Privacy Paradox in Social Network Sites: Effects of Psychological Need, Privacy Concern, and Privacy Setting on Self-disclosure

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to address the privacy paradox by attempting to better understand the predictors of users’ disclosure behavior and evaluates their relation to disclosure, and social capital on social network sites. Using a survey questionnaire, empirical data were collected from 473 members of Facebook in Taiwan. Partial least square (PLS) technique was performed to test the validity of the proposed research model. The results suggest that bridging and bonding social capital are determined by self-disclosure, which in turn is jointly determined by psychological need for privacy and privacy setting. The relationship between privacy concern and self-disclosure is mediated by privacy setting. The findings of this study can help social network sites operators design effective and relevant privacy controls to reduce a user's privacy concern and enhance self-disclosure on social network sites. Our contributions center on a comprehensive understanding of the impact of antecedents of self-disclosure on users’ disclosure behavior and social capital on SNSs may provide valuable insights for SNS operators and marketers to offer more effective services to SNS users.