Does CCTV Work?An Analysis of the Effectiveness of CCTV in
Colchester Town Centre.
Jenni Crawley
Sociology and Criminology (BA Hons.)
Supervisor: Dr Jackie Turton
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Abstract
Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) is a widely discussed topic within criminology which
concerns different issues such as crime prevention and control. The focus of this research
project is to outline the different functions of CCTV and establish how effective this system
is.The research used within this project is a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods.
Semi-Structured Interviews were used to collect rich in-depth data from people who had
experience with CCTV and surveys were used to gather opinions from the general public.
The aim of this project is to answer the question ‘Does CCTV work?’ by assessing and
analysing the data collected. This research produced a number of key findings regarding
CCTV in relation to crime prevention and detection, public safety, human rights and privacy.
The data produced from this research project suggests that CCTV is a complex system
however the positive aspects and functions of CCTV outweigh the negatives.
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Acknowledgements
First of all I would like to thank my supervisor Dr Jackie Turton. This research project would
not have been possible without her guidance and advice. She was extremely supportive at
every step of the way ensuring I was always on track. I would also like to show my gratitude
to Mandy Jones and everybody at Colchester Borough Council who helped me gain contact
with my respondents and gather my data. This greatly enhanced my research and overall
project.I am also extremely grateful to my parents who have encouraged me and supported
me in my three years of university. Finally I would like to thank my housemates, close
friends and boyfriend for keeping my spirits high and motivating me throughout.
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Contents Page
Page Number
1. Introduction
5
2. Literature Review
7
3. Methodology
20
4. Data Analysis
26
5. Conclusion
44
6. Bibliography
47
7. Appendices
50
Ethical Approval Form
50
Consent Form
53
List of Respondents
54
Interview Questions
55
CCTV Survey
57
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Introduction
When deciding what I would like to research for this project I knew I wanted to study
a topic that involved crime and the community. Therefore I looked into different methods of
crime control within societies and after much reading I discovered that there were many
debates surrounding Closed Circuit Television (CCTV). CCTV is an interesting topic as it is
clear that it has many different uses and functions within communities, it is found all over the
country and is involved in everyday life. However to what extent it works is debatable.
Therefore I decided to look at the effectiveness of CCTV and tackle the question does CCTV
work? I choose to concentrate on just Colchester town as it is a vibrant, busy place and I
believed this would give a clear insight into the opinions of a community. It also meant that
with the help of Colchester Borough Council I could gain extremely useful information from
the people who work the closest to CCTV.
My main research aim was to find out if CCTV worked in Colchester town centre.
Therefore I split my research up into different topics and themes and from this produced my
research design which included surveys and interviews in order to find out the answer. My
different themes consist of the rise of CCTV, crime prevention and detection, public safety,
fear of crime and human rights and privacy. When combining these themes with the data I
collected from the public and professionals I was able to answer how effective each different
function of CCTV is and overall if CCTV works.
This topic is sociologically and criminologically interesting because CCTV affects
societies and impacts crime in many ways. There have been vast amounts of literature
surrounding CCTV and there is much controversy regarding the rise of CCTV, if it works as
a crime prevention method and the big brother society. However there has not been as much
previous research concerning CCTV and how it helps with public safety and I believe this is
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one of CCTV’s most important aspects as it is a benefit to society. Being a student in
Colchester and witnessing Colchester town in the day time and night time it has allowed me
to see some of the crimes and dangers that exist here. Although they are usually only minor
incidents and I do not consider myself in any major danger when in this area, I do however
feel safer knowing that if I am ever in any trouble there is CCTV being monitored. Therefore
there is somebody who can help me. Another one of my research aims was to find out if the
general public also felt this way and if professionals believed they carried out the job of
protecting the community successfully. It is also interesting to criminologists as it is a new
form of surveillance. Surveillance methods have existed in society for hundreds of years with
many thinkers such as Marx, Weber and Foucault writing about them. It is therefore useful to
see if this new form of surveillance has an impact on society and if the aims of CCTV are
successful.
The research I have carried out has assisted me in answering my questions and helped
me to gain a detailed understanding of the effectiveness of CCTV in society. In order to
illustrate how I have achieved this I have split this project into different chapters. I start off
with the literature review by outlining and analysing previous literature and studies that have
been carried out in the past. The second section is methodology, here I explain the research
process I undertook and go into detail about my interviews, Surveys and ethical concerns.
The third section is the data analysis. Within this section I present all of my findings from my
research. This includes extracts from the interviews, graphs produced from the surveys and
an analysis of the results. The final part of this research project is my conclusion, this sums
up what my findings show and overall how successful my research project is.
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Literature Review
“Everyday life is subject to monitoring, checking, scrutinising. It is hard to find a
place, or an activity that is shielded or secure from some purposeful tracking,
tagging, listening, watching, recording or verification device. These are all examples
of surveillance” (Lyon, 2001: 1)
In Britain today it is impossible to avoid the vast amount of surveillance that covers
the country. Over the last 20 years the dramatic increase in Closed Circuit Television cameras
(CCTV) and other forms of surveillance has meant that getting caught on camera is part of
everyday life. The exceptional growth of CCTV in Britain has caused it to often be described
as a ‘Surveillance Society' where it is a norm to be watched when shopping in a supermarket
or travelling on public transport. The quote above from Lyon illustrates the extent to which
surveillance can exist in society. However there are many arguments about the realistic figure
of CCTV cameras in Britain many suggesting that we do not live in a big brother society as
much as people think. There are also debates discussing the different aims of CCTV andthe
impacts and effectiveness CCTV has on society.Therefore there has also been many theories
and literature on surveillance introduced in the last decade in criminology;much of which
looks at CCTV as a crime prevention measure.
Before looking at the most recent theories on surveillance it is useful to look at some
traditional theorists and how their work relates to surveillance. Both Marx and Weber's
theories give reasons why they believe surveillance exists in the social world.
“Karl Marx focuses special attention on surveillance as an aspect of the struggle
between labour and capital. Overseeing and monitoring workers is viewed here as a
means of maintaining managerial control on behalf of capital” (Lyon, 1994: 7).
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This shows Marx's view that in a capitalist society workers in factories for example were
watched in order for the factory owners to remain in control and continue to make money.
“Max Weber on the other hand concentrates on the ways that all modern
organizations develop means of storing and retrieving data in the form of files as part
of the quest of efficient practice within bureaucracy. Such files frequently contain
personal information so that organizations, esp government administrators can 'keep
tabs' on populations” (Lyon, 1994:7).
However these contributions to the surveillance theory are too simple. Over time
people have developed other theories for example Orwell offers a totalitarian conception of
surveillance. When Orwell looked at the impact of surveillance (1949) he imagined Britain in
nineteen-eighty-four. He believed that by this time “the totalitarian rule of the party is
maintained by permanent and omnipresent televisual monitoring” (Norris & Armstrong,
1999: 4). He had the idea that we would be living in a big brother society where we are
always being watched. Giddens also writes about the relationship between totalitarianism
and surveillance he says “totalitarianismis, first of all, an extreme focusing of surveillance”
(Giddens, 1985 cited in Hughes, 1998: 303).
Foucault’s work however is more complex and explains the relationship between
knowledge, power and social order. He looks at the panoptic conception of surveillance
rather than totalitarianism.
“Modern societies have developed rational means of ordering society that effectively
dispense with traditional methods like brutal public punishment. Rather than relying
on external controls and constraints, modern social institutions employ a range of
disciplinary practices which ensure that life continues in a regularized patterned way.
From army drills to school uniforms, and from social welfare casework to the closely
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scrutinized factory workers task, the process of modern social discipline are depicted
in sharp relief” (Lyon, 1994:7).
Foucault also draws fromBenthams's Panopticon design. This is a prison design that allows
guards to observe inmates at all times, the inmates uncertainty about whether they are being
watched or not then forces self-discipline. “For Foucault panoptic surveillance represents a
new mode of power: one that is not based on punishing the body through infliction of pain or
deprivation but through training and correction” (Norris & Armstrong, 1999: 6). Foucault
believes that this “power of vision” idea has now spread from prisons to public social
institutions such as shopping malls, schools and factories.
These past theories and conceptions are relevant to the rest of my project as they give
us some history and background information. We can see from these arguments that
surveillance has always existed as a social control. We can also see how theories expand and
develop as surveillance does. I can now move on to look at how surveillance and CCTV is
perceived in contemporary society and how it has affected it. CCTV has dramatically risen in
Britain and therefore has different areas of research surrounding this. For example fear of
crime, risk society, public safety and crime prevention.
