Social surveillance with a mobile application for the cycling community of the municipality of Querétaro, Mexico

Abstract

Social surveillance has been a concept limited only to the surveillance carried out by people before State entities, thus reducing its multiple possibilities as it is an activity that is also practiced in built environments. This article explores the relationship between social surveillance of people and the promotion of safe spaces, focusing on the context of cyclists. Through a qualitative approach, a mobile application was developed designed to report on the areas most susceptible to bicycle theft when they are at rest parked in public spaces. Additionally, the application issues both primary and secondary alerts to notify users about the vulnerability of their bicycle, which encourages communication, social networking, and strengthening the cycling community in the municipality of Querétaro. The development process was based on the User-Centered Design methodology and a prototype was created using the Figma, Inc. tool. There was collaboration from various cycling groups, including Saca la Bici, A. C., Bicirobo QRO and individual cyclists. They contributed their knowledge as active urban cyclists and validated the application's graphical user interface through focus groups, with a non-probabilistic convenience sample of 20 cyclists. The results obtained in this initial phase will be used in subsequent stages of research.