Friends Only: Examining a Privacy-Enhancing Behavior in Facebook

Privacy practices in social network sites often appear paradoxical, as content-sharing behavior stands in conflict with the need to reduce disclosure-related harms. In this study we explore privacy in social network sites as a contextual information practice, managed by a process of boundary regulation. Drawing on a sample survey of undergraduate Facebook users, we examine a particular privacy-enhancing practice: having a friends-only Facebook profile. Particularly, we look at the association between network composition, expectancy violations, interpersonal privacy practices and having a friends-only profile. We find that expectancy violations by weak ties and increased levels of interpersonal privacy management are positively associated with having a friends-only profile. We conclude with a discussion of how these findings may be integrated into the design of systems to facilitate interaction while enhancing individual privacy.

Fred Stutzman and Jacob Kramer-Duffield
School of Information and Library Science
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Original source from Prelinger Archive (Public Domain): http://www.archive.org/details/Friendsh1949

Category:

Education

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• chi2010
• chi2010madness
• privacy
• facebook
• research