Date of Award

12-2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Psychology

Department

Psychology

First Reader/Committee Chair

SHULTZ, KENNETH

Abstract

The use of social media in personnel selection is a growing phenomenon amongst many organizations (Roth et al., 2016). However, different social media types, both personal and professional, arise when organizations use personal social media in personnel selection. The information present on personal social media platforms is often not relevant to the applicant's job qualifications. An important issue that arises when personal social media is used is the applicant's perceived invasion of privacy. There is very little literature that examines any demographic differences in the perceived invasion of privacy when social media is used in personnel selection. Understanding if there are differences in the perceptions of invasion of privacy based on demographic characteristics can assist an organization that uses social media in personnel selection to understand the impact of specific demographic factors better. A literature review is presented to provide background on social media use in selection, perceived invasion of privacy, and the demographic differences between the two constructs. In the present study, I examined demographic differences in applicants' opinions on privacy invasion when social media was used in personnel selection. Based on a sample of 115 respondents, the results indicate that age does impact respondents perceived invasion of privacy when social media is used in the selection process, while education level does not. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

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