The Relation Between Attitude Certainty and the Privacy Paradox in the Context of Fitness Applications

Abstract

Abstract. The privacy paradox, indicating that individuals act contrary to their privacy preferences (i.e., attitudes, concerns) when disclosing data in online environments, 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 attitude certainty as a possible contextual factor and argue that the correspondence between privacy attitudes and data disclosure decreases if people are less certain about whether or not to disclose personal data online. To this end, I conducted an online study ( N = 361) on the association between privacy attitudes and online disclosure behavior in the context of fitness application usage. Results indicated no evidence of paradoxical online 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 toward data disclosure and online disclosure behavior. For one of four types of data studied, it was found that individuals who were less certain in their attitudes toward privacy were more likely to deviate from their attitudes in online disclosure. Hence, it seems that attitude certainty can be further explored as a potential contextual factor when studying online disclosure behavior and the role of privacy.