Linking survey and Facebook data: mechanisms of consent and linkage

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Jette Schröder - , Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences (Author)
  • Sanja Kapidzic - , Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences (Author)
  • Henning Silber - , Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences (Author)
  • Florian Keusch - , University of Mannheim (Author)
  • Natalja Menold - , Chair of Methods in Empirical Social Research (Author)
  • Christoph Beuthner - , Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences (Author)

Abstract

Using a German online panel, we investigate respondents’ propensity to consent to the linkage of publicly available Facebook data to their survey data and to enable linkage. We analyse the effects of three experimental variations on consent and linkage among Facebook users: (1) the consent question wording, (2) the position of the Facebook consent question in a series of consent questions, and (3) the incentive offered. To describe potential selection bias, we consider respondents’ attitudes and sociodemographic characteristics. We found effects of consent question placement on consent and linkage and effects of higher incentives on linkage, but we found no effects of question wording. Our analysis also showed that linkage was dependent on privacy and data security concerns, trust in the data-collecting actor, respondents’ attitudes toward surveys, and several sociodemographic characteristics.

Details

Original languageEnglish
JournalInternational journal of social research methodology : IJSRM ; theory & practice
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 9 Sept 2024
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

Scopus 85203445689

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Keywords

  • Consent, data linkage, experiment, Facebook, online survey