| The goal of the present study was to extend research on information privacy by examining it within the context of human resource information systems. Employers have become increasingly aware of the need to control the gathering, usage, and disclosure of personal employee information. The practices and methods for protecting employee privacy within organizations, however, vary widely (Smith, 1993). Although privacy is a common popular press topic (Piller, 1993), there is relatively little empirical research that examines employee reactions to human resource information system policies. Further, there is no theoretical framework to guide research in this area.; Because the use of human resource information systems may affect employee concerns of privacy and fairness, the independent variables examined in the present study were derived from models of privacy (Stone & Stone, 1990) and procedural justice (Leventhal, 1980). The present study had three main goals. First, using a 2 x 2 experimental design and data from employed subjects who were members of an organization that was in the process of developing a human resource information system, the present study examined the main and interactive effects of policies concerning ability to authorize disclosure (ability to authorize versus no ability to authorize), and target of disclosure (internal versus external) on invasion of privacy and fairness. Results indicate that ability to authorize disclosure and target of disclosure have main and interactive effects on both fairness and invasion of privacy. Second, structural equation modeling was used to examine the relationships among invasion of privacy, fairness, and withholding information. Results indicate that invasion of privacy is related to fairness, which subsequently is related to withholding information. Further, results support a model with direct effects from the organizational policies to both fairness and invasion of privacy over a model that hypothesized invasion of privacy to be a complete mediator. Study limitations, implications for theory, and practical implications are discussed. |
