Why do I take deviant disclosure behavior on internet platforms? An explanation based on the neutralization theory

Highlights

• Drawing on neutralization theory, this study builds a model to examine the predictors of deviant disclosure behavior on Internet platforms and investigates the moderating effects of personality traits.

• Techniques of neutralization have a positive and significant impact on users’ intention of misrepresenting of personal information (MPI).

• Extraversion negatively moderates the relationships between neutralization techniques and MPI, whereas neuroticism plays a positive role in moderating that relationships.

• Users do some differences regarding justify their deviant disclosure behavior by using neutralization techniques between e-commerce platform and social networking site.

Abstract

Internet platforms increasingly rely on personal data to maintain user base and attract potential users. However, users might misrepresent their personal information in response to the requests when they expect their personal information to be used for unstated purposes. Misrepresenting of personal information (MPI), as a regular deviant behavior on online platforms, leads to data noises and service failures and needs further investigation. Drawing on the neutralization theory and online scenario survey, this study constructs a model to examine the factors of MPI. The results show that techniques of neutralization, such as denial of injury, defense of necessity, metaphor of the ledger, and avoidance of greater harm, are positively associated with users’ intention of MPI. In particular, avoidance of greater harm has a stronger effect on MPI intention than other neutralization techniques. Furthermore, we also explore the contingent role of personality traits. The results show that extraversion negatively moderates the relationships between denial of injury, avoidance of greater harm and MPI, whereas neuroticism plays a positive role in moderating the relationships between denial of injury, metaphor of the ledger, avoidance of greater harm and MPI. Moreover, post-hoc analysis results show that users do some differernces regarding justify their deviant disclosure behavior by using neutralization techniques between e-commerce platform and social networking site. Focusing on the dark side of disclosure behavior, this study enriches the current literature by applying neutralization theory and provides a new direction for academia and Internet practitioners to understand users’ deviant disclosure behavior.

Introduction

In recent years, the use of personal data is considered to be one of the main specificities of Internet platforms, such as social networking sites (SNSs) and search engines (Bloch & Demange, 2018). These platforms need user data to improve service or product quality and thus require users to disclose personal information. However, such requests induce users to worry about whether their private data to be abused (Punj, 2017), inducing a paradox among the users. On one hand, users wish to obtain personalized services, which needs them to disclose personal data (Taddei & Contena, 2013), while on the other hand, they are concerned about their personal information would be misused. Thus, users are more cautious when they decide to disclose, even though falsify about themselves as a response to the request from Internet platforms. In this study, we define such behavior as deviant disclosure behavior. A survey has reported that “two in three consumers admit to deliberately providing incorrect personal information on Internet platforms” (Lobel, 2015). Another report also found that an estimated 86% of individuals has falsified or misrepresented their personal information online (Rainie et al., 2013). Therefore, understanding the underlying mechanism of the deviant disclosure behavior will not only gain the information disclosure literature but also have significant implications for the development Internet platforms.

When facing a request for requiring personal information from Internet platforms, a user has three basic alternatives to respond to the request, i.e., (1) disclose the information honestly, (2) do not disclose the information, or (3) disclose false information (Miltgen & Smith, 2019). Given that users’ personal information is a critical resource of the platforms, false or incorrect information may mislead their decision. Moreover, existing literature on information disclosure has largely assumed that users would honestly disclose personal information or not disclose; few studies have investigated deviant disclosure behavior, that is, misrepresenting of personal information (MPI). Compared with accurate disclosure, the underlying mechanism of MPI may be different and this deviant behavior invokes further research attention. Thus, this leads to the first research question that guiding this study: Why do users decide to MPI on Internet platforms?

