Risk, Benefit, and Moderators of the Affect Heuristic in a Widespread Unlawful Activity: Evidence from a Survey of Unlawful File‐Sharing Behavior

Abstract

Increasing the perception of legal risk via publicized litigation and lobbying for copyright law enforcement has had limited success in reducing unlawful content sharing by the public. We consider the extent to which engaging in file sharing online is motivated by the perceived benefits of this activity as opposed to perceived legal risks. Moreover, we explore moderators of the relationship between perceived risk and perceived benefits; namely, trust in industry and legal regulators, and perceived online anonymity. We examine these questions via a large two-part survey of consumers of music (n = 658) and eBooks (n = 737). We find that perceptions of benefit, but not of legal risk, predict stated file-sharing behavior. An affect heuristic is employed: as perceived benefit increases, perceived risk falls. This relationship is increased under high regulator and industry trust (which actually increases perceived risk in this study) and low anonymity (which also increases perceived risk). We propose that, given the limited impact of perceived legal risk upon unlawful downloading, it would be better for the media industries to target enhancing the perceived benefit and availability of lawful alternatives.

Does opportunity make the thief? Abilities and moral disengagement in illegal downloading

“…To address moral disengagement, communication should reinforce perceptions of the seriousness of piracy by designing emotionally involving messages that show and describe the consequences of piracy on intellectual property businesses and on the people associated with them. On the other hand, in accordance with recent research (Watson et al 2016;De Corte & Van Kenhove, 2017), piracy intentions may be more strongly associated with perceived abilities and envisaged benefits than with moral reasoning. The aging of the millennial generation may correspond to the consolidation of piracy practices.…”

Risk as affect: The affect heuristic in cybersecurity

“…The 17/48 person might not necessarily accept any proclaimed benefits, due to negative affect related to previous experiences of complexity and usage difficulties related to encryption technologies. Watson et al (2017) carried out an investigation into unlawful file sharing behaviours. They discovered that the affect heuristic also came into play in this domain.…”

Trust in whom? Dioxin, organizations, risk perception, and fish consumption in Michigan’s Saginaw Bay watershed

“…Problematically however, research consistently shows that trust is not always associated with increases in cooperative behavior and, in some cases, is actually inversely related such that increased trust is actually associated with increased risky behavior (Sjöberg 1999; see also Chryssochoidis, Strada, and Krystallis 2009;Feng et al 2013;Siegrist, Cvetkovich, and Roth 2000;Watson, Zizzo, and Fleming 2017). In the current research, we present data that contributes to this body of scholarship by addressing the role of trust in reducing risky behavior among a sample of anglers in a dioxin-contaminated watershed.…”

“…The well-established implications of this perceived value similarity for trust (e.g., Earle, Siegrist, and Gutscher 2010) suggest that the level of trust in these organizations will differ, but it may also be that the impact of that trust on risk-relevant behavior will itself be inconsistent. Indeed, research regularly suggests that trust in actors relevant to a variety of risks are inconsistently related to each other and, as a result, to risk-relevant behavior (Chryssochoidis, Strada, and Krystallis 2009;Feng et al 2013;Siegrist, Cvetkovich, and Roth 2000;Sjöberg 1999;Watson, Zizzo, and Fleming 2017).…”