 A 2009 systematic review by researchers from Northeastern

University and University of Cambridge used meta-analytic techniques to pool the

average effect of CCTV on crime across 41 different studies.[21] The results indicated
that
 CCTV caused a significant reduction of crime by on average 16%.
 The largest effects of CCTV were found in car parks, where cameras reduced crime
by on average 51%.
 CCTV schemes in other public settings had small and non-statistically
significant effects on crime: 7% reduction in city and town centers and 23% reduction
in public transport settings.
 When sorted by country, systems in the United Kingdom accounted for the majority
of the decrease; the drop in other areas was insignificant.
 The studies included in the meta-analysis used quasi-experimental evaluation
designs that involve before-and-after measures of crime in experimental and control
areas.[21] However, several researchers have pointed to methodological problems
associated with this research literature. First, researchers have argued that the
British car park studies included in the meta-analysis cannot accurately control for
the fact that CCTV was introduced simultaneously with a range of other security-
related measures.[22] Second, some have noted that, in many of the studies, there
may be issues with selection bias since the introduction of CCTV was
potentially endogenous to previous crime trends.[23] In particular, the estimated
effects may be biased if CCTV is introduced in response to crime trends.[24]