Panoptic surveillance and transforming meanings of campus environment: Example of Gaziantep University

This thesis deals with the effect of surveillance cameras on the transformation of the meanings of campus environment of Gaziantep University. First, the historical transformation and social reconstruction of surveillance are examined and then the concepts of "panoptic power" and "governmentality", which establish the theoretical framework of the thesis, are discussed. While the security issue is turning into a central management strategy today, technology is becoming more and more functional in this direction. Based on this context, the thesis investigates the effects of closed-circuit street surveillance cameras in the campus of Gaziantep University on the campus environment and the experience of studentship. The campus environment and the experience of studentship are analyzed within the context of panoptic power practices in line with the data sets obtained through individual and focus group discussions carried out with students. The cameras lead to the redefinition of the campus space, where is referred to by the liberating ideal of publicity, through "security" concerns. This transformation displaces students' possible liberating encounters on campus.