TY - JOUR
T1 - Privacy paradox for location tracking in mobile social networking apps: The perspectives of behavioral reasoning and regulatory focus
T2 - The perspectives of behavioral reasoning and regulatory focus
AU - Ying, Shiyi
AU - Huang, Youlin
AU - Qian, Lixian
AU - Song, Jinzhu
N1 - Funding Information:
This research is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (Grant Number: 72202211 and 71973107 ), Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (Grant Number: LY20G020010 ), Philosophy and Social Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (Grant Number: 21NDJC084YB ), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Provincial Universities of Zhejiang (Grant Number: QRK22009 ).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Elsevier Inc.
PY - 2023/5
Y1 - 2023/5
N2 - Social networking services (SNSs) have been collecting and analyzing users' personal data for the sake of personalization and customization, raising massive privacy concerns. Among the various types of privacy, personal location data are considered most sensitive, but are critical for the location-based features in mobile SNS applications. Drawing on behavioral reasoning theory and accounting for the privacy paradox, this study investigates the heterogeneous psychological mechanisms supporting and discouraging mobile SNS users from enabling location tracking in SNS applications. Based on a survey of young internet users in China, our analysis shows that, first, reasons for location tracking are insignificantly associated with intention to allow location tracking but reasons against are negatively related to intention. Furthermore, for individuals with higher desire to share, reasons for and attitude have the stronger associations with intention, while the moderating effect of desire for privacy is insignificant. We make research contributions by examining the antecedents of the reasoning process, as well as the moderating role of desire to share, to account for the privacy paradox. We also contribute to behavioral reasoning theory by introducing regulatory focus-based antecedents to the reasoning process. We offer key practical suggestions for SNS providers and policymakers.
AB - Social networking services (SNSs) have been collecting and analyzing users' personal data for the sake of personalization and customization, raising massive privacy concerns. Among the various types of privacy, personal location data are considered most sensitive, but are critical for the location-based features in mobile SNS applications. Drawing on behavioral reasoning theory and accounting for the privacy paradox, this study investigates the heterogeneous psychological mechanisms supporting and discouraging mobile SNS users from enabling location tracking in SNS applications. Based on a survey of young internet users in China, our analysis shows that, first, reasons for location tracking are insignificantly associated with intention to allow location tracking but reasons against are negatively related to intention. Furthermore, for individuals with higher desire to share, reasons for and attitude have the stronger associations with intention, while the moderating effect of desire for privacy is insignificant. We make research contributions by examining the antecedents of the reasoning process, as well as the moderating role of desire to share, to account for the privacy paradox. We also contribute to behavioral reasoning theory by introducing regulatory focus-based antecedents to the reasoning process. We offer key practical suggestions for SNS providers and policymakers.
KW - Behavioral reasoning theory
KW - Location tracking
KW - Privacy concern
KW - Privacy paradox
KW - Regulatory focus theory
KW - Social network service
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85148325539&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.techfore.2023.122412
DO - 10.1016/j.techfore.2023.122412
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85148325539
SN - 0040-1625
VL - 190
JO - Technological Forecasting and Social Change
JF - Technological Forecasting and Social Change
M1 - 122412
ER -