Digital Crowding: Privacy, Self-Disclosure, and Technology

In this chapter, we introduce and develop the concept of “digital crowding.” Traditionally, crowding has been conceptualized as excessive social contact or insufficient personal space (Altman 1975). Under these circumstances, not only do people show signs of stress, but they also engage in a number of techniques to escape excessive social contact (Baum and Valins 1977). For instance, studies of students in shared, crowded spaces find that they spend more time in their bedrooms than in social spaces, are more likely to seek friendships outside of the crowded area, and even sit further away from strangers in waiting rooms (Baum and Valins 1977). We argue that while much of the discussion of privacy and technology has focused on information flow and leakage, it has ignored the interactive, interpersonal impact of new technology. In this chapter, we begin by examining the key issues raised by technology for privacy. We then discuss earlier, non-technology focused theories that cover interpersonal aspects of privacy. Finally, we examine some ways in which technology might impact on interpersonal privacy, with a specific focus on social network sites.