This book explores the impact of personality traits on people's acceptance of state surveillance used for national security purposes. So far, state surveillance has been analysed in relation to institutional factors, technological infrastructures or specific contexts. This book shifts the focus from institutional and systemic characteristics to individual traits. It shows the extent to which people's personality traits explain the acceptance of state surveillance. The book provides a comparative analysis of Hungary and Romania to outline the differences between two former communist countries. The key results illustrate that highly conscientious people, those who are active in their communities, and the well-informed persons accept state surveillance more.

This book explores the psychological mechanisms that make individuals shape their perception towards external factors such as state surveillance for national security objectives and looks at how this is influenced by the individuals’ personality – which is an internal factor that influence the ways individuals position themselves towards external realities. It aims to explain how and why personality traits of individuals determine the acceptance of state surveillance for national security objectives and also analyses comparatively if there are differences between Hungary and Romania when it comes to the factors that influence individuals to accept state surveillance for national security objectives.

Paul Tap is Research Fellow at the Department of International Studies and Contemporary History, Babes-Bolyai University Cluj. His research interests lie in direct democracy, political parties and state surveillance.