Making decisions about self-disclosure in online social networks

Abstract

This paper explores privacy calculus decision making processes for online social networks (OSN). Content analysis method is applied to analyze data obtained from face-to-face interviews and online survey with open-ended questions of 96 OSN users from different countries. The factors users considered before self-disclosing are explored. The perceived benefits and risks of using OSN and their impact on self-disclosure are also identified. We determine that the perceived risks of OSN usage hinder self-disclosure. It is not clear, however, whether the perceived benefits offset the impact of the risks on self-disclosure behavior. The findings as a whole do not support privacy calculus in OSN settings.