Privacy Statements as a Means of Uncertainty Reduction in WWW Interactions - End User Computing Challenges and Technologies: Emerging Tools and Applications - page 193

Table 1. Information-gathering strategies of Internet users and companies

notions that (1) humans have an innate need to
reduce uncertainty about themselves and others
and (2) they prefer predictable relationships with
others, URT posits that reducing uncertainty by
sharing social information is crucial to developing
stable relationships (Berger, 1979; Berger & Bra-
dac, 1982; Berger & Calabrese, 1975). Uncertainty
is defined as a cognitive state resulting from an
individual's assessment of the number of alterna-
tive predictions available for a stranger's future
behavior” (Bradac, 2001, p. 464). This uncertainty
in a relationship is perceived as unpleasant and
motivates people to seek information about others
(i.e., social information) to increase the predict-
ability of their behavior in interactions. High levels
of uncertainty in a relationship lead to low levels
of self-disclosure and prompt information-seek-
ing behavior. Thus, in initial interactions, both
interactants in a relationship seek information
about each other. Basically, people use three
different strategies to gather social information
about others: passive (observation from afar),
active (acquisition of information from third par-
ties), and interactive (direct contact) (Berger &
Bradac, 1982). But only if both interactants are
willing to divulge information about themselves
can a relationship be built. In order for a stable
relationship to develop, the amount of information
disclosed to an interactant needs to correspond
to the amount of information received from that
interactant (Cragan & Shields, 1998).
URT has been applied to relationships in a
variety of contexts, including organizational
communication (Kramer, 1993), cross-cultural
communication (Gudykunst et al., 1985; Hammer

& Martin, 1992; Olaniran & Williams, 1995), and
computer-mediated communication (Grabowski
& Roberts, 1998). It is also well suited as a frame-
work for examining the usefulness of privacy
policies for reducing Internet users' uncertainties
about data privacy, since users have been found
to read privacy policies to manage risk (Milne &
Culnan, 2004). In WWW interactions between
users and companies, both participants have the
means to collect information about their business
partners actively, passively, or interactively, as
outlined in Table 1. Users may access company
information on the company's Web site (passive),
obtain information about the company from other
customers (active), or contact the company di-
rectly via e-mail or feedback forms (interactive).
To collect information on users, companies may
employ cookies and Web beacons, acquire infor-
mation from third parties (e.g., credit agencies,
information brokers) or ask users for personal
information when they register with the site or
complete surveys and feedback forms.
Thus, users provide data to companies either
consciously (e.g., when they order goods or
complete surveys) or unconsciously (e.g., when
their navigation behavior on the site is tracked).
Companies collect these types of data not only to
handle orders but also to improve and customize
their Web sites and their products with a view
to strengthening customer relationships. As il-
lustrated in Figure 1, companies disclosing their
data handling practices in the form of privacy
policies may reduce users' uncertainties about
data privacy. If companies communicate data
handling practices in an unequivocal manner and