Experiences of Surveillance Technologies in Gated Communities and Public Housing

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The use of modern surveillance technologies to monitor public activities presents difficult challenges to policymakers and citizens, especially in a post-9/11 world. Central to the debate over surveillance technologies are the oftentimes conflicting goals of safeguarding democratic freedoms from criminal or terrorist threats and from technological intrusion. Focusing specifically on surveillance technologies in public and semi-public places of residence, this project will make an empirical contribution to this ongoing debate by documenting experiences of surveillance technologies. This project will explore the use of modern surveillance technologies(specifically closed circuit television (CCTV) systems) in two very different places of dwelling and social interaction: gated communities and low-income public housing. Research sites will include 3 gated communities and 3 public housing complexes in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Throughout 12 months of field research, 90 interviews will be conducted to identify differences in public experiences of video surveillance across and within these settings. The guiding questions are 1) what meanings do people attribute to surveillance technologies in places of residence?, and 2) how do people come to understand others through the presence of surveillance technologies? The emphasis of this study will be to identify patterns in experiences of surveillance technologies. Secondary attention will be given to the actual design and distribution of surveillance systems in order to determine how they vary across spaces and whether or not perceptions and behaviors vary according to the types of systems present. The main intellectual contribution generated from this project will be a greater understanding of the social and political effects of surveillance technologies in places of residence. An academic book on surveillance technologies in public life will be generated from this project, and it will situate the topic within the political and economic context of globalization. The practical outcome of this study will be a set of policy guidelines for crafting appropriate public policy governing surveillance technologies in places of residence. Given the myriad concerns facing policymakers about issues of security and surveillance, the findings of this study should be both timely and valuable.