What Makes Workplace Privacy Special? An Investigation of Determinants of Privacy Concerns in the Digital Workplace

Abstract

Novel organizational requirements, together with concurrent advances in digital technologies, promote increasing digitalization in the workplace. The successful implementation of a digital workplace may however be challenged by employees’ information privacy concerns. While the existing literature explores the emergence and consequences of privacy concerns from a consumer perspective, we know little about privacy in a workplace context. This study examines why the digital workplace requires a specific focus on information privacy. Following a grounded theory methodology, we conducted 13 interviews with interdisciplinary privacy experts from research and practice who each offer a unique angle on the topic. We point out five core determinants and nine corresponding drivers for privacy concerns from an environmental, interpersonal, and personal dimension. Combined, these determinants are essential in making the case about what makes privacy in a technology-driven workplace special