The rise of CCTV
In contemporary society the media often describes the UK as a 'surveillance society'
as there have been many estimates about the number of CCTV cameras that exist. These
estimates are often hugely unrealistic and unreliable. For example in 2003 McChaill and
Norris created the most quoted figure for the number of cameras in the UK this was 4.2
million. Also in 1999 Armstrong and Norris said that “the average Briton is caught on
security cameras some 300 times a day” (Garrard & Thompson, 2011:10). However it has
been argued by members of the CCTV user group that these figures are incorrect. This is
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because the 4.2 million figure was based on “counting the number of cameras along
approximately 1.5 kilometres of road in a busy commercial/ shopping district” (Garrard and
Thompson, 2011:11)and the 300 times a day figure 2 is based on the fictional journey of a
character as he travels around London on one day(Garrard and Thompson, 2011). These
studies focus on CCTV hotspots and so do not take into account those who do not live in
highly urbanised areas. Therefore it is important “to ensure that we reflect differences in
camera concentrations that occur between urban and rural areas something they failed to do”.
(Gerrard and Thompson, 2011: 12).
The CCTV user group believe they have developed a method of more accurately
predicting the amount of CCTV cameras in the UK by identifying “which of our local wards
were urban and rural and then selected the most exclusively mapped wards at a ratio that
reflects the urban/rural split in the UK population” (Gerrard and Thompson, 2011: 12). This
research provided an estimate that approximately 1.85 millioncameras exist in the UK
proving to be less than half of the original figure. Although it is impossible to know the
precise amount of CCTV in the UK this shows there is controversy around the issue. It
illustrates how some theories, research and particularly the media exaggerate how much of a
‘big brother’ society we live in. Surveillance is often perceived in the media as invasive and
controlling rather than focusing on the positive and affective aspects it has on society.
CCTV as a crime prevention method
The amount of CCTV that exists in society today is due to the government’s aims in
the 1990’s. “In an attempt to revitalise what had become rather stale thinking in relation to
crime prevention, the home secretary launched the ‘Partners Against Crime’ initiative in
September 1994” (Crawford, 1998: 40). Their main aim of the increase of CCTV in the UK
was to reduce crime and use it as an effective crime prevention method. Therefore in 1995:
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“thegovernment announced the establishment of a special fund, known as the ‘CCTV
Challenge Competition’, to encourage local authorities to set up and part fund
surveillance schemes” and “in the three years to the end of 1997 the Home Office and
local authorities collectively invested £120 million in CCTV systems” (Guardian
9.1.1998 cited in Crawford, 1998: 41).
These CCTV systems were put in place as a way of detecting and deterring crime, monitoring
scenes and to cause self discipline.The Home Secretary, Michael Howard 1994 said “I am
absolutely convinced that CCTV has a major part to play in helping detect, and reduce crimes
and to convict criminals” (The Home Secretary, Michael Howard, 1994:3 cited in Norris and
Armstrong, 1999: 63)
British criminologists Armitage, Smyth and Pease (1999) outline a number of ways
CCTV prevents crime. For example memory jogging, appeal to the cautious, anticipated
shaming, effective deployment and publicity to show crime is taken seriously (Welsh &
Farrington, 2009). They also suggest that CCTV “may prevent crime because potential
offenders are deterred by their increased subjective probability of being detected” (Welsh &
Farrington, 2009: 36). This is also known as situational crime prevention and shows that the
presence of CCTV could cause potential offenders not to commit a crime as the risk
outweighs the benefits. Therefore CCTV reduces offenders’ opportunities to commit crimes.
This also links to the idea that CCTV is used to produce self-discipline in victims and
offenders. For potential victims CCTV is a “reminder of the ‘risk’ of crime, therefore
altering their behaviour accordingly” (Armitage, 2002: 1) and controlling their safety.
However it is most effective for potential offenders. This has previously been described by
criminologists through the rational choice theory.
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This theory follows from Bentham’s Panopticon,this shows the threat of surveillance
causes offenders to police their own behaviour. Coleman and Moynihan say that rational
choice theory looks at “the way in which offenders make decisions about offending in
particular situations” (Coleman & Motnihan, 1996: 139 cited in Hughes, 1998: 62). A
potential offender may rationally think about committing a crime and weigh up the risks
involved. A CCTV camera can make a dramatic difference in an offender’s decision as the
risk of getting caught is higher, it is irrelevant that it may or may not be being monitored; it is
the possibility that they are being watched that is the deterrent and this is what produces self
discipline. For example prisoners of a panoptic prison are visible to guards at all times and
the fear of surveillance causes good behaviour (Armitage, 2002). Howeverthis theory has
also been criticised.
It has been argued that CCTV as a crime prevention method may be effective for
some crimes but not others. Trasler (1986, 1993) for example argues that this type of crime
prevention “is effective only with “instrumental” offences (i.e., property, including robbery),
not with “expressive” offences” for example violent crimes (Trasler, 1993: 318 cited in
Welsh & Farrington, 2009:35). Violence appears to be “less susceptible to suppression”
(Crawford, 1998: 73) therefore this theory has less value for this type of crime. The rational
model does not take into account the impulsive behaviour associated with some crimes where
there is no time for rational decision making. This theory does not take into account the
“reckless, opportunistic and ill-considered nature of much criminality, particularly that
associated with young offenders” (Crawford, 1998: 73). This demonstrates how CCTV could
be more effective for certain types of crimes more than others.It has also been suggested that
deterring crime in this way may cause displacement of crime. This can occur in a number of
different forms. Geographical displacement for example is where the same crime is
committed in a different place. Tactical displacement however is “the same crime being
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committed against the same target but in a different way or by a different means” (see
Reppetto 1976; Hakin and Rengert 1981 cited in Crawford, 1998: 81). CCTV may remove
opportunity for crime in one area, however it may not “actually prevent crime but merely
move it around” (Rogers, 2006: 131).
Poyner (1992)looked at a case study where CCTV was used as a crime prevention
method in car parks. CCTV was installed in a tower overlooking some of the University of
Surrey parking lots to prevent thefts of motor vehicles and thefts from motor vehicles. The
case study shows that “the number of thefts from vehicles dropped dramatically from 92 in
the year when the camera was installed to 31 in the year following its introduction”
(Crawford, 1998, 88). Poyner found that in this case the CCTV deterred potential offenders
from committing thefts even in the car parks without cameras that had a direct view. Poyner
also suggests that displacement is not an issue here and argues that actually diffusion of
benefits was created instead.
“the fact that crime was reduced in a parking lot without the benefit of the
surveillance system but close to areas with surveillance sheds doubt on the theory of
displacement . Rather than displace crime to a less well protected targets on campus,
the ‘good effect’ has spread out beyond the immediate area of application.” (Poyner,
1992: 182 cited in Crawford 1998: 88)
This shows how CCTV can actually reduce crime in areas surrounding the targeted area
therefore conflicting with the displacement theory (Rogers, 2006: 133).
Another way CCTV can be used as situational crime prevention is explained through
the routine activity theory. This theory describes CCTV as a capable guardian. It suggests
that the environment and situation an offender is in depends on whether they will take part in
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a criminal event or not. “The routine activity approach identifies three minimal elements for
direct contact predatory crime: a likely offender, a suitable target and the absence of a
capable guardian against crime” (Crawford, 1998:78). Capable Guardians can be anything
from neighbours to bystanders, anything that may stop an offender from committing a crime
if it is present. An area for example that has CCTV cameras becomes less of a potential crime
target as it acts as a capable guardian.
It is clear that CCTV plays a huge part in crime prevention methods. This literature
shows there are many debates about how effective these crime prevention methods are;
however there is much evidence to show that CCTV does work in all situations. It is also
possible to argue that even if CCTV cannot prevent a crime from happening it is possible for
it to detect crime and identify offenders. There have been many high profile cases involving
CCTV that have stood out in the past two decades. It can be argued that cases such as this
contributed to the rise in CCTV and caused public opinion to be swayed in favour of CCTV
rather than looking at it as controlling. An example of a case which particularly stands out is
that of James Bulger in 1993. CCTV caught two ten year old boys leading toddler James
Bulger out of Merseyside shopping centre. The body of the toddler was later found a short
distance from the mall near some railway tracks (Norris & Armstrong, 1999).These CCTV
images were then played over and over on the news and shown in newspapers across the
world. “Even if CCTV had not saved the toddler, at least it contributed to the identification
of the killers” (Smith, 1995 cited in Norris & Armstrong, 1999: 37). This caused a massive
impact on public opinion and ideas about CCTV as it hadproved to be useful when tackling
crime. It “made those who tried to raise objections to CCTV seem either callous or too
concerned with the rights of criminals” (Norris & Armstrong, 1999: 37).
