Dimensions of Privacy

Abstract

A factor analytic study proceeded in two phases to determine types of privacy. In Phase I 96 items were collected, administered to 166 people, and factor analyzed. For Phase II items were retained, revised, added, or deleted to form a condensed pool of 30 items of greater factorial purity. This revised questionnaire was given to 188 subjects and then factor analyzed. Six independent factors of privacy were obtained, and factor scales to measure them were developed consisting of five factor pure items per factor. The privacy factors identified were: Reserve, Isolation, Solitary, Intimacy with Family, Intimacy with Friends, and Anonymity.

Privacy Dimensions: A Case Study in the Interior Architecture Design Studio

“…Lastly, some information about privacy regulations in the design studio was determined (see Appendix, Part I). The second part of the questionnaire consisted of a 5 -point numerical scale which measured the six states of privacy regulation as Pedersen (1979) de¢ned (see Appendix, Part II). The six states of privacy were measured in this part, with a questionnaire similar to the studies of Pedersen (1979), and Rustemli and Kokdemir (1993) (see Table 1).…”

“…These four kinds are solitude, reserve, intimacy, and anonymity. Afterwards, Marshall (1974) empirically determined Westin's four states of privacy and found two additional states: not-neighbouring, and seclusion Later, Pedersen (1979) stated six states of privacy as a result of an empirical study. In Pedersen's classi¢cation, seclusion and not-neighbouring are not considered, and instead, like Westin's classi¢cations, he de¢nes solitude, reserve, anonymity, and intimacy.…”

“…Since design £ourishes with interaction between individuals, isolation as a means of physical separation does not have a positive e¡ect on the performance of the design student. Pedersen (1979) explains isolation as a state of privacy being similar to solitude, but refers to it as a physical separation of oneself from others. Intimacy is a type of privacy that is related to an individual's or group's desire to promote close personal relationships with only preferred individuals.…”

“…It was important to put forward the occupants' understanding of these concepts in order to understand their expectations relating to these behavioural elements. It was also aimed to apply the scales developed by Pedersen (1979) to investigate sex di¡erences in patterns of privacy preferences among the students in the design studio.…”

“…In the second part of the questionnaire, the six states of privacy de¢ned by Pedersen (1979) were adapted to the studio environment. The privacy preferences of the participants were measured according to these speci¢c conditions (see Appendix, Part II).…”