Privacy Paradox: Does Stated Privacy Concerns Translate into the Valuation of Personal Information?

Information privacy paradox is of great interest to IS researchers and firms gathering personal information. This paradox has been found by IS researchers from social, behavioral, and economic aspects independently. However, there is a lack of study that examines the degrees of influence that different factors contribute to the privacy paradox problem. We combine both economic and social perspectives in our study of the privacy paradox with an economic valuation of personal information through an auction experiment in first market exchange combined with a behavioral study on general privacy concerns and specific disclosure behaviors. Our goal is to reveal more insights on the paradox through a privacy auction on personal information. Results indicate that individuals’ privacy concerns do not have a significant influence on their valuations of personal information. Instead, their prior disclosure behaviors in specific situations, like with health-care providers or social networks, are better indicators of their valuations.