Perceptions of organizational culture and value conflicts in information security management

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the occurrence of value conflicts between information security and other organizational values among white-collar workers. Further, analyzes are conducted of the relationship between white-collar workers' perceptions of the culture of their organizations and value conflicts involving information security. Design/methodology/approach Descriptive analyses and regression analyses were conducted on survey data gathered among two samples of white-collar workers in Sweden. Findings Value conflicts regarding information security occur regularly among white-collar workers in the private and public sectors and within different business sectors. Variations in their occurrence can be understood partly as a function of employees' work situations and the sensitivity of the information handled in the organization. Regarding how perceived organizational culture affects the occurrence of value conflicts, multivariate regression analysis reveals that employees who perceive their organizations as having externally oriented, flexible cultures experience value conflicts more often. Research limitations/implications The relatively low share of explained variance in the explanatory models indicates the need to identify alternative explanations of the occurrence of value conflicts regarding information security. Practical implications Information security managers need to recognize that value conflicts occur regularly among white-collar workers in different business sectors, more often among workers in organizations that handle sensitive information, and most often among white-collar workers who perceive the cultures of their organizations as being externally oriented and flexible. Originality/value The study addresses a gap in the information security literature by contributing to the understanding of value conflicts between information security and other organizational values. This study has mapped the occurrence of value conflicts regarding information security among white-collar professionals and shows that the occurrence of value conflicts is associated with work situation, information sensitivity and perceived organizational culture.