MISQ Archivist
Fear Appeals and Information
Security Behaviors: An Empirical Study
Allen C. Johnston
and Merrill Warkentin
Abstract
Information technology executives strive to align the actions of end
users with the desired security posture of management and of the
firm through persuasive communication. In many cases, some element
of fear is incorporated within these communications. However, within
the context of computer security and information assurance, it is
not yet clear how these fear-inducing arguments, known as fear
appeals, will ultimately impact the actions of end users. The
purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of fear
appeals on the compliance of end users with recommendations to enact
specific individual computer security actions toward the mitigation
of threats. An examination was performed that culminated in the
development and testing of a conceptual model representing an
infusion of technology adoption and fear appeal theories.
Results of the study suggest that fear appeals do
impact end user behavioral intentions to comply with recommended
individual acts of security, but the impact is not uniform across
all end users. It is determined in part by perceptions of
self-efficacy, response efficacy, threat severity, and social
influence. The findings of this research contribute to information
systems security research, human–computer interaction, and
organizational communication by revealing a new paradigm in which IT
users form perceptions of the technology, not on the basis of
performance gains, but on the basis of utility for threat
mitigation.
Keywords: Information security, countermeasures,
deterrence theory, fear appeals, persuasive communication,
information assurance, threat appraisal, coping appraisal