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Another more recent example of CCTV being used to identify offenders in the UK is
the 2011 riots. In the aftermath of the riots headlines such as ‘Public asked to name rioters on
internet ‘rogues gallery’ (The Times, 2011) and CCTV images with ‘Do you recognise these
people?(The Times, 2011) appeared all over newspapers in the UK.Police were determined to
catch looters with the help of the images; “photographs, video and CCTV images will be
examined by 450 detectives involved in operation Withern” Simon Foy, a Metropolitan
Police Commander, said “We will be remorseless in our pursuit of these individuals”
(Hamilton et al, 2011: 8). These examples provide evidence of CCTV assisting police in
their investigations to prosecute offenders. They also show the willingness of the public to
help and support CCTV in this respect.
Risk Society, Fear of Crime and public safety
So far the literature I have looked at covers the functions of CCTV regarding crime
detection and prevention. CCTV however is also useful with preventing fear of crime and
helping with public safety. Contemporary society today has been described by many
criminologists as a risk society. It has been argued that risk is now a central feature of
society. Giddens (1990, 1991) said “that one of the key societal changes bought by late
modernity is the alteration in the environments of both trust and risk and the growth of
ontological insecurity” (cited in Hughes, 1998: 13). This shows us that as modernity
developed so did problems of safety in society. Structures in society changed from
traditional andcommunity values to more modern individual values. Norris and Armstrong
suggested that “individualism was one of the central factors behind the emergence of a
‘stranger society’ (McCahill, 2002: 19). With less links and knowledge of other people fear
and uncertainty in society started to emerge. Therefore many programmes of ‘risk
management’ were introduced into society including surveillance methods and CCTV.
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This indicates that the idea of living in a ‘risk society’ heightens the chances of fear of
crime. It causes people to believe they are at constant risk of becoming a victim or being
subjected to danger. Therefore it can be argued that surveillance can be a major advantage
within society by reducing this fear. Armitage 2002 pointed out that “Various pieces of
research revealed that CCTV reduced levels of fear of crime amongst respondents”
(Armitage, 2002: 6). This shows that there is evidence that suggests that CCTV makes the
public feel safer. Ditton (2000) conducted a piece of research on ‘Public attitudes towards
Open- Street CCTV in Glasgow.’ Within this study respondents were asked many questions
on their opinions towards CCTV including ‘if CCTV cameras were installed in this street,
would you feel more safe or less safe alone at this time of day?’ The results of this were
“some 42 per cent said that they would feel the same, and some 56 per cent that they would
feel safer” (Ditton, 2000: 702). The results show CCTV reduced fear in more than half of the
respondents. However this research also shows that people believed that CCTV was most
useful for detecting crime rather than making the public feel safer. Although there was a
majority support for the installation of open street CCTV respondents believe that “police
patrolling are more effective than CCTV in making people feel safer” (Ditton, 2000: 692).
Overall this researchsuggests that CCTV does contribute to public attitudes regarding their
safety, however there are also other factors of crime control that are more affective at
achieving this. I also believe that it would be beneficial to explore different professional
views, for example the police on how CCTV affects public safety as this would contribute to
arguments about how effective CCTV is.
Although there is much research surrounding CCTV and whether it works or not in
relation to crime reduction and prevention there seems to be a gap when thinking about
public safety and fear of crime. Zurawski and Czerwinski (2008) suggest that
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“The analysis of CCTV measures is often restrained to the uses and effectiveness of
the technologies employed. The views and assessments of the ones that are subjects
of surveillance and their watchers in particular are far less an object of study”
(Zurawski & Czerwinski, 2008: 51).
ConsequentlyZurawski and Czerwinski carried out a survey of safety and CCTV in Germany.
They found that out of 41 people “33 interviewees mentioned the enhancement of feelings of
safety as one of the aims of CCTV” and that “A narrow majority affirmed that their feelings
improved through cameras” (Zurawski & Czerwinski, 2008: 59).They also found that most
interviewees wanted cameras in crime hot spots but were not in favour of wide spread CCTV.
“The ,informants’ assessments of CCTV proved to be very contradictory, depending on the
given context of the cameras.”(Zurawski & Czerwinski, 2008: 59). This research
demonstrates that CCTV does play a part in the public’s feelings of safety in society even if it
is small and even if it is often contradictory.
Human Rights and Privacy
Another issue surrounding CCTV is discriminatory monitoring. It has been argued
that “the target selection of CCTV operators can be massively discriminatory towards males,
particularly black males” (Armitage, 2002: 6). There have been studies carried out that look
at CCTV operators and who they watch and to see if they watch certain categories of people
more than others. For example Norris and Armstrong (1999) show that blacks are twice more
likely than whites to be surveilled for no apparent reason. (Norris and Armstrong, 1999:).
This is likely to cause people to believe they could be being treated suspiciously as potential
offenders with no valid reason, possibly causing people to believe their privacy is being
invaded. However discriminatory monitoring is against the law and the Data Protection Act
1998 and Human Rights Act 1998 are not taken into consideration in these studies. “The
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Data Protection Act requires that information be obtained fairly and lawfully” (Armitage,
2002: 8) this includes codes of practice. The Human rights Act states that public authorities
must consider certain principles when monitoring CCTV such as proportionality “Is there a
balance between public safety and the rights of the individual?” (Armitage, 2002: 8).
Therefore I believe it is important to find out from public authorities and the people who deal
with CCTVhow they follow these laws and their point of view on discriminatory monitoring.
When problems such as discrimination arise this also makes it more likely for the
public to think they are living in a surveillance/big brother society, that they are being
controlled and their privacy is invaded. It may confirm people’s beliefs that they are always
being watched. This links back to Marx, Weber and Foucault’s views that surveillance exists
and has always existed to keep tabs on and order society. However as I have shown there are
many reasons for the presence of CCTV in society such as crime prevention and public
safety.
Surveillance methods have always existed in society for many different reasons. They
have developed vastly over time especially CCTV in the last two decades. It is clear that
CCTV has many issues and debates surrounding it. With the UK often described as a
‘surveillance society’ and the many different estimates of the amount of cameras that exist, it
is often portrayed as a controlled society. However there are studies to show that there are
much less CCTV cameras than originally thought. There is also much debate on whether
CCTV is effective in detecting and deterring crime and not enough research involving fear of
crime and public safety.Although a huge amount of studies exists I believe there is still a lack
of research into certain aspects of CCTV. I think in order to establish whether CCTV works
or not it is necessary to understand CCTV from the point of view of the people who work
with it. Therefore opinions from police officers, security guards and camera operators would
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be valid and primary pieces of research. These people deal with CCTV first hand and
therefore we can gain much information on the effectiveness of this surveillance not only in
regards to crime prevention and detection but also to public safety. I also believe there needs
to be more research into whether the public agree with CCTV and how it makes them feel as
this will show how useful CCTV is in all its different aspects. I believe there is too much
research concentrating on statistics which could give the wrong impression of how effective
CCTV is as it just looks at the technology itself. Therefore it is also useful to look at how
CCTV is used as a tool by different authorities in everyday life in ways which benefit society.
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Methodology
After deciding my research for this project was going to surround the different
functions and effectiveness of CCTV in Colchester town centre and ultimately try to answer
the question does CCTV work; I decided the data I collected should come from different
people who work with CCTV within the town. I also felt that it was important to gain an idea
of how the public felt about CCTV and see if their views differ from different authorities and
professionals. In order to gain this data I decided that a qualitative research design would be
best as I could find out in depthopinions, views and experiences participants had had with
CCTV. However I also decided to incorporate a small amount of quantitative data by
carrying out surveys which were completed by members of the public. This chapter will
describe the methodology I used in order to address the aims of my research.
Qualitative and Quantitative methods
When putting together my research design at the beginning of my project I decided in
order to establish whether CCTV worked in societies and in particular Colchester town centre
I would need to talk to the people who worked and lived in these societies. I believed it was
important that my main findings came from those who worked closely with CCTV who had
first hand experience with it. I wanted to examine the way these participants interpreted
CCTV in society in order to find out the effectiveness it has. I therefore chose semistructured interviews as one of my research methods. Wellington and Szczerbinski (2007)
suggests
“Interviews are often said to 'reach the parts which other methods cannot reach'”
and “interviewing allows a researcher to investigate and prompt things that we
cannot observe. We can probe an interviewee's thoughts, values, prejudices,
perceptions, views, feelings and perspectives. We can also elicit their version or their
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account of situations which they may have lived or taught through: his or her
story”(Wellington & Szczerbinski, 2007: 81).
