Determinants of Privacy Protection Behavior in Social Networking Sites

Social Networking Sites (SNSs) are an attractive online platform for social interaction and communication. Since SNSs are easily accessed by a large number of people, a large quantity of data is also stored in the SNSs. Consequently, concern regarding the exposure to privacy risk will emerge. In this case, users need privacy protection behavior to protect their privacy in SNSs. This paper aims to determine the motivational determinants of privacy protection behavior among high school students in protecting their data or personal information when using SNSs. To identify the determinants of privacy protection behavior, a questionnaire survey was administered on 200 high school students. This study proposed a conceptual model that offers an understanding of motivational determinants of privacy protection behavior in social networking sites. Results indicate that perceived anonymity is the most significant determinant in motivating privacy behavior followed by perceived intrusiveness, perceived severity, self-efficacy, perceived vulnerability, and response efficacy. The results of this study will shed some light on understanding the levels of privacy protection behavior in SNSs, and identify suitable interventions in motivating privacy protection behavior among high school students. Finally, with the combined theory of Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) and Hyperpersonal Communication Theory (HCT), this model provides the basis to direct future studies in the related field.