NCJ Number
212451
Journal
Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice Volume: 47 Issue: 4 Dated: October 2005 Pages: 655-683
Date Published
October 2005
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This article explores the proliferation of open-street closed-circuit television (CCTV) in Canada from a governance perspective.
Abstract
An overarching theoretical perspective to explain social monitoring behavior has not emerged, mainly due to the broad range of different types of researchers interested in surveillance studies. However, theoretical integration allows for a more targeted and meaningful study of social monitoring practices. The current research used a governance perspective to analyze the proliferation of open-street CCTV in Canada. Governance is defined as “power acting through populations” and the main argument of the author is that the context of the governance of open-street CCTV in Canada can originate from above (political and administrative bodies), from the middle (business entrepreneurs), and from below (citizens). Through this analysis, the traditional top-down conceptualization of power is questioned as the author demonstrates how citizens themselves seek out regulatory measures for their own communities. Citizens also demonstrate power in contesting regulatory measures used against them in the public space. Case examples from London and from Brockville, Ontario are offered to illustrate the main arguments of the article. In closing, the author notes that governance can occur both locally and globally and, in the case of open-street CCTV surveillance, involves a struggle over urban space and moral boundaries that will be increasingly played out in urban spaces across the world. Notes, references