This shows that by choosing interviews I can find out in detail why CCTV does or does not
work from the perspective of people who have experience with it. I also chose to use semi
structured interviews as the unstructured flexible nature allows the participant to go off at
tangents and “it gives insight into what the interviewee sees as relevant and important”
(Bryman, 2008: 437). It also means as an interviewer I can probe and ask follow up
questions to an answer that may be relevant but not be planned. Overall I believe that
interviews will provide me with rich findings and in depth descriptions about participant’s
interactions and views on the topic.
To add some more depth to my research and to back up or contribute to my findings
from the interviews I also created a survey for the public to fill in. This added some
quantitative data to my project where I could produce graphs and charts that illustrate the
publics’ feelings regarding CCTV. This meant I could compare the findings and evaluate the
functions of CCTV and find out if the public and authorities believed they worked
effectively. It could also be argued that the authorities could be bias as they are more likely to
be in favour of CCTV therefore adding a public survey meant that any bias present in the
research would be eliminated. I chose to carry out a self completion survey as they are quick,
cheap and efficient way to collect a fair amount of data. Participants could fill in the survey at
their own speed, conveniently and alone therefore interview affects are eliminated.
Participants
As my research is based in Colchester town centre it was important the participants had
experience of working in Colchester. Therefore purposive sampling was necessary. It was
very useful to me to have support from Colchester Borough Council’s research team when
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carrying out my research. This allowed me to gain contact with the people most involved
with CCTV in Colchester. I had several meetings with their research and engagement
manager and also attended a meeting with several members of staff including the Community
Initiatives Manager. This was extremely helpful as they helped me find contacts and
eventually gain access to the specific people that I wanted. This included a CCTV operator, a
police officer, a business director of a main security firm and a shop owner. This also meant
that I could visit the Colchester CCTV monitoring centre. Although I eventually managed to
gain my perfect samples there were a few problems. This was a very lengthy process where I
had to send many emails and make many phone calls to find the right people and arrange the
interviews. Also getting hold of a police officer was very difficult as they were not always
based at the police station. However I eventually managed to conduct four long and detailed
interviews with relevant participants.
However for my survey I did not have the time or resources to conduct it on a large
scale, therefore I used a simple random sample of 50 participants. I needed to gain access to
50 members of the public who lived in Colchester so for that reason I conducted my survey at
the University. I randomly asked people walking around the university if they lived in
Colchester and if they would fill in my survey and in return they would get a chocolate. This
allowed me to get a reasonable sized response to public opinion on CCTV in Colchester town
centre.
Interviews
In order to conduct my semi structured interviews I needed to construct a set of
questions. I started off by looking at what I wanted to find out and what my main themes
were. I had some specific topics that I wanted to cover in order to answer my research
question so produced a set of about 30 questions that could be asked throughout the
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interview. I made sure my questions flowed well with the topics; I used relevant language and
tried not to ask leading questions (Bryman, 2009).This then meant that I had a structure and
an aim; however I could add other questions in freely and take them out if the participant had
already covered them. It also allowed the participant to go off at a tangent, talk freely and add
in any other information they felt was relevant but at the same time if it went too off track I
had a guide to follow. I started off the interview by asking job roles and how long they had
worked in that role in order to put the participant at ease and start to build a rapport. I also
made sure I was prepared with prompts in case the participant was struggling to answer. This
resulted in the opportunity to conduct a long, relevant and detailed interview. I then
transcribed my interviews and from there started my data analysis.
Surveys
When constructing my surveys my aim was to make them quick and easy to fill in as
my time was limited. Therefore I thought of seven questions relating to different topics. I
made most of my questions closed and I had two open questions to gain some extra opinions.
The Survey was easy to follow but at the same time allowed me to gain the publics view on
CCTV in Colchester and find some patterns in the data.
Ethics and Consent
When carrying out a research project it is important to think about the ethics of social
research. The British Sociological Association (BSA) and the Social Research Association
(SRA) are both concerned with good ethical practice and dealing with ethical issues that arise
in the correct manner. Both associations have formulated codes of ethics which give
guidelines that social researchers can follow (Bryman, 2009). Some examples of these
guidelines are avoiding undue intrusion, obtaining informed consent and protecting the
interests of the subjects(SRA, 2003). The SRA guidelines also state that “If social research is
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to remain of benefit to society and the groups and individuals within it, then social
researchers must conduct their work responsibly and in light of the moral and legal order of
society in which they practice” (SRA, 2003:14). Some researchers find themselveshaving
problems following these guidelines and discover their research may not be ethical in
particular when observations research or ethnographies are carried out. However when
conducting my research I did not come across any major ethical concerns.
In order to make sure my research met the ethical requirements and it benefited
society, I carried out several tasks. I first of all devised an ethical approval form which stated
my aims for my research. Within it I stated several important factors that would ensure my
participants would be treated in the right manner. I explained that prior informed consent
would be obtained by the participant. I also ensured that I would explain this and what my
research involved before the interview. I also clarified that I would protect my participants;
for example there would be no deception involved and my research would not put any of my
participants at risk of any harm. Finally I stated that confidentiality will be assured
throughout my project and no names or personal details will be disclosed in my project. I also
constructed a consent form which my self and the participant signed. This gave information
about my research aims and methods and reassurance about risk and confidentiality.
Although my research did not involve any difficult ethical decision making it was
important I took these steps to ensure there was no harm to my participants. Overall my
research followed the ethical requirements and I came across no issues.
Problems with methodology
When conducting my research I came across several problems however and because
of time limits and lack of resources these were difficult to overcome. The time limits I had
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were a major problem, although I had the right contacts it took a long while to arrange and
complete all of my interviews. I collected a large amount of detailed data from carrying out
interviews. However whilst analysing this data I found that there were questions I would like
to expand on further and new questions I could ask. If I had had enough time carrying out
second interviews would have been very useful and added to my research. I would also carry
out a few more interviews to gain even more opinions and views. It would have been useful
to interview the Crime Reduction Officer for Colchester police station.
My survey was very simple and although I gained enough information to get a general
idea of the public’s views on CCTV, I would also have liked to extend my survey and have a
larger sample. This meant I could have discovered more patterns and trends within the
research. Another problem with my survey was that the sample was mainly completed by
students therefore it could be argued that this would not represent the general population.
Therefore if I continued with this research I would have used a better, larger sample which
ranged in age, gender, occupation and other social factors.
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Data Analysis
In order to put my research into context and before looking at the data analysis it is
important to have some knowledge of Colchester Town Centre. Colchester is in the county
of Essex and is Britain’s oldest recorded town. It is the second largest district in Essex and in
mid-2010 Colchester’s population was recorded at 181,016 which is a 2.2% increase since
mid-2009(http://www.colchester.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=5374&p=0 Accessed: 23
March 2012). Colchester is an important military Garrison and it is also home to The
University of Essex. It is a thriving town that attracts around 4.5 million visitors every year
(http://www.visitcolchester.com/ Accessed: 23 March 2012). For these reasons Colchester
has a wide coverage of CCTV and therefore is an interesting area to look at the effectiveness
of CCTV.
After carrying out my research on CCTV in Colchester town centre the next step I
took was analysing the data I had collected. I have combined the data collected from my
interviews and surveys to discover patterns and themes within my research to answer my
question. I have also divided my data into different topics these are CCTV in Colchester
town, CCTV and Crime prevention, CCTV and public safety,CCTV and social control and
overall effectiveness.
CCTV in Colchester Town
I felt it was first of all important to get an outline of how much CCTV existed in
Colchester town, how much it was used and if it had changed much since first installed. I felt
it was important to get an idea of the level of CCTV used in Colchester as this could play a
part in illustrating the effectiveness and importance of CCTV. From my interviews I found
that since the increase and installation of many CCTV systems in the 1990’s there has not
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been a huge change in the amount of cameras in Colchester. All of my interviewees had over
5 years experience with working with CCTV therefore had good knowledge on the subject.
CCTV operator - “we have about 110 cameras of our ownthere have been some new
cameras but not very many probably about 6 cameras the system was set up in about 1997
and most cameras that were put in are still there.”
Police Officer – “Colchester has good coverage of CCTV. There has been no
increase since I’ve been working there has been the same amount.”
