A complementary structural equation modelling (SEM) and artificial intelligence (AI) approach could be used to determine what drives learners, students, to share information about themselves, so-called self-disclosure, online. Fundamentally, it seems that privacy has no direct effect, according to research published in the International Journal of Mobile Communications, although the indirect effect of privacy concerns on trust does have an effect.
Ibrahim Arpaci of the Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technology at Tokat Gaziosmanpasa University, in Turkey, explains that his model has focused on the role of security, privacy, and trust perceptions in predicting the attitudes towards the posting of “selfies”, photographic self-portraits on social networking sites. His survey and analysis of the behaviour of some 300 undergraduate students provide important clues surrounding this concept.
It has been shown previously using “privacy calculus theory” that there is an inevitable trade-off between the need for personal privacy and the perceived benefits of self-disclosure in various settings and not least in the online world. It can explain the privacy paradox, for instance, where see people not wishing to have their data and personal information such as photos exposed and the urgency with which many people share that information willingly with other members of the public and perhaps unwittingly with third parties associated with the online tools and apps they use.
It is important from the sociological perspective to get a clear view of how online behaviour is driven, how paradoxes are sidestepped, and how the online world might evolve as social media and social networking mature.
Arpaci, I. (2020) ‘What drives students’ online self-disclosure behaviour on social media? A hybrid SEM and artificial intelligence approach’, Int. J. Mobile Communications, Vol. 18, No. 2, pp.229–241.