Personal digital legacy: Findings from an exploratory study among citizens of Croatia

Abstract

The digital content that users create over their lifetime can become part of their own digital legacy, so it needs to be organised and preserved if we want to make it accessible in the future. This paper presents the results of the exploratory study conducted in Croatia in 2022. The aim of the research was to determine the opinions and attitudes of the participants included in the study about their own personal digital legacy and to examine in what way and to what extent users organize their personal digital content for the future. The purpose of this research is to raise awareness about the importance of organizing digital content and preserving one’s personal digital legacy. In this study, two research questions were answered: a) Are respondents aware of their own personal digital legacy and what are their attitudes/opinions about the subject?; and b) In what way and to what extent the respondents organize and preserve their personal digital legacy? Results showed that respondents in this study are (still) not aware of the significance of the personal digital legacy and the value and potential obstacles for accessing it can have to their potential heirs.