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The Effects of Privacy Policy Presentation and Length on Trust in Recommender Systems: An Online Experiment

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  • Schewe, Marc
  • Bahník, Štěpán

Abstract

Recommender systems play a crucial role in e-commerce by simplifying consumer searches, improving decision making, and increasing user satisfaction, ultimately boosting e-vendors’ revenues. Their effectiveness depends on the trust of the users and the availability of data to generate accurate recommendations. Using an online experiment, we examined the effect of privacy policies and the amount of requested information on trust in recommender systems and willingness to share data. The results showed that a long privacy policy reduced trust compared to a short or absent policy. The presentation of a privacy policy and the request for more data decreased participants’ willingness to share data with the system, but a long policy did not further decrease the sharing beyond the effect of a short policy. To maintain trust and encourage data sharing, e-vendors may benefit from offering privacy policies upon request, keeping them concise, and minimizing data requests.

Suggested Citation

  • Schewe, Marc & Bahník, Štěpán, 2026. "The Effects of Privacy Policy Presentation and Length on Trust in Recommender Systems: An Online Experiment," EconStor Preprints 335109, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:esprep:335109
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    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/335109/1/Privacy-Policy-Presentation-in-Recommender-Systems.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. David B. Meinert & Dane K. Peterson & John R. Criswell & Martin D. Crossland, 2006. "Privacy Policy Statements and Consumer Willingness to Provide Personal Information," Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations (JECO), IGI Global Scientific Publishing, vol. 4(1), pages 1-17, January.
    2. Tom Buchanan & Carina Paine & Adam N. Joinson & Ulf‐Dietrich Reips, 2007. "Development of measures of online privacy concern and protection for use on the Internet," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 58(2), pages 157-165, January.
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    4. Dokyun Lee & Kartik Hosanagar, 2021. "How Do Product Attributes and Reviews Moderate the Impact of Recommender Systems Through Purchase Stages?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(1), pages 524-546, January.
    5. Steven D. Levitt & John A. List, 2007. "What Do Laboratory Experiments Measuring Social Preferences Reveal About the Real World?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 21(2), pages 153-174, Spring.
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    JEL classification:

    • M31 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Marketing and Advertising - - - Marketing
    • L81 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Retail and Wholesale Trade; e-Commerce

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