About This Project
Have you ever updated your status looking for support, but only to find few (if any) comments or likes? People use Facebook (and others) for support, empathy, and advice. Receiving support in such a medium can be therapeutic, but it can also make one vulnerable. Thus, it is important we know and understand the type of person looking for and/or providing such support. Is one personality type more prone to reaching out for this support than another?Ask the Scientists
Join The DiscussionWhat is the context of this research?
Information security is of paramount concern to individuals, organizations, governments, and the military. Humans have been recognized as the weakest link in information security. While sometimes this is due to malicious activity, often times it is the result of sharing information that should not be shared.
Social networking sites provide an exciting opportunity for the average user to share pictures, thoughts, etc., from their day to day activities. However, in doing so they may make themselves vulnerable to identity theft, stalking, etc.
This research will examine the role of the big five personality traits (extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness) in how individuals either seek or do not seek support.
What is the significance of this project?
Individuals that are active on social networking sites, such as Facebook, often see or contribute to posts that seek social support. These posts include phrases such as, "feeling lonely," "nothing ever seems to go right," "can't I get a break?," etc.
While these phrases may seem innocuous, they provide an open door for individuals to take advantage of them, cause physical or emotional harm, make them feel worse by not providing such support, etc.
Although research is growing on the use of social networking sites as a platform for support, there remains a dearth of research that examines the type of people that look for such support.
The more we know about the type of person that looks for such support, the better equipped we will be to design and develop appropriate interventions.
What are the goals of the project?
The following activities will be performed to conduct this research:
1) Develop a list of phrases that are representative of the phrases used by individuals seeking support.
2) Pre-test these phrases and make modifications/changes, as appropriate.
3) Incorporate the phrases into rating schema using a Likert scale to determine how often individuals use specific types of phrases in posts they make.
4) Develop a survey that incorporates demographic data, the phrases, and personality questions and test the instrument in a pilot study.
5) Make modifications/changes to the survey instrument and administer it to a large sample of approximately 350 individuals.
6) Analyze results.
7) Write up the results in a paper and submit the paper to a conference.
8) Present at a conference and publish in a journal.
Budget
I just recently completed my Ph.D. and will be applying to tenure-track positions this fall. Currently, I am a full-time lecturer without a research budget and unable to apply to most types of grants due to not yet being in a tenure-track position. While I am happy to self-fund where I can, I do not have extra money to do this for this project as I am a new father with a 10-month old baby girl at home.
The funds will be used to cover basic expenses associated with carrying out this research, such as participant compensation, funding to engage one or more undergraduate research assistants in meaningful research, and funding for travel to a conference for myself and an undergraduate research assistant.
This research is important and urgent given the popularity of social networking sites, their use as a support mechanism, and the potentially dangerous consequences of sharing too much information about one's self.
Meet the Team
Team Bio
I am a lecturer with the Institute of Technology, University of Washington Tacoma, as well as the Director of Human Factors for the Center for Information Assurance and Cybersecurity. The main focus of my research is on understanding the information security behavior of home users, including issues related to decision making and the user experience. My dissertation examined the role of trait affect on the information security behavior of home users.I serve as the Vice Chair of the User Experience Committee for the Identity Ecosystem Steering Group of the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace initiative. This fall I will be starting the Security and Privacy Research and Outreach Group (SPROG). The purpose of this group is to provide an environment for innovative research on issues related to security and privacy, as well as identify opportunities for outreach in these areas with the local community.
Marc Dupuis
Marc Dupuis, Ph.D., is a researcher and lecturer with the University of Washington as well as the Director of Human Factors for the Center for Information Assurance and Cybersecurity (CIAC). His main focus is understanding the information security behavior of home users, including issues related to decision making and the user experience.
Additional Information
Looking for Support on Social Media (some examples)
Some of My Related Research
Dupuis, M. (2014). The Role of Trait Affect in the Information Security Behavior of Home Users (Dissertation). University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.
Dupuis, M. and Endicott-Popovsky, B. (2014). “The Art of Cyber Warfare: An Exploration of Classic Military Strategies and the Threat Against Home Users.” Presented at the International Conference on Cyber Warfare and Security (ICCWS 2014), West Lafayette, IN. (presentation)
Dupuis, M., Menking, A., & Mason, R. (2014). “Perceptions of Walls: An Exploration of Trait Affect and Personality in a Cross Cultural Study of Perception of Risks Related to the Edward Snowden Case.” Presented at the iConference, Berlin, Germany. (full paper)
Mason, R., & Dupuis, M. (2014). “Cultural Values, Information Sources, and Perceptions of Security.” Presented at the iConference, Berlin, Germany. (research note)
Dupuis, M., Crossler, R. E., & Endicott-Popovsky, B. (2012). “The Information Security Behavior of Home Users: Exploring a User’s Risk Tolerance and Past Experiences in the Context of Backing Up Information.” Presented at The Dewald Roode Information Security Workshop, Provo, Utah. (full paper)
Project Backers
- 2Backers
- 1%Funded
- $45Total Donations
- $22.50Average Donation