Abstract:

This research deals with customers’ behaviors when a web site asks them for personal data. The objective is to identify the respective impact of individual and situational factors on Net surfers’ decisions to provide personal information. Two potentially influential situational factors are tested within the framework of an experimental study: the context of the request and the quantity of required data. The results confirm the effect of data quantity and show that situational variables have a more important effect than personal convictions. We also show a commitment effect: when an individual agrees to give personal data, he has a higher probability of continuing the relationship with the requesting company.