Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Dissertation - Open Access

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)

Advisor(s)

Ginger Killian McClure, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Keenan D. Yoho, Ph.D.

Keywords

Web 4.0, data privacy, technophobia, privacy fatigue, user experience, technology trust

Abstract

With the increasingly connected nature of Web 4.0 and the AI-enabled internet, new ways to capture biometric data through smart devices are becoming more commonplace, and users are presented with an overwhelming number of decisions regarding how their data is collected and used. As such, concerns about data privacy remain a key issue among those with varying levels of fears of technology. However, privacy concern scales have not yet been updated to give researchers a full picture of the impact, and with control mechanisms varying widely across countries as regulation struggles to keep pace with innovation, trust in technology can be broken quickly. Targeted education can raise digital competence with new technologies, but the overall user experience can still be diminished if privacy fatigue sets in from too many options during initial setup. To better understand modern perceptions of these types of impacts to user experience, participants in the United States (n=199) were asked to respond to a questionnaire that included newly proposed data privacy concern scale items related to voluntary use of modern technologies. As part of this study, the IUIPC-14 scale was psychometrically validated through the confirmatory factor analysis process to extend existing measures to this new context. Additionally, using PLS-SEM analysis, findings indicate that while personality traits such as neuroticism and levels of technophobia cannot necessarily be changed, designing experiences to mitigate the effects of these traits is imperative for firms to instill trust, reduce fatigue, and drive continued adoption as technology continues to evolve.

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