Who is watching you, and why? A social identity analysis of surveillance

The underlying theme that draws together all the chapters presented in this thesis is that surveillance, like any feature of our social world, is not imposed in a vacuum; and that information pertaining to the origin and purpose of surveillance is vital in determining how it will be perceived and evaluated (and how it will then impact on behaviour). The key aims of this thesis are, first, to demonstrate how a social identity approach can account for varying reactions to surveillance originating from different sources; second, to investigate how various contextual features exert their impact, resulting in the disparate perceptions of surveillance that exist in our society; and finally, to demonstrate how the imposition of surveillance can itself impact on the broader social context, including the relationship that is understood to exist between those watching and those being watched. These aims are broken down into ten research questions that are addressed in seven chapters. Chapter 1 reviews the literature on perceptions of surveillance and that on social identity, and attempts to illustrate how they may be theoretically combined, resulting in the advancement of both fields. In Chapter 2, we present two studies which demonstrate a negative relationship between shared identity and the perception of surveillance as an invasion of privacy. This relationship was mediated by perceptions that the purpose of surveillance was to ensure safety. In Chapter 3, two studies demonstrate how level of surveillance moderates followers’ responses to leaders with whom they either share identity, or not. Imposing high surveillance where identity was shared with a leader undermined perceptions of the leader as a team member and affected willingness to work for the group, reducing levels to that of leaders without a shared identity. Chapter 4 presents a study that aimed to investigate the role of social identity and surveillance in affecting both discretionary behaviour and task performance. High surveillance led to higher productivity on a task, but this was associated with lower quality of work. Additionally, when identity was shared with the person in charge, helping this person was detrimentally affected by high, as opposed to low, surveillance; whereas no such differences were found where identity was not shared. Chapter 5 presents two studies which showed that framing surveillance as targeting the in-group led to outcomes such as increased privacy invasion, lower acceptability of surveillance, and reduced levels of trust in the implementers of surveillance, as compared to when surveillance was framed as targeting an out-group. However, a third study failed to replicate these results. In Chapter 6, we address how level of threat in the environment can affect evaluations of surveillance. Two studies showed that high levels of threat led to surveillance being seen as less privacy-invading, more necessary, and as having a safety purpose. Finally, in Chapter 7, we review and integrate our findings, discuss the limitations of the research, and consider the implications it has, both theoretically and practically. We conclude that, overall, the findings presented in this thesis support the notion that the source of surveillance and the perceived purpose for it are integral to the perception and interpretation of the surveillance.Economic and Social Research Counci

OpenCV2X Mode 4: a simulation extension for cellular vehicular communication networks

In this work the authors present the first publicly available, open-source simulation model of the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release 14 Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C-V2X) standard. The model specifically addresses Mode 4, in which vehicles communicate directly in peer to peer mode using a distributed resource allocation algorithm. Importantly, the model is fully compliant with existing service and application layers already defined by the automotive and standards communities, providing a fully standardised cross-layer communication model spanning application layer based on the ITS-G5 standard to physical layer from the new C-V2X Mode 4 standard. This enables enhancements of the lower layers to support future vehicular use cases. The simulation model has been implemented by extending SimuLTE, an OMNeT++ cellular communication stack that enables simulation of LTE networks as well as extending and integrating Artery, an ETSI compliant ITS-G5 implementation. The developed model is validated using published 3GPP simulation evaluation scenarios and is available at www.cs.ucc.ie/cv2x

Family identification: a beneficial process for young adults who grow up in homes affected by parental intimate partner violence

peer-reviewedExposure to parental intimate partner violence (parental IPV) is a complex trauma. Research within social psychology establishes that identification with social groups impacts positively on how we appraise, respond to and recover from traumatic events. IPV is also a highly stigmatized social phenomenon and social isolation is a major factor for families affected by IPV, yet strong identification with the family group may act as a beneficial psychological resource to young people who grew up in homes affected by IPV. The current study, an online survey of 355 students (M-age = 20, 70% female), investigated if a psychosocial process, specifically identification with the family, may influence the relationship between the predictor, exposure to parental IPV, and outcomes, global self-esteem and state anxiety. Mediation analysis suggests that identification with the family has a positive influence on the relationship between exposure to parental IPV and psychological outcomes; exposure to parental IPV results in reduced family identification, but when family identification is strong it results in both reduced anxiety and increased self-esteem for young people. The findings highlight the importance of having a strong sense of belonging to the extended family for young people who were exposed to parental IPV, thus has implications for prevention, intervention, and social policy.PUBLISHEDpeer-reviewe

