2025/09/09 by Daniel Barbosa, Thiemo Fetzer, Caterina Soto-Vieira +1 · 1 voice
Environmental Science · Physics and Astronomy · Social Sciences · #Advanced Optical Sensing Technologies #Impact of Light on Environment and Health #Privacy, Security, and Data Protection
paper · doi:10.1162/rest.a.286
openalex publication_date 2025/09/09 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/11
Abstract We provide experimental evidence that using body-worn cameras (BWCs) for police monitoring improves police-citizen interactions. In an intervention carried out in Brazil in 2018, we find that treated incidents show a 61.2% decrease in police use of force and a 47.0% reduction in adverse interactions, including handcuff use and arrests. The use of body-worn cameras also significantly improves the quality of police reporting. The rate of incomplete reports dropped by 5.9%, which is accompanied by a 69.2% increase in reported incidents of domestic violence. We explore various mechanisms that explain why BWCs work and show that the results are consistent with the police changing their behavior in the presence of cameras. Overall, results show that the use of body-worn cameras de-escalates conflicts.