It is also clear from my interview with the business director of a major security firm in
Colchester that many private venues also have CCTV.
Security Guard – “a 5-600 capacity venue erm they would have anything in the
region of about 14, 15, 16 cameras in there yeah perhaps even up to 20 so as you can
appreciate that’s a wide coverage”
This shows that Colchester town has a wide coverage of CCTV which has not changed over
time, this automatically suggests that CCTV must be successful in some way other wise it
would of changed and not be so wide spread. This also causes me to believe that the idea that
CCTV is constantly increasing and we are becoming more and more of a surveillance society
is highly exaggerated. Although there is enough CCTV there is not a camera covering every
inch of every street causing us to be watched constantly. This also shows that George
Orwell’s (1949) prediction that by 1984 we would be living in a big brother society always
being watched is not true.
I found that the only way CCTV has changed since it was in Colchester which may have an
impact is the technology and the quality of the cameras.
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CCTV Operator – “Instead of putting in new cameras in more places we try and
replace old cameras to upgrade the quality of image we get”.
Shop Owner – “it’s better because we have changed the equipment you know we
have a coloured camera where it was black and white before a couple of monitors and hard
drive rather than video”.
Which then would alsogive the idea that CCTV must work in some ways in order for this to
happen.
The usage of CCTV in Colchester also leads to the suggestion that it is needed in
daily life to benefit society. This is also illustrated through the impact it has on the number of
arrests. When asked the questionHow often is CCTV used in one day at work? All the
participants answered with 24 hours a day.
Police officer – “CCTV is used everyday some days we are talking constantly to the
CCTV operators”
CCTV operator – “its used 24 hours a day it is impossible to say how many incidents
there are. On our last annual report there was about 750 arrests that we were involved with
over the year so a couple of arrests a day.”
This demonstrates that CCTV is involved in crime in a huge way, it shows that without
CCTV many arrests may not have been made causing society to be at more of a risk.With this
data it would be impossible to argue that CCTV has no use in society.
I also asked the question Do you think CCTV will change in the future?
How?Increase?Decrease? I felt this was important as it may help establish whether there was
a belief that there would be more CCTV in the future.
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Police officer- “I think the systems will become more advanced and better quality”
CCTV Operator “I Think CCTV coverage has more or less reached saturation level
now I think it will simply stay as it is except for maintenance and improvements on existing
cameras”
Shop Owner – “As technology moves on so will CCTV”
This shows that there is a belief that CCTV will just become more advanced rather than
increase in numbers of cameras. The overall feeling towards the CCTV in Colchester was
positive and there was also evidence that these professionals believe that there is a good level
of CCTV in Colchester.
Colchester CCTV and Crime detection and prevention
Another topic that arose throughout my interview process was crime prevention. I
asked a number of questions regarding this because as I explained earlier the rise in CCTV in
the 1990’s was mainly due to the governments aims in reducing and preventing crime.
Therefore in order to establish whether CCTV works it is important to look at this. It is clear
from my interviews that CCTV has been a successful tool in helping authorities tackle crime,
however there is also evidence to show it does not succeed in everyway. My interview data
shows that an important aspect of CCTV is how it allows streets to be monitored at all times
and it allows authorities to communicate and get them to a scene of a crime as soon as
possible.
Security Guard – “Colchester has a lot of big pubs so we have a pub watch system at
night and a town link radio in the day this means that a council member will be monitoring
them and we lets say for example at one of the venues lets take Missoula in Colchester if they
have an ejection or refuse someone they will get a radio description and not only will the
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other bars hear that the town CCTV can monitor them and then say they walk 100 metres
down the road to Yates the CCTV operator can radio the doorman there and let them know
what’s happened so that does work very well amazingly probably the best tool we have at the
moment”
CCTV Operator – “CCTV does prevent crime er it is a help in my opinion it is most
important in the night time economy we have a radio pub link to nightclubs and police which
helps on Friday and Saturday nights in my opinion at night time the most important thing is
that the police arrive instantly and it insures that if someone is arrested they arrest the right
person if there is a fight we can tell who started it”
To me this suggests that these authorities rely on CCTV especially for the night time
economy to keep order within society. With CCTV assisting this radio link it ensures that
any incidents that occur are seen and dealt with in the right manner. It also helps to identify
anybody who may be a risk to the public.However it is also mentioned that this method is
effective as long as it is used properly.
Security Guard – “the public radio that I spoke to you about is only as good as how
you use it like sometimes I think people will use it make a call and eject somebody but not
always listen to it”
This demonstrates how systems such as this do work however a disadvantage is if somebody
doesn’t monitor properly or listen to their radio an incident could be missed and cause it to be
ineffective.My participants also talk about CCTV when detecting crime and prosecuting.
Police Officer - “It has been very useful for detecting crime and bringing
prosecutions against people erm I mean we would struggle big time without it”
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CCTV Operator–I think there is an element ofcrime prevention but in terms of
prosecution yes I think it is very effective.”
This backs up literature regarding crime detection such as the James Bulger case and the
London riots. All of this evidence demonstrates that CCTV does work in detecting crime.
However the participants were not as sure that CCTV deters and prevents crimes
before they happen. I found that there was a general view that CCTV would not affect the
way most people behave especially if they had been drinking or if the offence was committed
when not thinking rationally. When talking about crime prevention and CCTV stopping
people committing crimes my participants responded quite negatively.
Security Guard – “You know people don’t really seem to care about it as much as
they used to ermits not something that puts fear into people nowadays” “people tend not to
think about CCTV in the pubs and clubs when they are drinking they are caught up with the
emotions of the moment”
Police officer – “Subconsciously people know the CCTV is there but I don’t think they
care it’s the last thing on their minds especially at night when they are drinking”
Shop Owner – “its not necessarily a deterrent for the nutters that are out there cause
they haven’t got a clue have they if there clever I mean they will try and wear a hat or
something but erm you know and least you can play something back and try and catch
somebody you know”
These answers give the impression that CCTV does not always cause people to police their
own behaviour. It is not a crime prevention method that involves the rational choice theory.
Instead they agree with Trasler that the rational model does not take into account the
impulsive behaviour associated with some crimes where there is no time for rational decision
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making (Crawford, 1998). Therefore when it comes to offences such as assault CCTV is not
on their mind. My survey supports this view as the Graph shows below only 22% of my
participants said that CCTV affected the way they behaved.
The reasons given for CCTV not affecting the way the public behaved were very similar such
as “I never think about it”, “not always aware it is there” and “It is part of everyday life”.
This illustrates how CCTV is not always at the forefront of peoples minds and is often
completely ignored in everyday life even when it comes to committing crimes therefore it is
not a very successful method of crime prevention especially for violent and irrational
offences.
Trasler does believe that surveillance and crime prevention can be effective for
“instrumental” crimes however my research does not support this (Crawford, 1998).
Security guard- “Guys that are experts in crime in thefts for example will just
disguise themselves better and also find out where the CCTV is in order to avoid it but it
wont stop them”
CCTV operator – “With vehicle crime the cameras are not always on that exact spot
and some people will know this so I don’t think it prevents people from doing it”
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This shows that although CCTV may be visible people will find ways around this and
commit offences regardless. My data does however agree that CCTV may cause
displacement of crime, again not preventing crime just moving it.
Police officer – “I think it goes without saying really if you know if people know there
are cameras in town they are going to go out to other areas and do what they want to be
doing where they cant be seen”
Therefore even if CCTV does stop someone committing a crime in a certain area they will
just move elsewhere to offend where there is more opportunity (Rogers, 2006).
My findings also disagree with Poyner’s (1992) findings that CCTV could help
surrounding areas reduce crime and that it creates a diffusion of benefits. Poyner found that
even car parks near to CCTV were effected by CCTV. However my participants did not
agree.
CCTV Operator – “I can’t imagine it would help other areas”
Police officer – “I do not think CCTV helps others areas as they will know there is no
CCTV there no it doesn’t benefit them”.
My research on this topic concludes that CCTV is notsuccessful in preventing crimes from
occurring. It does not affect the way people behave and does not stop people from offending
as the public simply do not think about it and it does not cause any fear. It is however
successful in detecting crime and dealing with crimes when they are happening rather than
deterring them. CCTV in Colchester is particularly useful at night with the use of the pub link
radio system as even if it does not prevent crime it helps to monitor the town to ensure
incidents are dealt with quickly. It was also interesting that all my interview participants had
very similar views with no conflicts in their answers.
