Privacy and the Panopticon: Online mass surveillance’s deterrence and chilling effects

Abstract

The Panopticon is a popular metaphor in discussions about mass surveillance. Drawing on deterrence theory and chilling effects, we provide two empirical tests of this analogy to examine whether perceptions of online government surveillance suppress or entirely eradicate an array of sensitive online activities. Study 1 indicates that surveillance significantly deters individuals’ intentions to engage in illegal offenses, an effect that extends to political, but not privacy-protective behaviors. Study 2 retests the pervasiveness of this effect with a sample of Muslims who reside in the United States. Results indicate that restrictive chilling effects are not specific to any one online population, experimental stimuli, or political context. Implications for US political and social systems are discussed.