Vol. 9 No. 10 (October 1999) pp. 431-433.

SURVEILLANCE, CLOSED CIRCUIT TELEVISION AND SOCIAL CONTROL by Clive Norris, Jade Moran and Gary Armstrong (Editors).Brookfield, VT: Ashgate Publishing Co., 1998. 287 pp. Cloth $69.95.

Reviewed by Kimberly A. McCabe, College of Criminal Justice. University of South Carolina. Email: kmccabe@sc.edu.

In SURVEILLANCE, CLOSED CIRCUIT TELEVISION AND SOCIAL CONTROL, closed circuit television (hereafter CCTV) is explored in its capacity as a deterrent to crime and criminal activity, as a tool in the feelings of safety and security, and relative to its effect upon society. Specifically, through five central themes, the book's sixteen chapters provide readers with not only a strong background on the subject of CCTV but also with a theoretical foundation for crime prevention, essays on practical applications of CCTV, and empirical evaluations of CCTV. All major topics are covered, and the chapters are all appropriate for the enrichment of the topic in both criminal justice courses on crime prevention and sociology courses focused upon theoretical concepts such as deterrence and social control. The chapters provide much needed information to the reader, and they are well-organized, comprehensive, and clear. Particularly impressive in this text were the evaluations of CCTV that provide the readers with "real world" applications of CCTV which affect everyday living.

The first central theme of the text, entitled "Part Two: CCTV and Social Control," contains two essays which highlight the utility of CCTV in cities across the United Kingdom. Central to these essays is the assumption that, fundamental to social control, is the "movement and the tension between inclusionary and exclusionary vision" (p. 60). Not only can CCTV serve as a deterrent to illegal activities, but, theoretically, it can also serve to deter activities that society may define as inappropriate, ill mannered, or deviant. Especially if they know that their actions are being observed through CCTV, individuals who know that their behavior is perceived as deviant will restrain from those activities. Therefore, as illustrated in chapters that discuss modern-day lifestyles and contemporary theories of surveillance, particularly in urbans England, CCTV expands visual means of social control.

The second central theme of the text, entitled "Part Three: CCTV in Contents," contains three essays on the practical applications of CCTV in public localities such as shopping malls and football stadiums. The essays in this part are one of the strengths of the text. In particular, in Reeve's (Chap. 4) survey of British town centre managers, the incorporation of CCTV attempts to improve the attractiveness of town

Page 432 begins here

centres by providing visitors with the impression of constant monitoring for their safety. In Armstrong and Giulianotti's chapter on the use of CCTV to identify football fan "hooligans", the utility of CCTV is demonstrated in its capacity to pinpoint and locate individuals who may cause disturbance during stadium football games. In these instances, the utility of CCTV is presented as at an advantage to the individual and as an extra measure taken by administrators to provide the safestpossible environment for consumers. Both of these chapters and chapter five, written by Graham, provide readers with not only a positive perspective on the use of CCTV, but they also identify some of the unfortunate results of the use of CCTV, such as the loss of individual privacy and democracy. However, although the authors' express the limitations of CCTV, much support is presented for CCTV and its use in society.

Parts four and five both present quantitative assessments of CCTV with different perspectives. "Part Four: Evaluating CCTV" provides the reader with empirical assessments of CCTV as a tool in crime prevention. In particular, essays in this chapter, for the most part, provide support for the use of CCTV in the reduction of crime. Specifically, these essays find that there were fewer reported crimes and fewer unsolved crimes in areas monitored by CCTV than areas without CCTV. In addition, unique to Gill and Turbin's chapter, the outcomes of improved staff confidence and increased customer satisfaction are identified as result of the implementation of CCTV. Customers perceive businesses that utilized CCTV as truly concerned about their treatment as a consumer. This section, just as is the case of Part Three, is also one of the strengths of this text.

"Part Five: Questioning CCTV" provides evaluations of CCTV use for specific audiences and discussions as to the outcomes of CCTV. Brown's chapter, which is probably the best written in this part, examines gender differences in the benefits of CCTV. This chapter reveals that, although CCTV is thought to be an excellent tool in crime prevention, it has limited utility in enhancing women's perceptions of personal safety. In direct conflict with the assumed "cover of safety" associated with CCTV, women perceive areas with CCTV as presenting a high risk of victimization. The use of CCTV, in these cases, did not reduce the fear of females or increase their feelings of safety. From a woman's standpoint, if an area were safe, it would not require CCTV. The use of CCTV in an area implies that the area is actually unsafe. Ditton's chapter also documents the minimal support for open street use of CCTV through the exploration of survey results administered to area residents. Finally, Macguire's chapter brings to light questions as to when and where restrictions should be placed on the implementation of CCTV. However, it fails to provide strong support for the design and implementation of CCTV by concentrating on the subject of police surveillance and the fact that historically individuals have had little protection against police practices of information gathering. CCTV, as expressed in this chapter, may become another tool for law enforcement's' attempts to infringe upon the privacy of individuals.

Page 433 begins here

Finally, "Part Six: CCTV: The Future and the Past," focuses on the future of CCTV by providing a chronological history of the use of CCTV. Included in this section are further discussions on the issues of privacy and exclusion of CCTV. In particular, the authors express that a shift in power from the individual to the state is apparent with the use of CCTV and the growth of automated surveillance systems.

Norris, Moran and Armstrong's SURVEILLANCE, CLOSED CIRCUIT TELEVISION AND SOCIAL CONTROL provides readers with much information about CCTV. Whether readers' interest is in the theoretical focus of video surveillance and of social control or in empirical evaluations of CCTV, this reviewer suggests the value of these readings. The readings are written for ease of understanding for those individuals not familiar with CCTV. This text is a welcome addition to the literature on crime prevention and crime deterrence and would be appropriate at either the undergraduate or graduate level in a crime prevention course.