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Colchester CCTV and Public safety
As there is much literature surrounding risk society and fear of crime I decided it was
important to evaluate how much CCTV played a part in public safety. There have been a few
pieces of research conducted such as Zurawski and Czerwinski (2008) and Jason Ditton’s
(2000) studies on public safety regarding CCTV. However I feel this research could be
expanded on therefore asked questions concentrating on this topic. When analysing my data it
became clear very quickly that protecting the public was a very strong function of CCTV.
When asked the question “Do you think CCTV affects public safety” the clear answer from
all participants was yes.
CCTV Operator – “We are not just here for crime I suppose you could say we are
also here for welfare so for instance if we if there was a young lady wondering around
completely drunk at four-o’clock in the morning we would keep an eye on herer also work
with other organisations such as the street pastors who walk around so yeah we do try and
look after people as well as catch people doing things they shouldn’t be erm also if we saw a
little old lady sitting at a bus stop for three hours or a drunk is laying in the pavement in the
middle of the day we will get someone out to make sure they are ok so there is a definite
element of concern for welfare”
Security Guard – “Yeah I do exactly erm if there are people who are out doing
certain things that would put other people at risk the public might not even be aware so if
there is a camera watching them this would ensure their safety”
Police Officer – “Absolutely for example if somebody phones with an incident and
they say I am so and so I am here and describe yourself the cameras can pick you out and
monitor you until a police unit gets to you so you are being watched the whole time”
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From a professional point of view from people who have many years of experience ensuring
public safety seemed to be on of their main aims when monitoring CCTV and one they felt
worked successfully. The shop owner also described how CCTV helped him protect his staff.
Shop Owner – “I am always upstairs watching the screens so I can see anybody who
comes in here and I’m always straight down if my staff need help or look as though they
could be in an unsafe position”
I believe public safety is important and could be argued the most important aspect of CCTV
especially in a town such as Colchester. I think that it is underestimated in this way and can
not just be studied by looking at how the public feel. It also needs to be examined through
experiences of those who have worked with it.
For Colchester town CCTV is also useful in ensuring safety at large public events.
Police Officer – “The last few years with holding cycle races again when you have
large crowds with things like that it can be used to find missing children who may have lost
their parents you’ve got good coverage from high above and it gives you a wide area there re
a lot of events in Colchester so for those reasons CCTV is good”
This is evidence that CCTV is not just used in order to detect and deter crime a major
function of it is protecting society.
These results from my interviews are also reflected through the public survey as 72%
said that CCTV makes them feel safer.
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This graph supports some of the studies that have been carried out previously. Such as
JasonDitton’s study where 56% of participants said they would feel safer if CCTV was
installed on a certain street. Also Zurawski and Czerwinski’s study where a majority said
their feelings improved through cameras.However my findings went further and had even
more of an emphasis of public safety with even more people answering yes. When I asked
my participants why CCTV made them feel safer I received answers such as “If something
happens to me it’s easier to sort/find who did it.” This suggests that some people may feel
their safety may not be affected by CCTV but the majority of the public feel it is in place to
benefit them.
I also found that in my interviews and survey it was pointed out that CCTV also
benefited the public if they were to become victims.
Security Guard – “Some cases may be reported but get thrown out as there is no
hard evidence but with CCTV it helps the victims get their justice.”
Another answer to why CCTV makes you feel safer was “You can prove something and there
is more chance of criminals getting caught.”This data provides me with evidence that both
professionals and the public believe CCTV works with regards to public safety especially in
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Colchester town and also reassures the public that if they did become a victim of crime it is
more likely they would get justice.
CCTV, Human Rights and privacy
So far I have shown that CCTV exists in society with the aims to reduce crime, detect
crime and protect the public. However I also wanted to look at people views on CCTV in
regards to their privacy as the view that we live in surveillance society has always existed. I
therefore took the first step of asking professionals what methods they carried out to protect
human rights and privacy.
CCTV Operator – “We follow a human rights act and a data protections act we have
to have good reason for following someone we cant follow somebody because we don’t like
the look of them or we do not because of there gender or race or whatever we follow people
because we think that they might of committed a crime or they might commit a crime or they
may be vulnerable”
Security Guard – “As a company we are signed up to the data protection act so we
cant discuss certain things with certain individuals with the CCTV only specific people can
view it and we respect that. I have never had a problem with data protection”
This illustrates that these authorities were very professional and took data protection and
human rights very seriously. This is important as any breach of this may cause a negative
impact on society causing CCTV to be less successful. My findings show that people are
monitored for specific reasons and people are not stereotyped. Therefore I disagree with
theories such as Armitage (2002) and Norris and Armstrong (1999) that suggest CCTV can
be discriminatory.
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I also decided that it was necessary to find out whether the people who worked with
CCTV felt it controlled society in any way and if they thought we lived in a big brother
society as this could also lead to the feeling from society that their privacy is invaded. From
this I had a few mixed answers however their overall conclusions were similar.
Security Guard – “I agree in a way it can be a bit intrusive but then you have to look
at why and if it means that a terrorist doesn’t get away with one single act them I’m all for it
erm I can see why they call it the big brother society but as far as I am concerned with our
industry it’s a vital tool and at the end of the day I always say to someone if you have nothing
to hide then they should have no problems with it”
This shows an understanding of why people may think this but ultimately he believes that the
positives outweigh the negatives.
CCTV Operator – “If you look at our code of practice this is not the case we don’t
control people or watch them constantly were about public safety and crime prevention that
is all”
Police Officer – “CCTV does not exist to control people it is there for people safety a
camera cant control anyone everyone makes there own decisions and choices my personal
opinion about people who worry that we live in a big brother society is they have something
to hide I feel if you have nothing to worry about or nothing to hide then you have got no
reason to think about the cameras”
Compared to the security Guard the CCTV operator and the Police officer strongly believe
CCTV does not control societies and it is not intrusive in any way. These quotes are strong
opinions that CCTV is used to benefit modern society. This also disproves views such as
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Foucault believing surveillance exists to create power and control and shows his theory is not
relevant to contemporary society in regards to CCTV.
I also decided to find out if the publics opinion differed to those who I interviewed I
asked the question Do you think CCTV controls societies and invades privacy?
This graph shows that 74% of my participants said no it does which supports my findings
from the interviews. Many also said in the survey that they “I have nothing to hide” and “I do
not commit crimes.” This is similar to some of the answers from my interviews which shows
the general feeling from professionals and the public is that there is no reason to think that
CCTV is intrusive unless there is a reason why you would not want to be caught on camera.
Although there is a small number who believe they are controlled in some way my findings
give the impression that CCTV exists for positive reasons that benefit society not negative
reasons that control and cause problems in society. Therefore in this respect CCTV is
working.
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To back up these findings in my survey I also asked the question Colchester council
have around 110 cameras in the town centre. Do you think there should be more? 70% of my
respondents replied with Yes or this is the right amount compared to only 30% saying no.
This also suggests that most people do not believe their human rights are being violated and
confirms that it is thought CCTV is needed in society. A quote from the police officer also
demonstrates this.
Police Officer – “we used to have problems in residential areas erm one of the main
things the residents would actually ask us is what are the chances of CCTV so people actively
ask for more and more”
This proves that the public and professionals want CCTV in Colchester as they feel it is a
vital tool in society with even 26% of my survey participants wanting more. Therefore I can
argue that people would rather have CCTV than not and they do not believe it invades their
privacy. This also shows that the majority believe CCTV is successful in at least some ways
proving that in Colchester CCTV works well.
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Overall effectiveness of CCTV in Colchester
My findings have already shown many factors surrounding CCTV in Colchester town.
First of all it is clear that in Colchester CCTV has not been on the constant rise the only
major change since the central CCTV monitoring system was installed has been advances in
the technology. To me this illustrates that updating the cameras is an indication that CCTV
works as this would not be done if it was not successful. It also suggests that we do not live in
as much of a ‘surveillance society’ as many people believe as new cameras are not being
installed constantly in order to cover every inch of the streets.
I have also found that CCTV is not a reliable method for crime prevention. My data
suggests that cameras do not affect the way people behave especially when not thinking
rationally and therefore do not act as a deterrent as the rational choice theory and the routine
activity theory suggests it would. CCTV may not be effective when stopping a crime from
occurring however it my findings have proved it does detect crime. CCTV is needed for
identifying, viewing offences, prosecuting and it enables police to get to a scene of a crime
quickly with devices such as the town and pub link. This provides us with the evidence that
although CCTV may lack effectiveness in crime prevention it is however required for crime
detection.
