaming and jolt the employee back to work through a haptic scarf. Farahany acknowledged the potential for this technology to become oppressive if not used responsibly and urged for consideration of the implications.
However, some neuroscientists expressed skepticism, stating that the technology is far from being able to practically achieve the goal. Electroencephalogram (EEG) devices are already being used to measure brainwaves, but their application is limited to specific cases such as monitoring driver fatigue in the transportation industry.
Farahany questioned the ethical implications of using this technology in the workplace and referred to the trend of "bossware" or using technology for productivity surveillance. Some employees waste time during the workday and monitoring their attention levels may have its benefits.
But Chris Chambers, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at Cardiff University, dismissed the idea as "nonsense." He pointed out the differences between laboratory equipment and take-home wearable EEG devices and stated that the latter are far from being able to provide any meaningful inference about the employee's thoughts or emotions. He concluded that any technology based on EEG for boss surveillance belongs in the "bullshit bin."
Photo by Hal Gatewood on Unsplash
