Over the recent decades, the possibilities to surveil people have increased and been refined with the ongoing digital transformation of society. Surveillance can now go in any direction, and various forms of online surveillance saturate most people’s lives, which are increasingly lived in digital environments. To understand this situation and nuance the contemporary discussions about surveillance – not least in the highly digitalised context of the Nordic countries – we must adopt cultural and ethical perspectives in studying people’s attitudes, motives, and behaviours. The “culture of surveillance”, to borrow David Lyon’s term, is a culture where questions about privacy and publicness, and rights and benefits, are once again brought to the fore. This anthology takes up this challenge, with contributions from a variety of disciplinary and theoretical frameworks that discuss and shed light on the complexity of contemporary surveillance and thus problematise power relations between the many actors involved in the development and performance of surveillance culture. The contributions highlight how more and more actors and practices play a part in our increasingly digitalised society.
Author(s): Lars Samuelsson, Coppélie Cocq, Stefan Gelfgren, Jesper Enbom
Edition: 1
Publisher: Nordicom | University Of Gothenburg
Year: 2023
Language: English
Commentary: TruePDF | Full TOC
Pages: 213
Tags: Surveillance Culture; Online Surveillance; Digital Transformation; Ethics Of Surveillance; Digital Humanities; Surveillance, Digitalisation; Data-Driven
Cover
Half title
Colophon
Title page
Contents
Preface
Introduction
1 | Being played in everyday life
Introduction
Mobile game business models – from free-to-play to pay-to-win
Persuasive design – playing or being played?
Deception and dishonesty – agreeing to terms of service
Legal and regulatory framework – playing between the lines
Social discourses, surveillance, and mobile games – “I have nothing to hide”
A Foucaldian approach – “Here is my data, help yourself”
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References
2 | To be a face in the crowd
Introduction
Anonymity and obscurity in public
The general value of obscurity in public
The value of obscurity in public vis-à-vis facial recognition surveillance
Obscurity, privacy, and rights
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References
Endnotes
3 | To see and be seen
Introduction
Widening the notion of surveillance
Influencers and influencer marketing
Gynaeopticism and the girlfriend gaze in influencer culture
Entrepreneurial femininity and forensic dissection
Self- and peer-surveillance in influencer marketing
Platform surveillance in the digital marketing industry
Data monitoring, prediction, and sociotechnical imaginaries
Biosurveillance as part of the affective economy
Conclusions
Acknowledgements
References
4 | Tracking (in)fertile bodies
Introduction
Surveillance culture and self-tracking practices
Tracking fertility
Methodological approach
Results
The collection of “intimate” data
Living in and with surveillance culture
Taking control and being empowered
Optimisation and gamification
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References
Endnotes
5 | It all depends on context
Introduction
The notion of surveillance and its shortcomings
The assessment of surveillance practices
Denmark as a digital welfare state
The Danish survey: How Danes feel about surveillance
Survey results
Conclusion
References
Endnotes
6 | Accepting or rejecting online surveillance
Introduction
Theoretical points of departure
Method and research procedure
Survey results
Background data
Acceptance of online surveillance
Correlations between consent responses and societal benefits responses
Discussion
Personal benefits
Consent and societal benefits
Differences in ethical thinking
Some problematising remarks
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References
Endnotes
7 | Smartphone privacy
Introduction
Briefly on privacy
Data and methodology
Young people’s perspectives on privacy concerning specific data items stored on their smartphones
Young people’s considerations of privacy in terms of which specific audiences can access their data
Discussion
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References
Endnotes
8 | Omnipresent publicness
Introduction
Surveillance and behaviour
Material and methods
Analysis
Closed versus open space
Participation forms revealing as little meaning as possible
Discussion: Negotiations of online spaces in omnipresent publicness
Conclusion
References
Endnotes
9 | Kant's ethics in the age of online surveillance
Introduction
Pervasive power
Dancing with the devil
Heeding humanity
Autonomous ends
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References
Afterword
Online surveillance through a prism of different traditions and fields
Attitudes, adaptations, and negotiations
Two intertwined developments
Future directions: Surveillance in practice and research
References
Back cover