Another important function of CCTV is protecting the public. This is the most under
researched and underestimated aspect however in my opinion one of the most important. My
interviews and survey both confirm that CCTV improves safety in society and also makes the
public feel safer when out in public. This is indicated through the aims and experiences that
people who work with CCTV. For example CCTV monitors describe themselves as a public
service and the police see CCTV as a powerful tool when looking for missing children or
identifying people in big events.
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I have also established that although the ‘surveillance society’ is very dominate today
this is largely exaggerated and actually most people believe CCTV is not in place to control
societies it is however here for crime purposes and public safety. The general feeling was that
if you do not commit crimes then you would have no problems with CTV.
My data has supported much of the literature I have mentioned but also challenged
some of it. My final argument is however is that CCTV does work. To conclude my data
analysis and to back up my findings that CCTV does work and is needed in society I am
going to look at the overall effectiveness of it. In my survey I asked the question Do you
think CCTV is needed in order to detect and deter crime and for public safety? This question
allowed me to find out how many people were in favour of CCTV for these reasons.
This graph shows that 94% of my respondents said yes. This means confirms that’s the vast
majority of the public are favour of and feel CCTV is needed in society.
Overall the professionals who work with CCTV have the same responses when asked
similar questions.
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Shop owner - “it’s essential because obviously I can’t get insured without it and it’s
that piece of mind incase somebody does come in and because of the monitor upstairs
everybody up there can see what’s going on down here so gives you confidence people
downstairs are safe”
Police officer- “CCTV has been very useful for detecting crime and bringing
prosecutions against people and keeping people safe its obviously been very good erm I mean
we would struggle without it”
Security Guard – “It’s a fantastic tool I would say if it got taken away it would send
our industry back light years”
This shows that there is no evidence to suggest CCTV is not a necessity in society. I have
shown that CCTV has a few downfalls and some of its aims are not always fulfilled such as
crime prevention. I have also suggested that systems such as radio links need to be used
properly in order to receive the full benefits of CCTV. However there are many more
positive aspects of CCTV that outweigh these few negative points. My evidence is clear that
CCTV does work in society especially towns such as Colchester.
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Conclusion
As a whole my research allowed me to gather some good data and find many themes
surrounding CCTV in Colchester. This allowed me to answer my research question does
CCTV work? My interviews were a success as they allowed me to find out about the
experiences people who work with CCTV had. This gave me rich, detailed descriptions about
the functions of CCTV. The only limitations I had with the interviews were they were time
consuming. It would have been useful for me to interview more people and also go back and
carry out second interviews to ask questions about topics that arose after the first interview
had taken place. My surveys were also very useful as this gave me the publics view and
allowed me to compare this data to the interviews. This meant my findings covered people
who experienced CCTV in different environments allowing my research to cover a wider
range of society. Time was also a disadvantage when carrying out my surveys I would like a
bigger and more varied sample. When analysing my data I was able to find many similarities
in the interviews and I was able to back this up with graphs produced from the surveys. This
enabled me to find clear arguments and themes within my research. My interviews however
were very long and detailed and it was difficult to pick out specific quotes as so much was
relevant to my project.
I believe my findings are relevant to contemporary society today as there is much
research undertaken and media coverage concerning surveillance and CCTV. Although some
of my findings conflict with some previous research studies they also agree with others or
have elements that are similar. My research differs from a lot of studies conducted on CCTV
as it is not purely statistics regarding crime rates or how one camera has affected a certain
area or look at just one aim of CCTV such as crime reduction. It also does not focus on the
public and their views. I feel my research is important as it looks at CCTV as a whole and its
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different functions within society. It also gives crucial views from people who work with
CCTV which are often ignored. It is the experiences from these people that can truly show if
CCTV works. Therefore it is important to look at these in current arguments.
When carrying out my data analysis I found there were many ways I could extend my
research further and it could go in new directions. I found that within my interviews there
were many points that were made that could be expanded on. For example two of the
interviewees mentioned cameras having even more functions such as number plate
recognition to check insurance on cars. This shows cameras are not just used to monitor
people on the streets but also for other crimes that could be hidden. This could also be
developed into looking at other forms of surveillance such as identity cards. Some of my
interview participants also mentioned CCTV on private property where as I have
concentrated just on public areas. These examples give an idea about how wide the subject of
CCTV and surveillance is and how many different aspects of it can be researched. Another
direction I could go in is looking at the reactions about CCTV from the public. I could then
use another sample and explain to them some of the jobs CCTV operators and police officers
do and how they use CCTV and see if this changed their opinions. Would this cause more
people to say CCTV would make them feel safer for example? If I had a longer time scale I
would have also compared my public survey graphs in order to produce more statistics. I
would find out it if gender affected people’s views or if age played a part in CCTV affecting
behaviour for example. I would also compare questions such as Do you think Colchester
needs more or less CCTV? and Do you think CCTV controls societies and invades privacy.
This could show me if there is a pattern between people who said less CCTV to the first
question and yes to the second question. I would also ask more questions in my survey.
These further ideas could lead to researching different aspects of surveillance and finding
even more relevant data about CCTV and how effective it is.
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There are many different ways I could further my work however I feel for the time
limit and recourses I had I have gathered some significant findings. I also think I choose the
right methodology for the information I wanted to find out. Within this research project I
have found that CCTV has many different functions some which are more successful than
others and some that are not as obvious as others. However above all I found that all the
benefits of CCTV outweigh the negatives and the answer to my question is Yes CCTV does
work. My findings however are a result of research from just one town in Britain. Therefore
while the findings from this data cannot be considered universal never the less they do
indicate thatin the opinion of experienced individuals and the public CCTV has a positive
impact on society. I would suggest to improve the effectiveness of CCTV it would be useful
to make sure people were trained correctly when using radio systems for example and make
sure there is enough staff to cover all CCTV monitors. I would also recommend a scheme
where the public have their own say on where they believe cameras should be placed this
may boost the support for CCTV even more.
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Bibliography
Books
Bryman, A. (2008) Social Research methods (Third Edition), Oxford: Oxford University
Press
Crawford, A. (1998) Crime Prevention and Community Safety: Politics, Policies and
Practices, London: Longman
Farrell, G., Bowers, K., Johnson, S., Townsley, M. & Clarke, R. (2007)
(eds) Imagination for crime prevention : essays in honour of Ken Pease, New York: Criminal
Justice.
Goold, B. J. (2004) CCTV and policing: public area surveillance and police practices in
Britain, Oxford : Oxford University Press.
Hughes, G. (1998) Understanding Crime Prevention: social control, risk and late modernity,
Buckingham: Open University Press.
Kennedy, D. M. (2009) Deterrence and Crime Prevention: reconsidering the prospect of
Sanction, London: Routledge.
Lyon, D. (1994) TheElectronic Eye: The Rise of Surveillance Society, Minneapolis:
University of Minnesota Press.
Lyon, D. (2001)Surveillance Society: Monitoring Everyday Life, Buckingham: Open
University.
Maguire, M., Morgan, R. & Reiner, R. (2007) (eds) The Oxford Handbook of Criminology,
Oxford: Oxford University Press.
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McCahill, M. (2002) The Surveillance Web: The Rise of Visual Surveillance in an English
City, Cullompton: Willan.
Norris, C. & Armstrong, G. (1999) The Maximum Surveillance Society: The Rise of CCTV,
Oxford: Berg.
Rogers, C. (2006) Crime Reduction Partnerships, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Squires, P. (2006) Community safety: critical perspectives on policy and practice, Bristol:
Policy Press.
Wellington, J. &Szczerbinski, M. (2007) Research Methods for the Social Sciences, London:
Continuum International Publishing.
Welsh, B. C. & Farrington, D. P. (2009) Making Public Places Safer: Surveillance and Crime
Prevention, Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press.
Journal/Newspaper articles in online collections
Armitage, R. (2002) ‘To CCTV or not to CCTV: A Review of current research into the
effectiveness of CCTV systems in reducing crime’, Nacro, [Online] Available at:
http://epic.org/privacy/surveillance/spotlight/0505/nacro02.pdf (Accessed: 4 February).
Brown, B. (1995) ‘CCTV in Town Centres: Three Case Studies’, Police Research GroupsCrime Detection and Prevention Series, Paper 68 [Online] Available at :
http://library.npia.police.uk/docs/hopolicers/fcdps68.pdf (Accessed: 7 February 2012).
