Examining Determinants of Intentions to Disclose Information Involving Others: A Privacy Calculus Perspective

Jongki Kim; Jianbo Wang

doi:10.52558/ISM.2019.12.20.3.93

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저널정보

한국정보사회학회
정보사회와 미디어 학술저널
정보사회와 미디어 제20권 제3호
2019.12 93 - 120 (28page)
DOI : 10.52558/ISM.2019.12.20.3.93

저자정보

Jongki Kim (Pusan National University)
Jianbo Wang (Pusan National University)

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초록·키워드

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인터넷이 빠르게 발전함에 따라 소셜 네트워크 서비스(SNS)는 가장 보편적인 소통 수단이 되었고, 대중들이 다양한 콘텐츠를 공유하고 자신을 표현할 수 있는 플랫폼을 제공하였다. 그러나 SNS상에 공개된 개인정보에 대한 제약이 거의 없으므로 SNS에서 타인과 관련된 정보를 공개하는 것은 심각한 문제를 일으킬 수 있다. 본 연구에서는 프라이버시 계산 이론을 통해 사용자들이 SNS상에서 타인과 관련된 정보를 공개하는 의도에 영향을 미치는 요인을 알아보고자 한다. 타인 정보 공개 의도에 영향을 미치는 요인으로 인지된 이익과 프라이버시 염려, 신뢰로 설정하였으며 세 가지 구성 개념을 2차 요인으로 측정하였다. 연구 결과, SNS 사용자들이 프라이버시에 대해 염려를 느낌에도 불구하고 잠재적인 이익과 신뢰가 높게 나타나 SNS상에 타인의 정보를 공개할 것으로 나타났다. 본 연구는 정보 공개 및 프라이버시 연구에 학문적 기여가 있으며 관련 실무에 유용한 가이드라인을 제공할 수 있다고 판단된다.

Disclosing information that involves others in the context of Social Network Services (SNS) such as Facebook can potentially raise severe privacy problems. With the development and growth of the Internet, social networks have become the most common means of daily communication nowadays, which provides platforms for users to share various content and express themselves. However, it is worth noting that there is little restriction on the information disclosed on SNS. The amount of information that SNS users reveal about themselves and others can be surprising. Besides, several previous studies have shown that an individual’s daily life could be jeopardized due to the unexpected disclosure by others. It is reported that users who have modified the privacy settings of public tend to believe that their privacy is totally under control and thus safe enough, but it turns out these users can still be found out and even worse their information can be inferred simply through the information provided or posted by their SNS friends. In information privacy literature, information disclosure related behaviors have been extensively explored so far, while most studies have mainly focused on the self-disclosure. Privacy is also at stake when it comes to the disclosure of others’ information, but such potential causes of threats and risks have rarely been studied so far. To fill the research gap, the study aimed to extend the privacy calculus theory into the context of disclosing information involving others on SNS and examine the primary factors that influence users’ intention to disclose information that involves others on SNS. Drawing on the privacy calculus theory, therefore, we designed a model integrating three constructs - privacy concerns, benefits, and trust as the direct determinants of users’ intention to disclose information involving others on SNS, and the three constructs were measured as second-order factors. We conducted a series of surveys and obtained 198 out of the total 206 responses for data analysis. Subjects for this study were undergraduate and graduate students in the district of Busan, South Korea. In the study, we used SPSS Statistics 23.0 and SmartPLS 2.0 for analysis and found that despite showing high levels of concerns and objections against the disclosure of information involving others without permission, users would disclose information involving others on SNS as long as they perceive potential benefits and trust helping ease the negative perception. The study has significant implications in both theoretical and practical perspectives. From a theoretical perspective, the study made valuable contributions to information privacy literature by examining an understudied domain of information disclosure which is about the disclosure of information involving others on SNS and extending the privacy calculus theory into such a new research context. From a practical perspective, the study offers useful guidelines and strategies for practice. On one side, the study alerts users to privacy issues on SNS and reminds them to participate in SNS activities more wisely and safely. We hope users remain vigilant at all times to avoid potential privacy risks while engaging in SNS activities. On the other side, the study results provide theoretical frameworks and guidelines and assist SNS privacy practitioners, especially SNS privacy policymakers, to make more flexible policies that serve the interests of both SNS providers and their users. We suggest that SNS providers come up with more advanced solutions to offer users more flexible control regarding disclosing information involving others or being disclosed by others.

#타인 정보 공개 #SNS #프라이버시 계산 이론 #프라이버시 염려 #신뢰 #Information involving others #Privacy calculus theory #Privacy concerns #Trust