The Impact of Time Pressure on Human Cybersecurity Behavior: An Integrative Framework

Cybersecurity is a growing concern for private individuals and professional entities. Thereby, reports have shown that the majority of cybersecurity incidents occur because users fail to behave securely. Research on human cybersecurity (HCS) behavior suggests that time pressure is one of the important driving factors behind insecure HCS behavior. However, as our review reveals, studies on the role of time pressure in HCS are scant and there is no framework that can inform researchers and practitioners on this matter. In this paper, we present a conceptual framework consisting of contexts, psychological constructs, and boundary conditions pertaining to the role time pressure plays on HCS behavior. The framework is also validated and extended by findings from semi-structured interviews of different stakeholder groups comprising of cybersecurity experts, professionals, and general users. The framework will serve as a guideline for future studies exploring different aspects of time pressure in cybersecurity contexts and also to identify potential countermeasures for the detrimental impact of time pressure on HCS behavior.