Ditton, J (2000) ‘Crime and the City: Public Attitudes towards Open-Street CCTV in
Glasgow’ Brit J Criminol, 40(4), pp 692-702, [Online] DOI: 10.1093/bjc/40.4.692 (Accessed:
2 February).
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Gerrard, G. & Thompson, R. (2011) ‘Two Million Camera in the UK’, CCTV Image: Official
Publication of the CCTV User Group, 42 pp. 10-12 [Online] Available at:
http://www.securitynewsdesk.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/CCTV-Image-42-Winter2011.pdf (Accessed: 2 February 2012).
Zurawski, N. & Czerwinski, S. (2008) ‘Crime, Maps and Meaning: Views from a Survey on
Safety and CCTV in Germany’, Surveillance & Society, 5(10), pp 51-72 [Online] ISSN:
1477-7487 (Accessed: 4 February).
Newspaper Articles
Hamilton, F., Burgess, K., Pitel, L. &Coghlan, T. (2011) ‘Public asked to name rioters on
internet ‘rogues gallery’’, The Times, 10 August.
Websites
BBC News (2011) England riots police release first CCTV suspect images, Available at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-14462271 (Accessed: 4 February 2012).
BBC News (2007) MP questions Surveillance fears, Available at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6241038.stm (Accessed: 5 February 2012).
Colchester Borough Council (2010) ‘Colchester’s mid-2010 estimates,’ Available at:
http://www.colchester.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=5374&p=0 (Accessed: 23 March 2010).
Politics.co.uk (2011) CCTV, Available at: http://www.politics.co.uk/reference/cctv
(Accessed: 5 February 2012).
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Social Research Association (2003) Ethical Guidelines [Online] http://www.thesra.org.uk/documents/pdfs/ethics03.pdf (Accessed: 7 February 2012).
Appendix
1
http://www.visitcolchester.com/
(Accessed: 23 March 2012)
Appendices
Ethical Approval form for third-year project
University of Essex - Department of Sociology
(Please return typewritten)
Name of student: Jenni Crawley
Email: [email protected]
Project Title: Does CCTV work? An Analysis of the effectiveness of CCTV in Colchester Town
Centre.
Supervisor: Jackie Turton
1.
Describe the background, aims and objectives, and the research design of the project in no
more than the space below.
My project is going to be based around the question does CCTV work? In order to answer
this I am going to look at the growth of surveillance in Great Britain and how it has affected
society. This will involve covering topics such as CCTV as a social control, CCTV as a
crime prevention, the impact CCTV has on societies fear of crime an also the risk of crime. I
will be focusing my research on Colchester town Centre therefore I am aiming to interview a
member of the Colchester Police force, a bouncer or worker from a nightclub, a camera
operator and a shop owner/worker. I would also like to gain a more general view on CCTV, I
hope to achieve this through a set of questionnaires completed by the public.
Consent
Is prior informed consent to be obtained from the research participants?
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Yes
Describe the means of obtaining prior consent.
Before carrying out the interviews I will explain to the research participants what my research
involves and obtain their informed consent.
If prior informed consent is not to be obtained, give reasons:
Deception
Is there any deception involved?
There will be no deception involved.
If yes, describe the deception and the reasons for its use:
Withdrawal from the investigation
Will participants be told explicitly that they are free to end their participation in the study at any time
without jeopardy?
When and how will this be done?
Before I begin the interview each participants will be told explicitly they are free to end their
participation in the study at any time without jeopardy.
Confidentiality
Under the Data Protection Act information about a participant is confidential unless otherwise agreed
in advance.
What steps will be taken to ensure confidentiality?
Confidentiality will be assured throughout the research process. I will explain that no names
or personal details will be included in my research project.
Protection of Participants
Are the participants at risk of any harm as a consequence of their participation in the project?
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No
If yes, describe the nature of the risk and steps taken to minimise it:
Is the information gathered from the participants of a sensitive or personal nature?
If yes, describe the procedures to be used for
a) assuring confidentiality:
b) protecting participants from stress:
Observational Research
If observational research is to be conducted without prior consent, please describe the situations in
which observations will take place and say how local cultural values and privacy of individuals will
be taken into account.
I have read the British Sociological Association’s Statement of Ethical Practice.
Signed:
Student
Jenni Crawley
Date: 22 November 2011
Signed:
Supervisor
Dr Jackie Turton
Date: 22 November 2011
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Appendix 2
UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX
FORM OF CONSENT TO TAKE PART IN A RESEARCH PROJECT
CONFIDENTIAL
Title of project / investigation:
Does CCTV work? An Analysis of the Effectiveness of CCTV in Colchester Town Centre.
Brief outline of project, including an outline of the procedures to be used:
My project is going to be based around the question does CCTV work? In order to answer this I
am going to look at the growth of surveillance in Great Britain and how it has affected society.
This will involve covering topics such as CCTV as a social control, CCTV as a crime prevention,
the impact CCTV has on societies fear of crime an also the risk of crime. I will be focusing my
research on Colchester town Centre therefore I am aiming to interview a member of the
Colchester Police force, a bouncer or worker from a nightclub, a camera operator and a shop
owner/worker. . Confidentiality will be assured throughout the research process and participants
are free to end their participation in the study at any time without jeopardy.
I, ................................................................................................................. *(participant’s full name)
agree to take part in the above named project / investigation, the details of which have been fully
explained to me and described in writing.
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Signed ..................................................................
Date.........................................................
(Participant)
I,
JENNI CRAWLEY .......................................................................... *(Investigator’s full name)
certify that the details of this project / investigation have been fully explained and described in writing
to the subject named above and have been understood by him / her.
Signed ..................................................................
Date.........................................................
(Investigator)
Appendix 3
*Please type or print in block capitals
Interview Respondents
CCTV operator:
Job Title – Monitoring and response manager
Gender – Male
Security Guard:
Job Title - Business Director of a security firm
Gender - Male
Police Officer
Job Title - Community Safety Sergeant
Gender – Male
Shop Owner
Job Title – Owner of a shop in Colchester town.
Gender - Male
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Appendix 4
Interview Questions
1. How long have you worked as a CCTV Operator/Police officer/Shop Owner/Security?
2. Has the way CCTV is used changed in the time you have been a CCTV
operator/Policeofficer/Shop Owner/Security?
How?
3.Has CCTV use changed/increased in the last 10 years?
How much?
4. Has the effectiveness of CCTV changed over time?
More/Less?
5. How much do you communicate with the authorities?
6. Do you communicate with other organisations e.g. shops, private security, nightclub
owners?
7. In your experience do you think CCTV is a crime prevention method?
In what ways?
Is it successful?
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8. Does CCTV help to reduce crime rates?
9. Does CCTV affect different crimes in different ways?
e.g. more or less effective for vehicle crime than assault.
10. How do you think crime in surrounding areas is affected by CCTV?
How?
Reduced?
Increased?
11. Is Crime reduced or just moved to areas without CCTV?
12. How often is CCTV used in one day at work?
13. How does CCTV affect public safety?
Detects crime?
Deters crime?
14. Do you have an example of a time when CCTV has been used to ensure safety to a
member of public?
15. Do you think the public would be safe without CCTV?
16. When crimes that are committed in front of CCTV cameras does a pattern emerge
regarding the time of day?
Night/day?
Weekend/weekday?
17. Is there more crime in the town centre or in surrounding areas?
18. Do you believe there is enough CCTV in Colchester town?
19. Do you think the town would benefit from having more or less CCTV?
20. Overall how useful is CCTV in Colchester?
How and why?
21. Would you say CCTV exists to control societies or for public safety and crime
prevention?
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Why?
22. Does CCTV affect the risk of crime?
23. Are the public protected by CCTV?
24. Does CCTV affect victimization?
25. Do you think the government are spending the right amount of money on CCTV?
26. What is the policy on human rights?
27. How do you prevent discrimination?
28. How do you think CCTV will change in the future?
29. How do you think it should change?
Appendix 5
CCTV Survey
1. Female
Male
2. Age
3. Do you think CCTV is needed in order to detect and deter crime and for
public safety? Yes
No
Don’t Know
4. Does CCTV Make you feel safer? Yes
No
Doesn’t affect me
If yes why?
If no why not?
5. Do you think CCTV controls societies and invades privacy ?
Yes
No
Don’t know
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6. Does CCTV affect the way you behave? Yes
me
No
Doesn’t affect
If yes why?
If no why not?
7. Colchester council have around 110 cameras in the town centre. Do you
think there should be more? Yes
No
This is the right amount
If Yes then where? (tick as many as you like)
High street
Surrounding areas
Other (please state)
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Side Streets
Car Parks