Surveillance, Security and State Institutions

The importance of surveillance, security and state institutions lies at the core of key debates in the academia, politics, journalism and in various professional fields. Two decades ago, the 9 / 11 terror attacks marked the emergence of a new era in which the linkage between the three concepts cannot be neglected. The multiplication of criminal activities, political crises or terror attacks determined the state institutions to use intensively surveillance as an instrument for thwarting security threats. This reality along with the technological evolutions stimulated the emergence of surveillance societies in which surveillance is used in every social sector and individuals cannot escape it. These evolutions generated multiple controversies and raised questions such as: How can security be defined today? What is the meaning of contemporary surveillance? Is surveillance conducted to achieve security objectives? Are the state institutions that perform surveillance upright? Why does contemporary surveillance affect the privacy of the individuals? The relevance of these questions increased significantly especially during the COVID-19 pandemics when most of the world’s governments increased the number of surveillance policies and practices for combating the spread of the virus.

This conference aims to bring together works addressing any of these questions and some other points that relate to surveillance, security and state institutions. The contributions could include but not be limited to contemporary approaches of surveillance and security, the linkage between surveillance, security and state institutions, the dangers of surveillance, the uprightness of state institutions and the individuals’ attitudes towards surveillance. The event will gather a group of 30 researchers working on these topics in order to facilitate the knowledge sharing and a better understanding of current events. The organizers strive for a balance between established academics, early career scholars (PhD candidates may also apply) and practitioners. We encourage theoretical, empirical or methodological papers on any of the above outlined issues. Papers can cover any country or region of the world, there are no limitations in terms of geographical focus.

Depending on the quality, and scope of works, the organizers have in mind either a special issue in an international peer-reviewed journal or an edited volume with a high-profile publisher.

Papers

Papers will be presented in the following format: 15 min. presentation + 15 min. discussion. The papers will be included in thematic panels with one discussant per panel.

In line with the goals of this conference, three types of papers are encouraged:

• Theoretical papers that discuss the definition and conceptualization of new perspectives in surveillance, security or state institutions. Such contributions should ideally bring a broad perspective of the concepts and relate them to existing analytical dimensions.
• Methodological papers addressing specific issues or assessments related to surveillance, security or state institutions Contributions that bring innovative methods and data are particularly welcomed.
• Empirical papers that seek to explain new developments, existing challenges, different forms of surveillance, security or state institutions in diverse settings, drivers of surveillance, functioning or consequences of security etc. Longitudinal analyses and comparative works are particularly encouraged. We have no preference for qualitative or quantitative techniques of analysis. However, we expect papers presenting single case studies to aim at building, testing, or modifying theories instead of being centered on individual instances.

Application procedure and costs

The language of the conference is English. Authors should fill in the application form (available here) until 10 October 2022. Early submissions are encouraged because the selection committee will assess them and will communicate the acceptance decisions on a rolling basis. Applications received after deadline will not be reviewed. For any further enquiries, please contact the organizers at gis@dsiic.ro.

There is no conference fee. The organizers will provide accommodation and meals for the entire duration of the conference. In case of co-authored works, the organizers will cover the costs for one author.