Paper Number

ECIS2026-2295

Paper Type

CRP

Abstract

Opt-out models are becoming prevalent in data ecosystems to make use of individuals’ data, supported by major data protection legislation. Chatbots may be effective in informing individuals on their opt-out right, and particularly proactive configurations have shown to be popular. However, little is known about how a chatbot’s proactivity influences opt-out decisions and to what extent subjective norm might influence the decision. We perform a between-subject online lab experiment to examine how AI proactivity and subjective norm shape individuals’ perceived informedness and subsequent opt-out behaviour. We find more informed individuals to be less likely to opt out and that perceived informedness substantially mediates AI proactivity and opt-out decisions: Greater AI proactivity unexpectedly reduces perceived informedness, leading to higher opt-out likelihood. Moreover, we confirm the influence of subjective norm on decision-making. These findings highlight the need to carefully calibrate chatbot behaviour and consider subjective norm to foster informed data sharing decisions.

Download

Share

COinS
 
Jun 14th, 12:00 AM

Informed To Stay Or Still Opt-Out? Unpacking The Impact Of AI Proactivity and Subjective Norm In Data Ecosystems

Opt-out models are becoming prevalent in data ecosystems to make use of individuals’ data, supported by major data protection legislation. Chatbots may be effective in informing individuals on their opt-out right, and particularly proactive configurations have shown to be popular. However, little is known about how a chatbot’s proactivity influences opt-out decisions and to what extent subjective norm might influence the decision. We perform a between-subject online lab experiment to examine how AI proactivity and subjective norm shape individuals’ perceived informedness and subsequent opt-out behaviour. We find more informed individuals to be less likely to opt out and that perceived informedness substantially mediates AI proactivity and opt-out decisions: Greater AI proactivity unexpectedly reduces perceived informedness, leading to higher opt-out likelihood. Moreover, we confirm the influence of subjective norm on decision-making. These findings highlight the need to carefully calibrate chatbot behaviour and consider subjective norm to foster informed data sharing decisions.

When commenting on articles, please be friendly, welcoming, respectful and abide by the AIS eLibrary Discussion Thread Code of Conduct posted here.