Studying surveillance in Greece: methodological and other problems related to an authoritarian surveillance culture

Abstract

Using the example of Greek society this paper documents how the pragmatics and practicalities of ‘doing surveillance studies’ can itself be shaped by the unique political and social history of the society being studied. The legacy of authoritarian surveillance poses unique challenges to the practice of studying surveillance in Greece and in other post-authoritarian societies. This point is accentuated with reference to how the history of authoritarian surveillance continues to shape the types of methodologies that are possible for studying surveillance and the analytical orientation of such studies. It also informs us how we might interpret the prospect for resisting surveillance and can have implications for the personal biography of researchers, who have experienced such surveillance.