Surveillance Futures ─ Social and Ethical Implications of New Technologies for Children and Young People

Bringing together leading scholars working within the field of new and emerging technologies and their application to children and childhood, this collection pays special attention to the ways in which technologies, when used as tools of surveillance, can alter the subjectivities and lived experiences of young people in a way that impacts upon their understanding and appreciation of societal values such as trust and privacy. This study highlights the extent to which childhood experiences are being reconfigured to accommodate emerging technologies at home, in the classroom and at play. These technologies often attach themselves to discourses of safety, health and well-being without there being full awareness of how they can come to shape children’s understanding of the world around them. It is important to recognise that surveillance is complex and multidimensional. Whilst some lament the negative consequences associated with the increase of surveillance practices in everyday life, it is worth noting that surveillance practices can also be positive and rewarding. The book navigates the tensions between the positive aspects of surveillance processes whilst cautioning, where appropriate, about the dangers and risks that are often embedded in their appropriation. The chapters get to the crux of the issues by exploring the ethical and social dimensions of the new surveillance technologies of childhood, paying attention to the ways in which they contribute to the growing surveillance structures that have built up around young people.

Emmeline Taylor is a Senior Lecturer at the Australian National University and has been researching the rise of surveillance in educational institutions for over a decade. Emmelinea€?s research has been featured both on TV and Radio. Tonya Rooney is Lecturer in Early Childhood Education and the Australian Catholic University and Research Affiliate with the Childhood Research Collective at the University of Canberra.