Neoliberalism, ambiguity and the rise of populist movements

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to highlight the relative absence of a theoretical underpinning to modern neoliberalism. Tracing the history of the term, it becomes clear that modern economics has only a tenuous relationship to the type of economics the term “neoliberalism” originally described. Furthermore, modern neoliberalism appears to be strengthened by the crisis it creates. Particular qualities of the orthodoxy make it at the same time both vague and omnipresent, allowing it to operate to exacerbate a pattern of crisis, resulting in profound socio-political consequences, such as the election of Donald Trump and in the rise of populist movements generally. Design/methodology/approach Critical analysis rejects the premise that prevailing knowledge is ultimately true, but rather seeks to trace the basis of knowledge to structural inequalities at significant junctions in history. The premise of interpretative research is that social phenomena have mutually impacting relationships with social contexts and human activities. Using a critical interpretive research methodology, this paper contends that there are critical social and theoretical issues which have contributed to the resilience of modern neoliberalism, even where it has manifest crisis. Furthermore, unique qualities of the orthodoxy have operated to oppress and manipulate social processes that would challenge or curtail its reach. Findings This paper contends that, first, modern neoliberalism has an inverted relationship to crisis in that it is ultimately able to leverage the crisis it creates to its advantage. Second, this is partly a result of the theoretical ambiguity associated with the orthodoxy, and finally, the rise of the populist right in various political forums and contexts is connected in some way to the failure of the left and to respond effectively to it. Research limitations/implications The subject of the paper helps to explain and analyse the way that the neoliberal orthodoxy is able to leverage crisis to its advantage, and why, therefore, it continues to thrive even though it creates economic upheaval, environmental destruction, social and cultural division and increased inequality. After economic crisis, the orthodoxy presents not as the cause of it, but rather the appropriate policy response to it. The failure of the left to effectively challenge the neoliberal policy programme post-crisis is argued to be an important link in a causal chain which connects neoliberalism to the rise of the populist right. Practical implications This paper brings emphasis to the ways in which modern economics has subverted the constraints of a theoretical foundation, and ultimately has become a policy practice that exacerbates inequality and leverages crises that it has created to its advantage. It also highlights the linkages between economic crisis, the persistence of the neoliberal paradigm and the rise of right-wing populism in recent years. Originality/value The paper combines descriptive and normative accounts of the origins and evolution of neoliberalism as it has been accounted for by major economists and scholars, adding to this the understanding that in breeching from theoretical foundations, the policy programme has become vague and malleable, which curtails the possibility for the left to respond to it effectively, and contributes to the rise of the populist right in various contexts

Stigma is associated with illness self-concept in individuals with concealable chronic illnesses

Objectives. Previous research suggests that chronic illnesses can elicit stigma, even when those illnesses are concealable. Such stigmatization is assumed to lead to a stigmatized identity. Additionally, chronic illness affects one’s self-concept, as one reconstructs a sense of self with illness incorporated. However, no research has examined the interplay between stigma and self-concept in those with concealable chronic illnesses. Therefore, we investigated the extent to which experienced, anticipated, and internalized stigma are associated with illness self-concept in individuals living with concealable chronic illnesses. Furthermore, we explored if the aforementioned aspects of stigma are associated with enrichment in the self-concept in the same cohort

When and how video games can be good: a review of the positive effects of video games on well-being

Video games are a source of entertainment for a wide population and have varied effects on well-being. The purpose of this article is to comprehensively examine game-play research to identify the factors that contribute to these disparate well-being outcomes and to highlight the potential positive effects. On the basis of existing literature, we argue that the effects of gaming on well-being are moderated by other variables, such as motivations for gaming and video-game characteristics. Specifically, the inclusion of social activity can benefit prosocial behaviors and affect the relationship between violent video games and aggression that some studies have demonstrated. Moreover, the research on the relationship between violent video games and aggression depends greatly on individual and sociocontextual variables outside of game play. The inclusion of physical activity in games can provide an improvement in physical health with high levels of enjoyment, potentially increasing adherence rates. Overall, following our review, we determined that the effects of gaming on well-being are moderated by and depend on the motivation for gaming, outside variables, the presence of violence, social interaction, and physical activity. Thus, we argue that there is potential for an 'optimal gaming profile' that can be used in the future for both academic- and industry-related research

The impact of anticipated stigma on psychological and physical health problems in the unemployed group

Previous research has demonstrated that the unemployed suffer increased psychological and physical health problems compared to their employed counterparts. Further, unemployment leads to an unwanted new social identity that is stigmatizing, and stigma is known to be a stressor causing psychological and physical health problems. However, it is not yet known whether being stigmatized as an unemployed group member is associated with psychological and physical health in this group. The current study tested the impact of anticipated stigma (AS) on psychological distress (PD) and physical health problems, operationalized as somatic symptoms (SSs), in a volunteer sample of unemployed people. Results revealed that AS had a direct effect on both PD and SSs, such that greater AS significantly predicted higher levels of both. Moreover, the direct effect on SSs became non-significant when PD was taken into account. Thus, to the extent that unemployed participants anticipated experiencing greater stigma, they also reported increased PD, and this PD predicted increased SSs. Our findings complement and extend the existing literature on the relationships between stigmatized identities, PD and physical health problems, particularly in relation to the unemployed group. This group is important to consider both theoretically, given the unwanted and transient nature of the identity compared to other stigmatized identities, but also practically, as the findings indicate a need to orient to the perceived valence of the unemployed identity and its effects on psychological and physical health