ABSTRACT
The privacy paradox – the question whether individuals act contrary to their privacy preferences (ie, attitudes, concerns) when disclosing data – has received much attention. While the general notion has largely been refuted, contextual factors can still coax individuals into acting contrary to their privacy preferences. In this study, I introduce a new such variable, namely attitude certainty, and argue that the correspondence between privacy attitudes and data disclosure decreases if people are less certain about whether or not to share personal information. To this end, I conducted an online study (N = 361) on the association between privacy attitudes and disclosure behavior in the context of fitness application usage. Analyses indicated no evidence of paradoxical disclosure behavior, as privacy attitudes generally strongly predicted data sharing. The study provided a first indication that lower attitude certainty is associated with a lower correspondence between attitudes towards data disclosure and disclosure behavior. For one of four types of data studied, it was found that individuals who were less certain in their attitudes towards privacy were more likely to deviate from their attitudes in data disclosure decisions. Hence, it seems that attitude certainty contributes to a better understanding of the privacy paradox.
Klausing, Susanne, The Relation Between Attitude Certainty and the Privacy Paradox (October 6, 2021).
First posted 2022-01-31 12:00:53
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