In previous studies, the intention to disclose false information is mainly predicted by risk and benefit perceptions (Alashoor, Han, & Joseph, 2017; Miltgen & Smith, 2019). However, the results of Miltgen and Smith (2019) show that perceived benefits have no significant effect on individuals’ decisions to falsify personal information. It seems to oppose the classical privacy calculus paradigm regarding deviant disclosure behavior. Accordingly, the decision of MPI may not be motivated by benefits. In fact, the extant literature on psychology indicates that deviant behavior expresses one person's psychological status regarding external environment (Ibatullova et al., 2015). The psychological status may influence individuals’ decision to commit deviant behavior or rationalize their deviant behavior. For example, employees may use neutralization techniques to justify their workplace deviant behavior such as violation of information system security policies and personal Internet use (Cheng, Li, Zhai & Smyth, 2014; Siponen & Vance, 2010). This rationalization allows them to minimize the negative outcomes that result from their deviant behavior. As for privacy disclosure on Internet platforms, users often are required to disclose personal data in order to create accounts or obtain better service (Li, Cheng & Teng, 2020). This mandatory provision may drive users to falsify their personal data and they are likely to neutral the perceived harm of their personal information falsification. Surprisingly, few studies have examined users’ neutralization psychological how to affect their deviant disclosure behavior on the Internet platforms. Compared to the classical privacy-calculus paradigm, neutralization psychological provides another perspective to deviant disclosure behavior. To narrow this gap, this study thus combs the criminal psychology research and proposes the predictors of users’ MPI intention on Internet platforms based on neutralization theory. Neutralization theory indicates that individuals attempt to convince themselves that their deviant behavior is excusable (Lim, 2002; Sykes & Matza, 1957). Recently, this theory has been widely used to understand individuals’ deviant behavior, such as personal use of the Internet (Cheng et al., 2014) and information system (IS) security policy violations (Willison & Warkentin, 2013). Surprisingly, no study, to our knowledge, has applied this theory to understand privacy disclosure deviant behavior.

Besides neutralization techniques, the existing literature has verified the significant role of personality traits in information privacy issues (Bansal, Zahedi & Gefen, 2016; Tang, Akram & Shi, 2020). Consequently, we argue that personality trait is another contingent factor that reflects what type of users prefers to rationalize deviant disclosure behavior, by applying neutralization techniques. For instance, previous studies found that personality traits have a significant impact on users’ information behavior on SNS (Xiao & Mou, 2019; Yin, Zhang & Liu, 2020). In this regard, we propose that personality traits can also shape user decision regarding MPI, and another research question leading this paper is: How do users’ personality traits interact with neutralization techniques in determining MPI? Inspired by the Big Five personality trait model, we expect that two traits (extraversion and neuroticism) are likely to affect the relationship between neutralization techniques and users’ MPI intention. The extant literature points out extraversion and neuroticism as personality characteristics that may influence individuals’ well-being (Krasnova, Widjaja, Buxmann, Wenninger, & Benbasat, 2015; Xiao & Mou, 2019). Thus, this study mainly focuses on these two traits.

Based on neutralization theory and personal traits, we developed a research model to explain MPI. The model is further examined with data from a scenario-based online survey. This study provides several contributions to the existing literature on IS research. First, even though disclosing private information has been widely studied, few studies have paid attention to the dark side of disclosure, deviant disclosure behavior. This study is one of the two studies that focus on disclosure deviant behavior in the Internet platforms context. Compared to Miltgen and Smith (2019), who explain the reason for individuals disclosing incorrect information from benefit-risk tradeoff perspective, the present study attempts to explore deviant disclosure behavior from a psychology perspective. Second, to the best of our knowledge, this study is one of the first to apply neutralization techniques to explain why users take deviant disclosure behavior on Internet platforms (i.e., MPI). By doing so, this research provides a new mechanism for scholars and social networking practitioners to understand such deviant behavior. Third, this study is one of the first to integrate neutralization techniques with individuals’ personality traits. We identify that personality traits negatively or positively moderate the relationships between neutralization techniques and MPI intention. By explicitly examining the likelihood that users apply neutralization techniques to neutralize their deviant disclosure behavior, this study enriches the existing literature on personality regarding private information disclosing, particularly disclose incorrect information. Further, our empirical findings have implications for Internet practitioners (such as the development of different privacy strategies for different users with personality traits).