Enhancing Users' Attitudes towards WebIDs: Exploring the Effects of Persuasive Messaging on User Adoption

Abstract

As society and businesses increasingly rely on data, individuals are growing more uneasy about the protection and management of their personal information. Solid, a decentralized web standard, offers a promising solution by providing individuals with a personal online data store and a corresponding WebID for identification. However, the adoption of WebIDs is still in its early stages and many companies remain uncertain about how to position WebIDs in a way that ensures user acceptance. This study leverages the theory of planned behaviour to explore the effects of different types of persuasive reasoning, aimed at strengthening individuals' attitudes, on their intention to create a WebID. The study identified three persuasive messaging strategies from practice favouring the choice for WebIDs: enhanced control, enhanced personalization, and Single Sign-On (SSO). An online experiment presented participants with one of the persuasive messages and the choice of creating a WebID or using existing accounts (Google, Apple, Facebook) to register on a news website. The results indicate that highlighting enhanced personalization or positioning WebIDs as a Single Sign-On (SSO) solution significantly increased the adoption rate of WebIDs, in contrast to emphasizing enhanced control. This study lays the groundwork for future comprehensive research aimed at exploring the underlying reasons behind the positive influence of certain factors on the adoption of WebIDs.