Rethinking social media information disclosure: An application of Users and Gratifications Theory

Digital privacy research suggests that individuals view personal information disclosure negatively (Ellison et al 2011). However, personal information within social media can be ‘social capital’ that is exchanged for personal gain not only between individuals but also with commercial organisations (Kang et al 2014). Indeed, consumer engagement research indicates that users actively seek social media connections with brand fan pages (Brodie et al 2011, de Vries et al 2012). Hence individuals manage a tension between information disclosure risk and benefits (Ibrahim 2008, Tufekci 2008). Research indicates that individuals differ in the extent of information disclosure and segmentation theory shows that there is utility in identifying distinct groupings of consumers within a market place. Hence, we test whether it is possible to identify social media segments according to brand engagement motivation and then examine the extent to which differences in information disclosure relate to brand engagement motivation.