How Chinese web users value their personal information: An empirical study on WeChat users

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to investigate Chinese web users’ monetary valuation of their personal information (PI) and its psychological driving factors, and thereby promote the establishment of the PI market in China. Methods: In this study, a survey was conducted with 710 Chinese WeChat users to determine how they perceive the monetary value of their PI. Results: The survey results demonstrate that the “endowment effect” exists among Chinese web users, indicating different allocations of PI property rights may elicit distinct outcomes. The results also reveal that Chinese web users’ willingness-to-pay (WTP) is mainly driven by privacy concern and intimacy of disclosure, and their willingness-to-accept (WTA) is mainly driven by privacy concern, intimacy of disclosure and psychological ownership. Conclusion: The results imply that market players in China can use these driving factors to increase consumers’ valuation of their PI to maintain a stable user base, and a portion of users will choose paid but privacy-guaranteed services to protect their PI. Furthermore, our findings indicate that when there is a formal monetary PI market, a privacy class may emerge.